On Friday night, a few of my friends and I went to see Mike Daisey's monologue, The Agony and Ecstasy of Steve Jobs at the Berkeley Repertory Theatre. To say that it was amusing is an understatement. It was an emotional roller coaster. Daisey is a rather large man who has to wipe his brow and upper lip throughout the two-hour, no-intermission performance. And he loves Apple. Loves it. "Oh, the new iPad just came out? What does it do? Who cares! Purchase now!" As part of his obsession, he constantly checks tech-geek blogs on everything Apple. On one blog, an iPhone user posted pictures from his phone that were not erased before it left the factory after testing. Daisey was fascinated with the photos because they opened a window to where iPhones, iPods, iWhatevers are born. In one of these photos, a woman, wearing a clean suit and looking off into the distance, intrigued him. Who were the people who actually made the iWhatevers?
Daisey decided to go to the "town" of 14 million people called Shenzhen in southern China where he visited Foxconn, the biggest electronics maker you've never heard of. The air pollution was so thick that Daisey described it as a booted foot pressing on your chest. Within the walls of "Foxconn City" work and live up to 450,000 people, some as young as 12. The conditions at Foxconn are so terrible that the company had to put nets around the tall buildings to keep workers from committing suicide. The stories Daisey heard from the workers and underground labor unions called him to action, to tell their stories to others and hope that they do not fall on deaf ears.
I was quite moved by Daisey's monologue, but it's easy to tug my heart strings. I didn't even want to turn on my cellphone after the show. I felt powerless. I can't work without using my MacBook Pro that's been made in China. I can't stay in touch with friends and family without my phone made in China or watch my favorite shows without my TV made in China. What the heck am I supposed to do!
Well, I know that I personally cannot change China's unfair labor practices. But I can use my credit card to only purchase things from companies who pay fair wages and decide not to pollute the environment even though the Chinese government has given them a green flag to do so.
And I can tell you about it. I have decided to create this blog not only to share my experiences as a graduate student at Berkeley but to share my aspiration for a more thoughtful life as a consumer. I'm not advocating the purchase of only American products - I would miss out on great French wine! But maybe when I go to Target, I'll take a closer look at the tag on the sweatshirt in my basket...
And maybe you will too.
Good stuff Sarah. You make me wanna start writing again. Keep it coming :)
ReplyDeleteAwesome. I really liked the show too - turns out my friend who does tech transfer to Foxconn from Apple is going to see the show in a couple weeks - I really want to hear what he thinks of it.
ReplyDeleteIn the mean time, I reckin getting used stuff is the next best thing to getting stuff that wasn't made by people who aren't treated fairly. So I think you can watch your tv with minimal guilt.
Sarah,
ReplyDeleteYes, the working conditions are very poor in many places compared to an easy job in the United States, but what are the alternatives for Chinese workers? Many of these factory workers were previously subsistence farmers. Subsistence farming is grueling work with little prospect for the future and often no access to electricity/internet/sewage. Billions of people live under conditions unimaginable to Joe American. The opportunity for people to move from subsistence agriculture to industrial jobs in cities can improve their quality of life.