A simple act, a world of change

What would the world be like if when everyone put on their shirt in the morning they checked the tag and took a moment to think about the people who made it and what their life was like? How would it inform our worldview?

I spent the weekend at the a conferencein Olympia, Washington. I’ll do a summary later, but for now I wanted to share this picture of a painting by Janet Essley. The painting is part of a traveling exhibit. To bring it to your community contact Liana at liana(at)sweatfree(dot)org.

Here’s what the artist had to say about the paintings:

“As we remember [the sewer’s] hands on each piece of clothing that we wear, may we envision a new world that globalizes compassion. May we insist upon living conditions for others that we enjoy for ourselves.

“The paintings ask the viewer to acknowledge the intimate connection we have to women in other parts of the world and to explore through this the impacts of corporate globalization on all our lives. The current realignment of the garment industry due to the end of previous trade agreements threatens the employment of tens of thousands of women workers who are the sole support of their families in countries around the world, including the U.S. The paintings encourage a globalization of empathy and the human right for work with dignity.”