a little evening rant

ok.  so i'm not super into bandwagons.  and i'm not super into soapboxes either.  what i am super into is people.  and when people are being hurt or treated unjustly, it kind of ticks me off.  to put it lightly.

every year, the lovely people at the international labor rights forum publish a "sweatshop hall of shame".  it basically highlights some of the major companies who either directly or indirectly violate labor rights, whether it's in their own organization or in their suppliers'.

and we're not talking about not providing ergonomically correct chairs.  we're talking about people dying because of unsafe work environments.  we're talking about people being beaten or harassed for trying to start a union.  we're talking about children as young as 7 years old being forced to quit school and work in cotton fields or as cocoa harvesters.

after taking a gander at this year's list, i'm not overly surprised by some (ahem, walmart) and am seriously discouraged by others (ikea - hits me where it hurts).  by posting this list, i'm just giving you the chance to make informed choices.  it's easy to be ignorant (believe me, i know) but now that you know, you have the incredible opportunity to be an agent of change.

i'm not going to tell you what to do.  but i'd love it if you would check out the list (and their whole website for that matter) and pause to think about whether there are adjustments, big or small, that you can make in your own purchasing to try and ensure that you're not supporting the people who are taking advantage of those who can't (or haven't been allowed to) speak up for themselves.

and just so you know i will be the first one to admit that i have, on a regular basis, shopped at places I KNEW had poor business practices when it came to labor rights just because i wanted a deal.  but here's my commitment: i will buy used/secondhand/handmade as much as possible.  i will try to buy local, for both produce and other goods.  i will do my best to have an understanding of where the store bought products are actually coming from.  i will not shop at walmart (i actually try and throw out the flyer right away so i'm not even tempted to look).

here's a little token "pick me up" so you don't leave this post feeling depressed.  this is cliff, josiah and our housemate brittani posing with the handsome snowman they made on jojo's first official snow day!  he actually loves school, so he was pretty bummed to stay home, but we had fun anyway.

stay tuned for more pictures from my sweet little fuji instax camera - it's coming out in full force in my engagement and wedding sessions this year.  which are booking up fast, by the way, so be sure to give me a shout soon if you're tying the knot this summer!