I recently saw this graphic on someone's Facebook page and it really got me thinking about all the things we buy for our family members during the holidays, without even thinking about where they came from or under what conditions they were made.
I saw a report on Nightline a few weeks ago, when the newest "Ithing" came out. iPad, iPod, iPhone... whatever the heck it was. Anyway, the report was about the living conditions of the poor young people who actually make the idevices. It was shocking to say the least.
*These young people live in small cramped dorms, sometimes up to eight in a room (in bunkbeds), where they are unable to use any sort of "power draining" appliances, such as tea kettles, hot plates or laptops.
These workers are often publicly humiliated as a form of punishment for not meeting quota or for any reason their higher ups might deem necessary. Punishments such as, cleaning toilets, sweeping the lawn or writing "confession letters", which are displayed or read aloud to other employees.
The thing that stood out most and stuck with me the longest, was the rate of suicide among these young people. It got so bad, they had to put mesh screens on the windows and put up tarps under the windows, to disuade the employees from jumping out the windows to their death below.
Not only are foreign workers treated badly, in a lot of instances, but their products are shabby and contain chemicals that have been deemed unlawful for use in products here in the USA. According to Todd Lipscomb, founder of MadeinUSAForever.com and author of the book "Re-Made in the USA", by buying products made in the USA, we avoid those chemicals in those products, as in the case of the 83 toys that were recalled a few years ago.
I know you probably think can't go out and buy only American made products, as there aren't really a ton of products that are actually still made here, but you really can, and you'll definitely find a good chunk of your holiday shopping needs on MadeinUSAForever.com.
I received an adorable truck and race car set from Made in the USA forever and I was very impressed. The packaging was made form recycled materials and the flatbed truck and race car were nicely made. I saw no noticible mistakes in the moulding of the plastic or in the construction of the two pieces.
Made in USA Forever.com offers over 3,800 products that are made in the USA. From household items to kid's clothes and even toys. You have no excuse to not buy American made this holiday season. They've done all the leg work for you, all you have to do is click and buy.
Disclaimer: I received the above mentioned products to facilitate my review. I was not monetarily compensated for this review nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review. My opinions are my own and yours may differ.
*Some info was gained from reading this article.
No comments:
Post a Comment