Sweat Shops

Author's Note: I wrote this piece expressing my thoughts toward the use and of sweatshops. After learning about them in social studies I have thought a lot about it and how I believe they are wrong. I also believe that it does no good just to spread the news. one person can change it.

Can you imagine a life where your daily salary is hardly enough to pay for one meal?  Not an easy day either; a 16 hour, break free day. I don't think anyone can imagine it until they have actually lived through it. But why are people treated like this? For the people in countries like Indonesia, this is their reality. Many people don't have a choice; they need whatever job they can get just to stay alive.  Large companies such as, Nike, Wal-Mart, Disney World, Abercrombie, and Apple use sweatshops so  they can force hard labor on people for extremely low wages.   In a way it is like slavery -- unfair and wrong. 

America is supposed to be the land of the free and the home of the brave. Treating people poorly in sweatshops is going against that.  Just because they live in a different country, speak a different language , or have less money than we do, does not give us the right to boss them around.  People say we are helping them by giving them jobs. Yes, we are providing jobs for them but we are also putting them in danger with the working conditions. Also, they are not able to live off of the wages they earn. Most don't have enough money to send their children to school. How is their country ever going to have a good economy if their children aren't even educated?

You could say it isn't our fault their country is poor ; and it entirely is not. I believe we play a contributing factor though. Is it so hard to pay these hard working people minimum wage? Currently they are making less in one day then an average American makes in an hour. We should be paying them what they deserve.

Put your self in their shoes and take a look at the situation from a different point of view. We should be putting sweat shops in the past and moving toward a considerate way to still give these people jobs. A way were they can live off their wages, send their children to school, and most importantly live in a safe and healthy place to raise their families.