January 31, 2000

It’s Time To Stand Up For What Is Right

  • Union organizers in China are thrown in prisons and psychiatric hospitals for trying to organize workers.
  • China’s communist government and wealthy American corporations have joined forces to exploit workers in secrecy, forcing Chinese citizens to work and live in virtual bondage to avoid starvation.
  • The University of Notre Dame and the entire University of California system announced this month that they will not do business with companies operating in countries that ban union organizing. This is a tremendous victory for students working through United Students Against Sweatshops (USAS).
  • At the same time, many in Congress, along with the President, want to extend even more trading privileges to China by giving them Permanent Normal Trade Relations (PNTR).
  • The free traders on Capitol Hill think the U.S. should treat China the same as it treats Canada or any other democratic ally that affords workers the right to organize.

The United Steelworkers of America has long been a voice for workers who cannot speak for themselves. Workers across the world are exploited to make larger profits for multinational corporations. The movement against worker exploitation is growing. Let’s tell Congress they are going to have to stand with us or stand with the exploiters.

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