Be Honest: You Don’t Care If Your Pretty Dress Was Made by Child Slaves

Global consumers regard child labor, human trafficking and slavery as despicable yet most do not stop to consider the source and low prices of high-fashion clothes with intricate details. Julia Hartley-Brewer, writing for the Telegraph, contends that “when it comes to modern-day slavery, we are modern-day hypocrites.” Clothing manufacturers locate factories in countries with low wages, like Bangladesh or Vietnam. Hartley-Brewer adds, “we all convince ourselves that it is perfectly possible to produce an intricately stitched dress or shirt, ship it halfway around the world and put it on sale in a British high street store for a pittance without someone, somewhere along the line, being exploited." British Prime Minister David Cameron expects British businesses to submit annual reports on efforts to prevent exploitation in supply chains. Hartley-Brewer suggests that leaders in advanced economies should lecture their own citizens and businesses on exploitation before chastising leaders of the poorest nations. – YaleGlobal