As most of you know, I am an expat. I don't live in my native country. I live in China, which is a very different place than where I grew up.
This morning I was flipping through random news and Facebook posts and something caught my eye an advertisement that was selling a product that was "Made in the USA". There were comments regarding how proud people were to buy a "Made in the USA" product. I know this feeling. I have felt it too. I have been distressed looking at a bottle of Apple Juice, dismayed to read the the concentrate is from three different non-US countries. And then I moved across the world and my perspective has shifted.
We live in a global society. The global trade boom has benefited many people and, we in the US, are often treated to lower prices due to buying international products. We are able to purchase items from all over the world, from many cultures, many different art, home items or food options. We are learning a lot about other cultures as well.
Unfortunately, issues are never black and white as much as I would like them to be. My desire for this issue is that we begin to realize and accept that we are going to receive and trade global products and that's not a bad thing. The real problem is the modern day slavery of workers who are mistreated and underpaid to create cheaper products. This problem happens even with good ole' USA products. Instead of shunning products from China because they steal US jobs, we need to be willing to pay more for those products. Companies move for cost values, for getting out of pollution laws, for corporate tax laws. There isn't one clear answer but consumers drive the market. If we start demanding fair wage products then we might get somewhere.
It's easy to say "let's just buy USA" products. But then you have to be ok with not getting some kinds of fruits 365 a year, etc. We also need to keep USA companies accountable. We have lots of immigrants working jobs (This is another conversation for another time) which we support with our purchasing habits and it's up to us to become educated about the products we purchase.
The market is overwhelming. There is so many items you could purchase, just from the comfort of your couch, thanks to amazon. Suddenly, we're separated from where things come from. It takes more work to become educated and it's mainly on us. It's easy to run to Kohls, Meijer, Walgreens and pick up whatever we need without thinking about the where and how. But if we're going to commit to wanting more accountability of our products, those are the questions we need to be asking. We should not just focus on where a product is from but on the who and how as well. Then we can become truly conscientious consumers.
I am always brought back to the scene on the final pages of the Lorax book by Dr. Suess as the thneed making has ruined the forest so they move on and how I see that happening across the globe. Many companies are now talking about the move into Africa as the next place for cheap/cheaper labor and manufacturing. I just hope that some of the sins of the past will rally people to demand fair wages and business laws that protect the Earth before it's too late.
What do you think?
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