Where Am I Wearing Summary

In China, Kelsey Timmerman visit a factory that he had received his flip flops from. While there Kelsey Timmerman meets a husband and wife from the factory

The book Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy by Pietra Rivoli is about the journey of a plain cotton shirt internationally through the economy. This book consists of a plain, cheap t-shirt bought at Wal-Mart, is split into four important parts. The first part is about the source of the t-shirt: cotton. The second part is about the creation process the t-shirt goes through while being created in China. The third part is consists of explaining what happens after the t-shirt goes to the United States and faces the American protectionist policies. Lastly, the fourth essential part of this t-shirt is what happens to the shirt when it is finished in America (or other developed nations).

Timmerman sets up visits to factories in countries like Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, and the United States. As an american consumer, Timmerman is on a mission. He chooses his favorite articles of clothing and goes to see who and under what conditions they were made. Along with inspecting the factories, he goes to hang out with the individuals and the families who work in the factories. He is not just interested in the factories

In the essays A Web of Brands and Live Free and Starve by Naomi Klein and Chitra Divakaruni, both authors express the different aspects and their opinions of globalization. Naomi Klein focuses on the effects of globalization. In A Web of Brands, Klein looks at how the changes of the garment industry in Toronto connect to the factories of Jakarta, Indonesia. Chitra Divakaruni argues that the United States attempts to stop the practices of indentures, would have terrible consequences even though the efforts are well intended.

How often does one actually consider where a product originates or under what conditions it was produced? While out shopping a consumers main focus is on obtaining the item needed or wanted not selecting merchandise based on the “made in” tag. It is common knowledge that many products are imported from other countries. However, little thought is given to the substandard conditions that workers endure to eke out a living to maintain a poverty stricken existence. In Mardi Gras: Made in China director David Redmon demonstrates the effect globalization and capitalism have on the lives of the owner and workers of a bead factory in China while contrasting the revelry of partygoers in New Orleans. Underpaid, overworked staff toil and live in an

Just like Bangladesh and Cambodia Timmerman also went to China to see the enviroment that his flip-flops were made in. “Dingo couldn’t be nicer. It seems that we are now brother-in-arms. I had faced the wrath of Pat, and probably he too, many times. He tells me about his life. He was born in the Philippines and moved to the United States when he was five. Now he spends three months here and one month at home with his wife and 17-year-old son in California. “ Page 146. Kelsey Timmerman is telling us about how a life for this man Dingo is. Dingo is away in China working for three months, and then only gets to see his wife and son for one month. For Dingo to get food on the table and money to support his family he has to make sacrifices of not seeing his family to support them. Timmerman wants us to think of how greatful that our parents/ guardians are that they go to work and come home later on that evening; Not for Dingo’s family. Dingo’s family has to wait three whole months just to see him again for only a month. Imagine that. “The fisherman’s pole, like a 12-foot blade of glass, is all rod and no reel. He baits the hook with a grub and flicks his line out into the water and waits.” Page 146. You can tell that China doesn’t have that much money, because this man has to make his own

1. In the essay “Sweatshirts to Sweatshops,” many of the universal intellectual standards are violated. To begin with, the speaker talks about the “little girl…working hour after hour…trying not to collapse from the heat…” and that violates the fairness of the argument. He is trying to manipulate the audience by appealing to their emotional side. This argument is not based in factual evidence, and therefore, could be dismissed by the audience. There may not be a little girl in this exact situation described, and therefore, this statement is irrelevant. This could be corrected by leaving the entire story of the “little girl” out, or an interview of a child that works in the factory could be conducted giving a first-hand look into the

Using an everyday item as a t-shirt to tell the story of globalization, the book explains the competitive advantage of different industries, examines the global economic and political forces and highlight the importance of human elements in international trade.

Although globalization allows for most products to be produced at a more efficient rate, it also has the capability to mar the economies of municipalities in first world countries. In Pietra Rivoli’s book The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy, she discusses the different viewpoints of opposing sides of an on-going battle to reduce the amount of tariffs and quotas put on the textile industries of foreign countries. For decades the textile industry in America has been on a noticeable decline, with outsourcing to third-world countries to blame. Although both faction’s viewpoints on the benefits of such outsourcing, both realize that there is only one way to gain the results they seek; which is to petition to the congressmen, including high ranking officials such as the president, in Washington D.C.

Often, when we think of a t-shirt, not much consideration goes past throwing it on and walking out the door. We discover in The Travels of a T-Shirt in the Global Economy, author Pietra Rivoli conveys the story of a t-shirt she purchased in Florida for just $5.99. Beginning with core element of the t-shirt, she describes the cotton boom in the United States and why we have reigned supreme as the leading cotton producer. She even meets with a Texan farmer who warms your heart from the very beginning of the chapter. Next, the cotton goes on to textile mills and factories, and Rivoli explains the history of the textile industry. With this lesson, she demonstrates how the textile industry boom was a

Although the Chinese apparel manufacturers would lose profitability due to rising cotton prices and competition from emerging countries, they stand to gain the most from the removal of U.S. quotas and tariffs. According to the author, in 2007, 95% of the 20 billion garments Americans made were purchased overseas. Due to U.S. trade barriers, China’s share of the U.S. apparel import was only 30%. Once these barriers were removed, Chinese apparel would flood the American market due to their low cost and dominance in garment manufacturing. Experts predict that China could eventually supply 85% of U.S. apparel. As they increase their market share in the

Globalization is a system of global connections between countries that serves to increase interdependence between countries economically, socially, politically, and environmentally. In the video titled “Planet money makes t-shirts” the topic of connections is shown through a long, diverse, complex process between MDCs and LDCs. There’s a multitude of steps in the process of creating a t-shirt. This procedure is quite meticulous. The t-shirt begins in America. This is where the t-shirt is designed and where the raw materials are gathered to be shipped to the LDC, which in this case is Bangladesh and Colombia. The raw material to create the t-shirt is cotton it cost about .60 cents. The cotton is genetically modified, 90 % of American cotton

In her book, The Travels of a T-shirt in the Global Economy, Pietra Rivoli takes on the intricacies and complexities of trade and globalization through following the path of a T-Shirt she purchased from Walgreens for $5.99. It is a very informative book and her writing is such that the reader is left feeling both well informed on the issues discussed, as well as entertained.

Everyday, millions of consumers in the United States contribute to the harsh treatment, under paid, and sexual abuse of factory workers all over the world. The garment industry, one of the largest in the world, generates over 3 trillion dollars a year yet the average monthly wage is 21 dollars a month, 80% of whom are women, and including children ages 5 to 14. While most apparel used to be manufactured in the United States, in the past decade a majority of manufacturers have moved operations overseas due to loose regulations according to the huffington post (Badal). The current trend of fast fashion comes at a much greater cost than we are all aware of, The True Cost, a documentary by Andrew Morgan highlights fashions “unadvertised sins” such as unregulated production, toxic garment dyes harmful to both workers and the environment, and attempts by the factory workers to form unions that end in violence (Wilson).

As neutral observers of globalization would say, westerners are supplying and robbing peoples choices. Because salaula is so cheap, Zambians who are living off of close to $2 a day have no choice but to buy and wear cheap donated clothes. It is an economic necessity in Zambia. Although people have the freedom to choose, they do not have the capability to do so. This paradox is one of the main arguments against globalization. The Zambians have several choices within the pile of donated clothes, but in reality there choices are been narrowed do to their economic constraints. So from an economic standpoint, globalization of second hand clothing has been very advantageous as it allows Zambians to have clothes that they otherwise wouldn't be able to afford. At the same time from a cultural standpoint, it as led