In 2023, the Fashion Industry Shouldn’t Use Slave Labor

It’s long past time China ended its genocide against the Uyghurs

Today, in 2023, China has placed more than a million Uyghurs in Xinjiang labor camps. While you may not know it, products made with #UyghurForcedLabor probably are in your house right now. Uyghur workers process cotton, tomatoes, and sugar and produce a plethora of products used to make cars, computer chips, and most of the fashion we all wear.

Too many fashion brands rely on Uyghur forced labor to produce their products. Whether they are getting cotton processed using Uyghur forced labor or need other products produced in Xinjiang, it is unacceptable for the fashion industry to use Uyghur forced labor just as it was when the Confederacy relied on slave labor for the cotton processing before the American Civil War.

According to the United States Department of Labor:

Uyghurs detained in camps and forced to labor in factories must endure dreadful conditions. In one internment camp in Kashgar, Xinjiang, Uyghur detainees work as forced laborers to produce textiles. They receive little pay, are not allowed to leave, and have limited or no communication with family members. If family communication and visits are allowed, they are heavily monitored or cut short. When not…