The fashion industry’s neglect of human rights is no secret. This excerpt highlights the ways in which this issue prevails specifically in Bangladesh due to corruption and barely-there human right regulations. What struck me the most was a statistic Corner included, stating, “Vulnerable garment workers – eighty per cent of whom are women – work long hours in substandard facilities, without benefits and for little compensation.” It is further proof that across industries and cultures as a whole, women’s lives hold less value because the powerful figures that delegate society’s said value system are exclusively men. In the universally applied situation described, men maintain their power by strategically with-holding women’s rights. Through the enslavement of their women, factory owners, which make up 10% of parliament in Bangladesh, harness their wealth and power.
It is unfortunately not surprising to recognize parallels between the role of female garment workers in Bangladesh, and the role of the woman anywhere else. Of course, there are levels to this. The situation of these women is far more critical than the experience of the average woman in the West. However, any fight for womens’ rights is universal. It stretches beyond our countries or regions, even. When you stand for womens’ rights, you are fighting FGM in Africa, you are fighting honor killings in the Middle East, and you are fighting for the rights of these garment workers in Bangladesh. The excerpt shines light on the fact that violence against women exists in countless forms universally. Our struggle unifies us beyond cultures and creeds, and that unity in itself holds the power that sustains us.
