Feb. 15: Sweatshop speakout

Feb 15, 8 pm

Workers from the Garment Industry Speak Out

Jerome Greene Hall
Columbia Law School
(116th and Amsterdam)

Come hear workers from Mexico, the Dominican Republic, and El Salvador share their stories about producing for university brands like Nike, Reebok, and Adidas and their struggles for fair wages and good working conditions on

In the fall, SEEJ and student groups on nearly 50 other campuses presented their administrations with a "Designated Suppliers Program" which demanded that in order to produce collegiate apparel, brands most produce it in factories where workers have democratic representation and are paid a living wage.

Josefina Hernandez Ponce, Vladimir Acevedo Andujar, Joaquin Alas, who will speak out, come from factories which would meet this criteria. Unfortunately, their
victories are being threatened by the international apparel industry who are systematically blacklisting or shifting production away from their factories. As of yet, Columbia has not publicly supported the "Designated Suppliers Program" which will allow these workers to earn decent wages in factories that respect their rights.
Come learn about workers' struggles and how you can take part!

Josefina Hernandez Ponce is a worker and union leader from the Mex
Mode factory (formerly Kukdong) in Puebla, Mexico.
Vladimir Acevedo Andujar is a worker and union leader from the BJ&B factory in the
Dominican Republic.
Joaquin Alas is a worker and union leader from the just garments factory in El Salvador.

This event is sponsored by Students for Environmental Justice, Forum
on Globalization, and the Student Labor Action Project.
Karena Cronin