We all love clothes, let's Remember Who Made Them.
Across this season and the campaign, we have explored how the Covid-19 pandemic and the national lockdowns that followed have exposed the exploitation that has always been at the centre of the global fashion industry. Retailers have cancelled billions of dollars’ worth of apparel orders - including many that had already been completed. This has left millions of garment workers around the world without a source of income, or forced to put their lives at risk to feed themselves and their families. But it’s nothing new. Coronavirus didn’t change the apparel industry overnight, it has just exacerbated the inequalities and discrimination that have always been there.
In this final episode Devi speaks to Nazma Akter, founder and Executive Director of Awaj Foundation in Bangladesh. Nazma has been working to improve the rights of women working in the garment sector in Bangladesh for over three decades after beginning to work in garment factories at the age of eleven.
Venetia, Devi, Ruby and Swatee reflect on the learnings from the campaign and speaking to the many garment workers and organisers who have been fighting for decades against unfair wages, unsafe working conditions, violence and sexual harassment in the workplace and environmental destruction in their communities. We reflect on the system of Capitalism and exploitation, the many actions we can take on how we can be better allies to reimagine the future of fashion and what alternative models and Solidarity Economies look like. These alternative models are always inspired by principles of cooperation, equity in all dimensions (race, ethnicity, nationality, class, gender, ability, etc), participatory democracy, sustainability and pluralism. The new solidarity economy redistributes wealth and resources more fairly, and puts the respect of people and planet at its core.
Our guest:
Nazma Akter - Founder and Executive Director of Awaj Foundation, a grassroots labour rights NGO with over 600,000 worker members across Bangladesh.
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Find us on Instagram: @RememberWhoMadeThem/
Get in touch: hello@rememberwhomadethem.com
Podcast artwork by: Judith_P.Raynault: @judith_p.raynault
Music: Melisa Le Rue Life Is Beautiful produced by Colin Emmanuel.
Disclaimer: This is a not for profit campaign. Everyone involved is giving their time free of charge. This podcast is not sponsored and features no adverts.
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