What is the true cost we pay for cheap clothing? Well, you've learned half of the real price we pay in terms of the millions of innocent animals that are slaughtered for our fur coats and leather handbags through our PAWS campaign. But what about in terms of the human slave workers in garment factories who struggle every day around the world to gain the least bit of decency in their working conditions and wages? The tragic story of Shumaya Begum is just one of the myriad of unheard stories that reveal the true cost of cheap fashion. Shumaya started working at just 11 years old at Tazreen, known for its toiling and hazardous conditions in its garment factories in Bangaldesh. Her typical day consisted of sewing 90 pieces per hour -the very T-shirts and jeans that we see hanging on the racks of the stores in our local mall - with no toilet breaks outside the lunch hour. She usually worked 12 or more hours a day, six days a week. The young girl was sewing hoodies on November 24, 2012, when suddenly the lights went out and a commotion began. A raging fire had started on the first floor and began to spread throughout the building. In an attempt to escape, workers found out that the doors were locked from the outside and thus were forced to jump out the windows into the adjacent building. Shumaya suffered terrible blows to her face while scrumming to escape for her life to the next building. However, not everyone was lucky; around 112 people met their deaths at the Tazreen fire that day. After a couple of days, Shumaya started to nosebleed and the swelling around her eyes would not recede. When taken to the hospital, the 13-year-old girl was told that due to prolonged exposure to the fumes of the fire, a cancer had developed in her eyes. Unfortunately, after fighting a brave battle, Shumaya died on March 2014. Despite numerous cases like Shumaya's, no legal action is taken against these factories. The families do not receive any form of worker compensation or apology. Factory owners might occasionally be subject to a government investigation, but no charges are bought against them in the end. Theses factories don't halt operations for tragedies; they continue to mass produce to meet the consumers' pressing demands to stay on top of the trend or to get what Kylie Jenner wore for only $20 at Forever 21. If you haven't realized by now, these consumers are us. This lack of government intervention to properly resolve these factory incidencts and our negligence to take notice and do something about this has served injustice to these poor workers for way too long. These poor workers have been cheated out of their wages by greedy owners for way too long. What we hold in our shopping bags, smiling at the great deals we were able to buy everything for, has the bloods of people like Shumaya, who toil endlessly without recognition to quench our desires for today's trend, next month's top fashion item, next year's vogue - this neverending cycle of wanting more and more. Right now, as members of the global community in which we do hold some sort of responsibility over the workers across the world suffering to meet the demands of consumers in wealthier countries like America, there are things we can do to make an impact on the world. For one, we can start to pay attention to WHERE our new purchases are made. We can communicate the message to our friends and family to spread awareness to the consumer population. One thing we also need to keep in mind is that these accidents happen everywhere, not just in Bangladesh. Here are some petitions we can sign to provide social justice for garment workers: Pledge to Become a Responsible Clothing Consumer - http://takeaction.takepart.com/actions/help-reduce-the-true-cost-of-fast-fashion-become-a-responsible-clothing-consumer United Students Against Sweatshops (USAS) - http://usas.org/campaigns/garment-worker-solidarity/ Bangladesh Rana Plaza Incident - https://ggj.ourpowerbase.net/civicrm/petition/sign?sid=1&reset=1 Cambodia Puma Supplier Company - https://www.change.org/p/we-seek-justice-for-cambodian-garment-workers-shot-at-puma-supplier-factory
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Most of us, when shopping, almost never check the fabric of clothes and where it came from. By that, I don't mean physically feeling the shirt's softness or seeing if it was made in Bangladesh, but rather which animal was stripped of its suit to provide one for us. For years, millions of animals have provided clothes for our bare bodies. Now, it's time for us to help them out. It is crucial that we are aware of how many animals were slaughtered to keep the fashion industry running.
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Our Goal:To inform on the ongoing crises that the clothing industry poses on our community and applaud any acts that rise over the conventional ways of consumption.
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