Slavery Clothes, Made In The USA

Everyone knows that much of the clothes we are wearing are produced in poor South Asian countries where workers get exploited heavily by Western corporations. 

However, have you ever thought that such conditions also exist in Western countries such as the United States (US)?

One person who faced this reality is Jenny Dewey, who left her homecountry Indonesia five years ago. Dewey was lured by to the US by a human trafficker who promised her a good job as a nanny. She ended up in a Los Angeles, California, suburb, working for a rich white lady. 

“She made me do everything — the cooking, the cleaning. Finally, I ran away," she said.

Dewey was exploited, undocumented, and unable to speak either English or Spanish to look for help. 

But at the end, like many undocumented migrants in the US, she fled one exploitative situation only to find herself in another. Dewey ended up sewing clothes in a sweatshop that didn't pay her. Her employer knew that she was just another illegal migrant and exploited her. 

Dewey's case is just one of many in Los Angeles’ garment industry.

“I worked for approximately 50, 55 hours a week and I made $300. And they don’t have air conditioning," said Pedro, an immigrant from Mexico.

Pedro's advice is very clear: 

"Don’t buy clothes here, because the workers in the factories? They’re not getting paid just wages.”