Posted on 12/11/2004 7:25:39 PM PST by nickcarraway
Even Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen can't escape the scrutiny of student activists at NYU.
A student group will march today in Washington Square Park to ask that the Gallatin freshmen guarantee paid maternity leave to workers in Bangladesh who work in the factories that make their clothing line.
The NYU chapter of Students Against Sweatshops and the National Labor Committee charged that 95 percent of the women who work in Bangladeshi sweatshops for major companies - including Wal-Mart and the Olsens' Dualstar Entertainment Group - don't receive three months of maternity leave mandated by Bangladeshi law.
"I don't want my fellow students to be barraged by protesters," said Cassie Turnipseed, a CAS junior and coordinator of the event. "But we're not attacking them; it's their business."
The Olsens are reportedly worth up to $150 million each, and their company generates about $1 billion in revenue annually.
"This is not an attack against Mary-Kate and Ashley; it's an appeal," said Charlie Kernaghan, the director of the National Labor Committee. "We don't have to kid ourselves. They have power, enormous power."
Turnipseed said that students from Students Against Sweatshops attempted to contact Ashley Olsen via notes in some of her classes, but these attempts failed. The National Labor Committee said they twice tried to contact Dualstar Entertainment regarding the pledge, and received no response.
"If your intention is to get someone to sign a pledge, you would want to make a reasonable attempt to contact them," said Michael Pagnotta, a spokesman for the Olsens and Dualstar. "No one can recall seeing it, and there are a number of issues that we had to deal with in the last six months - health issues, turning 18, moving into school at New York City, the release of a big budget major film."
Nineteen garment companies have signed the pledge already, including Liz Claiborne, Levi Strauss, Costco, Phillips-Van Huesen and Sean John.
"It should be very clear that Mary-Kate and Ashley stand for workers for everywhere," Pagnotta said. "There are very rigorous standards ... they seem to indicate that there was a refusal to sign this, and that's not the case." Pagnotta added he was optimistic about reaching some kind of agreement between the labor committee and Dualstar.
Kernaghan said a Bangladeshi woman would have to work 109 years to earn enough to go to NYU, not including a meal plan or housing.
"This is the great gap in the world today," Kernaghan said. "[The Olsens] have that power, that visibility. There is so much good they could do for the world."
The candlelight march is scheduled to begin at 5:30 p.m. in Washington Square Park. Students plan to rally there and march around Greenwich Village. After the march, there will be a screening of a 30-minute film produced by the Labor Committee offering a glimpse into the world of sweatshops in Bangladesh at the Judson Memorial Church on Washington Square South.
ping
And it would probably take another 250 years to recover from the indoctrination. Not including the indigestion from the meal plan.
Glad I went to community college :-)
"Cassie Turnipseed"
This is satire, right?
Force the Olsen twins to move their factory and then the woman will have plenty of time off.
Hey, students at any school will try to find something to do, other than studying for finals.
I went to community college back when we called it Junior College, or JC.
Our main ambitions were partying, playing cards in the student lounge and watching for the occasional "streaker". And oh yes, attending class and studying a little.
good point
"[The Olsens] have that power, that visibility. There is so much good they could do for the world."
They are already doing good. A bunch of Bangladeshi women are working in a factory instead of breaking their backs in the fields all day - and making more money than they could make in the fields too.
"There is so much good they could do for the world."
They already are, moron. They built a factory that employs a lot of people.
What have you done?
I agree. China is eating up everything. With the limit on the amount of garment China can produce gone, China will fleece all other third world countries.
Apart from that, the Olsen twins are just used as a scape goats, because they are an easy target. Cheap publicity stunt by that Turnipseed idiot.
By the way, anybody wanna bet that the liberals are after the Olsens for the family oriented, wholesome image? (instead of sex, drugs, abortion feminism)
The culture war continues.
The is a joke isn't it? This is from The Onion?
Both of you nailed it. Well said.
The NYU chapter of Students Against Sweatshops?-you've got to be fuc*ing kidding me. What ever happened to drunken frat parties and panty raids?
"They built a factory that employs a lot of people."
Well, not exactly. Their money funded a factory that employs a lot of people. I'm not saying that's a bad thing, not at all, we obviously need people to play that role in society... but I also don't think that people deserve philanthropy medals for owning a successful business. They are playing their part in the economy, the same as anyone else. And if they do so in a irresponsible manner (note, I am not sayin that they are, this sounds like BS), there is plenty of reason to criticize them. Similar to there being plenty of reason to criticize a waitress who is a total b*tch. Sure, she brought me my food, but she doesn't deserve a trophy for that!
"Well, not exactly. Their money funded a factory that employs a lot of people."
That is, IMO, a distinction without a difference.
"but I also don't think that people deserve philanthropy medals for owning a successful business."
Maybe not a philanthropy medal, but a degree of appreciation for providing jobs and useful products.
"They are playing their part in the economy, the same as anyone else."
Well, not "anyone."
"And if they do so in a irresponsible manner"
And here we get into the realm of judgment calls, where there's plenty of room for disagreement among reasonable people.
Yeah, if a company is dumping mercury into the fishing grounds or blasting high concentrations of dioxins residential areas, there can be a problem.
"Sure, she brought me my food, but she doesn't deserve a trophy for that!"
No, but the person who owns the restaurant deserves appropriate recognition of the services he provides.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.