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Students: seek truth, challenge authority |
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Tuesday, 15 April 2008 |
As I gracefully bow out and conclude my tenure in college, it would be foolish to say that I didn’t get swept up in the frenzy that is Appalachian State University. I’m certainly not alone in this regard.
The majority of students have been absorbed by Mountaineer pride, a certain black-and-gold nationalism, which is enriched with every fight song, every mention on SportsCenter and every goalpost razing.
And how are students going to wear their pride?
On their sleeves of course.
Whether it’s because you forgot to check Ray’s Weather Center or you simply needed a foam finger for Kidd Brewer Stadium, the University Bookstore has an overabundance of appareled items for sale.
It’s not until you take home your black zip-up hoodie with ASU
embroidered in your favorite font and check the tag that you discover
the sweatshirt is made in Lesotho.
You feel vaguely confident that Lesotho is just east of Blowing Rock, but you decide to Google it anyway.
Much to your astonishment, you discover that Lesotho is a small country
surrounded by South Africa and…what’s this? They’ve had a history of
participating in child labor?
Surely Appalachian State has distanced itself from any labor
controversy by accepting anti-sweatshop legislation, thus reinforcing
that Appalachian is a model of progressiveness and ethics, right?
Gulp.
In light of recent anti-sweatshop demonstrations conducted by the
United Students Against Sweatshops (USAS) group and the university’s
static stance on adopting the Designated Suppliers Program (DSP), some
of that Mountaineer pride that I have worn wholeheartedly for four
years has been tarnished.
The DSP is a comprehensive program for enhancing the enforcement of
university codes of conduct regarding the attainment of university
apparel, according to www.workersrights.org.
It’s preposterous to think the university takes so much pride in making
steps toward becoming green and advancements in sustainable technology,
yet our three-peat, dynasty memorabilia is often being sewn together by
people who don’t earn minimal living wages.
The DSP is even university-friendly enough to where, if accepted, the program will be phased in a three-year period.
The university even gets a six-month grace period where no benchmarks
on sourcing need to be met – a time that could be used to establish new
contracts with companies that exhibit respectable manufacturing
practices.
Then, the benchmarks rise 25 percent each year for the amount of
collegiate apparel that must be sourced from DSP-approved factories,
according to www.studentsagainstsweatshops.org.
Some people argue that prices on collegiate apparel will increase if
the university chooses to associate exclusively with reputable
factories.
Normally, I would say that the university – in an effort to retain a
profit – would have to compensate financially in exchange for ethical
business practices, but somehow I’m still paying $50 for sweatpants
sewn together by someone battling medieval working conditions.
I think the university would survive knowing that five bucks may have
been lost, which could have gone to a new skywalk for students to
ignore, but at least we didn’t stoop to Wal-Mart’s level of labor
rights infringement.
A few months ago, a correspondent from British newspaper The Observer
found children in New Delhi, India as young as 10 were working 16-hour
days to make blouses for Gap Kids.
Is this the type of crowd Appalachian State wants to be associating with?
Are we complacent with yielding to corrupt foreign government officials
who drive down the minimum wage in their country to attract companies,
which in turn, bail the country out of economic downfall?
It’s a mess, and I applaud the Appalachian chapter of USAS for actively
attempting to bring awareness to the university’s administration and
student population.
During a 90.5 WASU-FM broadcast, I spoke with a member of USAS who was
present during the sit-in and arrests of some protesters.
She spoke passionately about the university’s neglect, often sounding noticeably frustrated with the lack of progress.
I have and will always cherish the memories I made at Appalachian. It’s
the only school I applied to, and it has not failed to deliver in terms
of academia.
But sometimes something or someone you admire steps out of line and
you’re faced with a choice: caring or turning the other cheek.
If we lose that inquisitive nature, we could wind up disregarding child
labor or, on a broader scale, end up supporting a military misadventure
on the premise of weapons of mass destruction.
If college has taught me one thing, it is that members of a community
have an unwavering duty to seek the truth and to act as a watchdog of
the decision-makers in power.
Brandon Brown, a senior journalism major from Huntersville, is a news reporter.
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thanks for showing that it's not only okay but necessary to be critical of people in positions of power--no matter who, no matter what you otherwise think of them, no matter what people try to do to paint you in a negative light.
also, thank you for specifically mentioning the relevance of the football program to the issue of sweatshop labor. that point might resonate with students who maybe wouldn't give USAS much thought if they didn't have multiple colors and designs of each year's championship shirt hanging in their closet, silently reminding them to think about just who we refer to when we talk about "the appalachian family..."