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Anti-sweatshop oiganization loote for student support
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BY VALERIA SOSA AND KINSEY DANZIS Bangladesh become the rule, not the exception, for all Accord on Fire and Building Safety in Bangladesh.
Staff Writers women and men employed in the Bangladesh ready- "When we told students, they were outraged," said
made garment industry." Strain. "(They) have expressed interest in asking the
But, signing on to the Alliance was not good enough, administration to drop its contract with VF brands
Exits were blocked. Fire drills ignored. "VF is signed onto the Alliance, but their factories if they don't sign the Accord. So far, 12 universities
Firefighters came to the rescue, but their ladders haven't gotten any safer, so it's really kind of an empty across the country have required their brands to sign
could not reach beyond the fifth floor.
Helicopters could not land on the rooftop, as it had
been illegally turned into a canteen.
Those who tried to escape from the windows
plummeted to their deaths.
An electrical short-circuit and subpar
wiring ignited the ninth floor of the That's
It Sportswear garment factory in Bangladesh
on Dec. 14, 2010.
The catastrophe claimed the lives of 29
workers and left over a hundred more with
injuries ranging from broken bones to third-
degree bums.
The factory supplied popular athletic
brands like The North Face, Vans and
JanSport,, all owned by Greensboro-based
VF Corporation, the world's largest apparel
company.
In response to the disaster and pressure from the
public to prevent future incidents, VF signed the
Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety, an agreement
between major U.S. apparel companies to improve
working conditions in Bangladesh.
"No one should have to risk their life in order to
make a living," wrote Ellen Tauscher, chairman of the
Alliance Board, in a semi-annual report on Jan. 30,
2014.
"It is our goal to ensure that safe workplaces in
promise," said Caiden Elmer, regional organizer the Accord."
for United Students Against Sweatshops a phone Hopefully, Guilford will be the thirteenth,
interview with The Guilfordian. "It doesn't actually "VF apparel is in the Guilford bookstore under a
require them to fix anything... iTs just a way to get out contract with JanSport," said Elmer. "The best thing
of signing the accord." for Guilford to do would be to tell Jansport that they
need to sign onto the accord, or else they'll
cut the contract."
Should JanSport sign the accord, the
chances increase of other VF branches
following suit. That has the potential to
make a big difference.
"VF is a big company with a lot of factories
over in Bangladesh, so if they were to sign
onto the accord, that would change a lot of
lives," said Deanna Nagle, a member of the
USAS. "They definitely have some weight in
the community."
Early College senior and activist Brent Eisenbarth
said that the document is assuring human safety and
ethical working conditions.
"If you have nothing to hide, there should be no
problem in signing the Accord," said Eisenbarth.
"Most people think that they have the right to go to
work and not have the building collapse on them."
A community forum will be held on Thursday,
April 17 at 6 p.m. at Genesis Baptist Church to discuss
worker safety and VF's role in recent Bangladesh
factory disasters.
"The best thina for Guilford to do would be to tell
Jansport that they need to sign onto the accord..."
Caiden Elmer, United Students Against Sweatshops
Garrett Strain, international campaign coordinator
for USAS, said VF created the Alliance in response to
massive pressure.
"The obligation to fix unpaid factories under the
Alliance is clearly voluntary," said Strain in a phone
interview. "And, we know from the past what VF's
voluntary programs have resulted in worker death,
catastrophic incidents at factories, tragedy."
Two weeks ago, a delegation from the USAS came
to Guilford in hopes of starting a new chapter and
spurring forward a campaign to force VF to sign the
INSIDE SPORTS
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Final Four preview
Q&A with Colley & Garcia
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Joe Mitchell
First-year
Track & Field
John Macon
Smith
! Senior
J Baseball
BY BOBBY PACHECO
Staff Writer
BY ABE KENMORE
Staff Writer
Placed first in the
100-meter dash at i 1.16
seconds
Hit a frand slam and went
2^ with five RSIs
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Ran the school’s third best
30CX) meter mn at 12:0X21