Jatinder Sandhu - Sweatshops

Jatinder Sandhu

Survey Analysis

Fresno State Students Against Sweatshops had a survey to determine the basic knowledge of the average Fresno Citizen. Our general consensus about the information we gathered from the survey was that the majority people know what sweatshops were and they shopped for name brand clothes. The average consumer spends less on clothes than more yearly. What we also determined from our survey was that the average consumer would not buy clothes from brand name companies if they knew the clothes were made in sweatshops. There was a large percentage of people that would however continue to buy from sweatshop supporting companies. The age group that we mostly covered in the survey was 18 to 29 year old. They also had an average income below 30,000 a year, which means they were less likely to be picky about where they shopped.  

The overall purpose of this survey was to determine consumer attitudes towards sweatshops. We had hoped to spread the idea of sweatshop labor as negative. Overwhelmingly the respondents agreed that Fresno State should be a sweatshop free campus. We asked people why they would continue buying clothes from companies that use sweatshops, and the majority opinion was that it's difficult to find clothes that are not made in sweatshops. The idea of sweatshops were viewed negatively and given the choice people would not buy clothes from these sweatshop abusing companies. We also had some college students respond and they determined that the cost for non-sweatshop clothes was drastically higher, and on a student income it was unfeasible to buy expensive non-sweatshop clothing. The survey has seemed to raise awareness to the sweatshop laborers problems. Most people are willing to change if they had a viable option.

Jatinder Sandhu - Sweatshops

Jatinder Sandhu

Tabling

Tabling is an interesting task when you protest. It was fun to interact with the many people that stopped by. We were able to explain the atrocities that were going on in the sweat shops and what people can do to help. We used many different types of things to bring people to our table. The most important part to tabling is the interaction. You have to interact with people, and when you interact with them you must have talking points. I learned a lot from the experience and it was a fun one that I wouldn't hesitate to do again. It's interesting to see the different things that can go into a protest or rally. The March fourth for March 4^th combined so many aspects together it was fun. It's also really good that we had so many diverse tables together, it really added to the protest atmosphere. I highly recommend tabling in large groups with as many topics covered. We had an open discussion with other groups as well. It was a quick and easy way to share information. 

Jatinder Sandhu - Sweatshops

Jatinder Sandhu

Picket

The picket portion of the March fourth rally was probably the most interesting part of the rally. We got to make our own pickets and got to spread our word to everyone around campus. We came up with some simple but effective slogans to spread our words. We even had a non-member join us in our picket. He was a very vocal young man and I think he added to the whole atmosphere of the picket. I think having pickets helped spread the whole rally's message. We were able to circle the whole campus and really get a lot of attention. It was surprising the amount of people that showed up to the picket. Picketing is a lot of work but it adds to any protest group that has a message they need to spread. A little work from a few people can add to the whole atmosphere. 

Jatinder Sandhu - Sweatshops

Jatinder Sandhu

Protest March

March fourth for March 4^th was a great experience. We had all the groups get together and show off what their groups were representing. It was a great experience, it also opened up the amount of work that goes into a march. I also learned about the cost, it was surprising how much went into not too large of a protest. We had quite a good turnout which I think made the whole march much better. The sweat shop group had quite a lot of people stop by which was nice. Our group was able to spread the word on the open mic. We had at least 30 people sign up and give us their information so we could spread the word. The raging grannies and the dance troupe were a great addition to the march. I met a lot of people and I think it was worth the amount of time put in. I have definite increased amount of respect for people who can manage to make a protest happen. 

Jatinder Sandhu - Sweatshops

Jatinder Sandhu

Flyer

The flyer was a fun thing to come up with the group. We were able to come up with a mission statement as well as raise awareness. The overall message was that we wanted to bring awareness to the wide ranging effects Sweat shops have. We wanted to bring to light that the clothes in the Fresno State student store was full of sweat shop apparel. It was created by the whole group, we all had a little bit to add to it. The image I think was the most powerful, it was an image of Fist being held up by workers. I think this really speaks to the Sweat Shop image. The workers hold up the iron fist of the factory owners. I believe instead of holding up the fist of the owners, the workers should hold up a fist of their own. Once the workers are able to unite, they can change the work atmosphere. There is one problem that we must identify and that is not all sweat shop factories can change. Too much change will lead to a collapse of the factory itself. We want to bring to light the fact that change starts with us, the west. If we want to help the sweat shop laborers we must change ourselves. 

Jatinder Sandhu - Sweatshops

Jatinder Sandhu

China Blue Video

China Blue was a very eye opening, it got me to think about all the things I have purchased. While I did my research for China Blue so I would have a bit of knowledge I learned quite a lot. The average worker made less than a Dollar a day. I also learned of the hardships that these people go through on a daily basis. They have to live at the factories, their whole lives revolve around the factory. The movie highlighted the fact that it wasn't just the factories that were causing such bad work environments, it was the westerners. The videos shows a Western company coming to inspect the factory. They gladly turn a blind eye to the bad work environment. These companies also force the factories to keep wages low. They also keep unrealistic deadlines so that workers have to work with no pay for months on end. This can be blamed on the factories for choosing such demanding work orders. There is also very little the workers can do. Workers try to rise up and the factory owners just threaten to shut the whole factory down. It is a very strange and difficult situation for these people. 

Tweeter Account

Sent from Windows Mail

David Baltierra

                                                                                                                                                                  m/w  

Soc 122

Tweeter Account

                I am sorry to say that this is the first time that I have opened my i-phone and looked into our tweeter account, @fssass. We cannot forget the @usas who started all this for us. In reading their tweeter account, I found out that them help the University of Temple to become the third us university to require apparel brands to sign the Bangladesh Safety Accord. USAS has been to vary places, like Walmart, chase, government buildings, and schools. I love what one of the signs says, and that is "no justice no jeans". I really liked our hand sign and even our logo. I was very much surprised and empress by how many following and it stands at 14 as I write this. We have received 5 tweets and 2 followers. What I admire about this is that people like President Joseph l. Castro, Liz Harrison, Amanda Venegas and the others.

Ricardo Torres Social movements tactic 13 and final tactic

Ricardo Torres

Professor Kubal

Social Movements

05/09/2014

Tactic 13

            Social movements are difficult to orchestrate and keep going. There are many factors that play into the difficulty of a success in terms of social movements or disaster. While most movements embody some personal interest of the population the movement is trying to reach often there is no direct connection with the population and the cause. How does one get their message across to someone who has no idea or connection of what they are talking about, much less why it is important to them? One method I was introduced to, involved automated dialing of persons listed on the white pages by a telemarketing based system. This system provided by our professor allowed us to not only have access to several populations it also provided preprogrammed questions and responses often referred to as scripts. The scripts allowed me to stay on track and stay focused. The main goal of what this process which is termed push polling is to educate, and persuade the person we talk with into taking up a concern for our cause.  I spent more than two hours on this endeavor which produced several statistics. Most participants who were asked what a sweatshop is the total being 100% stated yes they were aware. Similarly all who were asked if they bought name brand clothes said yes they did. A question regarding whether or not the participants knew 85% off all sweatshop work is done by women revealed a split in the answers about 50/50 with yes and no responses. The clearest response to our survey had to be the overwhelming consensus of people agreeing that Fresno state should be a sweetshop free school with 94% of all responses from participants showing this. Overall this tactic was very useful in gathering important information about our cause and pushing our message out to the community.

Results Overview

Sent from Windows Mail

David M Baltierra

5/10/14

Sociology 122

Survey Results

                Results Overview:  In the results overview the first question, there was a great deal of respondents willing to take the survey; that is 100%. In the second question 76% continued the survey.  In question 4, I was delighted in seeing and knowing that 100% were aware of what is a sweatshop. I feel that the main population of this survey cares more about how people see themselves dressed than by buying clothes from a/an American store or made in the U.S. In question 6, I would say that is was more or less even in %. In question 4, they stated that they knew about sweatshops, but I was very much confused in question 7, how half of them were not aware that children are forced to work for 18 hours shifts. On question 9, 94% said that Fresno state should be a sweatshop free campus, however, going back to question 5, they said that they buy name brands for themselves. It seems to me that the Hispanics was the highest % in the survey. Lastly half of the surveyed were women.

Ricardo Torres social movements tactic 7

Ricardo Torres

Professor Kubal

Social Movements

05/9/2014

Tactic 7

            Social movements are a in essence the propelled motion of the people. Enough people take notice of a issue they feel strongly about and get together to work it out. Those who start these movements are responsible for making the public aware of the issue. In this course our main focus is on understanding how social movements form. One of the most important aspects of social movements is communication and awareness between participants of the movement. It is a great feat to get as many people as possible active for your cause. In the course of the semester our group that decided to focus on sweatshops found that making an online awareness campaign would be instrumental to getting the word out about our cause and the facts surrounding sweatshops that made us interested in the first place. Everyone in the group had a part I myself started a Facebook campaign and got the message out that way; however, the group member we named the media liaison made a twitter page with many important information for any and all who see it. My part in this as stated was bringing to question the type of information shared there. As a group we organized a meeting to see what we might add on the site. Everyone had a chance to talk during this meeting and no one not even the media liaison had absolute power in the matter of what went on the site. I thought the facts gathered by us and our professor would be  a great way to shock and awe many twitter participants to follow our cause and perhaps instill in them the same interest we took on.  On my Facebook page I had a link and a statement that I felt portrayed accurately my stance on sweatshops. I found this tactic to be most useful in networking and making the public aware of my issue.

Ricardo Torres social movments tactic 6

Ricardo Torres

Professor Kubal

Social movements

05/08/2014

Tactic 6

            In most images on the news that cover protests or social movements there is almost symbolic expected scenery. The thousands of crowded streets are a given and the people who fill it; however, the picket sign is the item in question here. On March fourth a mass movement was made to join several movements into one big event called March forth on March fourth. As a participant in this protest and social movement I and my group got to participate in an actual picket with our won signs. The picket sign so simple and inexpensive yet altogether powerful symbol of social movements was to be our tool of change. The materials were provided by our professor who gave every group a budget. In the making of our signs care and precise wording was important since this was to be the first thing the cars and the people driving them would see as well as all the onlookers in and around the school. The wording had to have a few things first our name and what it stood for, second a message that gave the onlooker empathy and concern for our cause. The materials consisted of parts of a picket fence, hence the name and billboard paper. I felt emboldened as we marched and I held my picket firmly knowing this was the method of thousands of other social activists I felt as though I were in a movie as we walked along Shaw and the cars honked. While I feel like my group and I evenly had significant roles in this process because I made my own picket sign it had a drawing I drew that I felt signified our cause. It was a fist the image of the socialist movement with flames around it. This image was drawn from the anger I felt once I learned more about my cause and the urgency I felt to share it with people. I felt this tactic was very useful and so easy to assemble it remains the symbol for the revolutionary or simple social movements today.

Movement tactic 4, ricardo Torres

Ricardo Torres

Professor Kubal

Social movements

05/08/14

Movement Tactic 4

            Protest is a powerful tool for any social movement. In the course of this semester our group was given the opportunity to partake in a public event called March forth on March fourth. This protest was a linking of several movements into solidarity for the purpose of getting their message head by more people. Our anti sweatshop group as well as several other groups from our class had our chance to publicly announce our cause. The free speech area in Fresno state is a space reserved to whoever wishes to speak on any topic without fear of persecution. On March fourth our group endeavored to get our message out to the world and the free speech area provided the perfect outlet for our cause. The groups made a personal statement about their cause and their aim in the social movement class. Our group did this before we showed a movie; thus, we had a statement and goal before March fourth. With all the excitement and spectators walking by an idea was proposed by one of our professor. He thought we should get on the open mic in the free speech area and read aloud our message. Everyone in our group got up in front of the free speech area to take part in this. One by one we all took turns reading a part of our message statement. I felt the surge of excitement when I realized how many onlookers took interest and how our words seemed to have effected not only the other groups but the people who had no idea about our cause as well. This experience made me realize how change may be  possible for any cause with enough gumption to speak out; however, the planning that was put into this is also a major factor for the success of the event. Without proper leadership this would have been a disaster due to the vast amount of people. This very public very open tactic allows any movement to gain supporters while making connections with many other groups that are like minded. This tactic worked and went well.

Fwd: Your Invited Thursday March 13 Brown Bag

Sweatshop talk

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From: "Nimat R Davis" <nidavis@CSUFRESNO.EDU>
To: "WS ASSOC FACULTY FRIENDS" <WS_ASSOC_FACULTY_FRIENDS@LISTSERV.CSUFRESNO.EDU>
Sent: Tuesday, March 11, 2014 1:58:34 PM
Subject: Your Invited Thursday March 13 Brown Bag

Hello to All;

Please open your invitation for this week Thursday's Brown Bag presentation by Dr. Eric Ligouri's
Nell Nelson & City Slave Girls of Chicago from 12:00-1:30pm in the Library room 3212.


Thank you,

Dr. Jan Slagter
Associate Professor
Coordinator
Women's Studies Program

2225 East San Ramon MS MF#19
California State University, Fresno 93740

559 278-7140 (office)
559 259-6711 (cell)

intl womens day sweatshop

http://www.widgetserver.com/syndication/l/?p=1&instId=e593e11c-7828-43e4-8002-4a48e750332e&token=fc0cf6db78772ab24a9482025b09bcc2aaae44f400000144ad89bad6&u=http%3A%2F%2Fnews.google.com%2Fnews%2Furl%3Fsa%3Dt%26fd%3DR%26usg%3DAFQjCNE6V9Yyx5QNLkEr3903Mh8RnkH1yg%26cid%3Dc3a7d30bb8a4878e06b80cf16b898331%26url%3Dhttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.democracynow.org%2F2014%2F3%2F10%2Fheadlines%2Finternational_womens_day_marked_across_the_globe

Ricardo's first movement documentation paper china blue.

Ricardo Torres

Professor Kubal

Social Movements

02/27/14

Movie

            The purpose of our group was to raise awareness about sweatshops in America and abroad.  We decided as a group in a consensus that the best method of action would be to gather information on as many sweatshops as possible. In the process of understanding our movement better our Professor asked us to promote a movie dealing with issues in sweatshops. We all felt this was a great idea and after some planning we were able to organize a date a time to show the movie China blue a wonderfully powerful and moving film about a china sweatshop that produced denim apparel for different companies. The film was a documentary that chronicled several lives of sweatshops workers and management.  The film showed several aspects of working in a sweatshop in china. The workers were mainly from farm villages who spent all their money to get there once trained they were not permitted to leave at will and stayed in overcrowded boarding houses where their pay was deducted for room and board, food and enmities the conditions were overlooked by the visiting partners who cared little for human rights and more for capital gain. The film also showed the managers side of view. From the managers standpoint business was stiff and exploitation was just a part of the company’s competitiveness.  We were able to announce the movie and many thanks must be given to our professor for organizing the room and film; however, our group all showed up and shared our views on the problem after the movie was over and discussion began. The overall success was fairly good many students came to view the film; thus, the message of the negative aspect of sweatshops was permitted to be viewed by those who were otherwise unaware of our issue.