Sweatshops: We’re Rich Because They’re Poor

Three fashion bloggers from Norway agreed to star in a month-long reality show in Cambodia, but what they were expecting was more “Project Runway,” and less human rights violations in a series produced by their country’s largest newspaper, Aftenposten.

This was not the blogosphere that these three were accustom to. According to an advocacy group, Clean Clothes, this is the harsh reality for more than 500,000 people.

“The truth is, that we are rich because they’re poor,” Hambro said in the final episode of “Sweatshop.” “We are rich because it costs us 10 euros (about $11) to buy a T-shirt [at] H&M. But somebody else has to starve for you to be able to buy it.”

The workers at the sweatshop tell their story of how they have to wake up at 5:30 a.m, and slave over sewing machines that frequently break down. This leaves the workers frustrated.

When a teenage worker revealed to Jorgensen, one of the Norway bloggers, that her mother died of starvation because the family couldn’t afford food, the blogger was so horrified, she couldn’t find the words to respond.

These poor industry workers toil six days a week and make just $100 a month. $100 a month….. let that sink in a little bit. It costs more than that for food in the U.S., let alone to take care of their basic expenses, according to Clean Clothes. In addition to taking home a meager income, they also face unsafe working conditions, which have led to mass faintings and deaths in building collapses.

Sure, it’s easy to slam these naive bloggers for just dropping in on this under served world which they admit to having known little about. However, they did take a chance and jump in head-first to see what it was all about. To their surprise, they are returning home with a different outlook on the industry in which they love.

What is the answer to this problem? This is not new news. There are sweatshops all around the world. But by sending people of privilege to countries and areas such as this Cambodian sweatshop we can help educate the naive and help make a change.

“Be the change you want to see in the world” ~ Buddha

Read the full story Fashion Bloggers Work In Cambodian Sweatshop, Learn ‘We’re Rich Because They’re Poor’

Photo credit darkday

 

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