Supply Chain Human Rights in Clothing Retailers

Supply Chain Human Rights in Clothing Retailers EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The present report is about the Importance of upholding human standards of the workers both inside and outside their home countries in the large clothing retailers. Human rights still remain to be one of the most challenging issues all over the world because of international variations in politics, history, social and cultural differences. The implementation of human rights, however, does not go unexcused in any place of situation regardless of the circumstances. Upholding of human rights is very important and it is the fundamental right of every human being. This report specifically focused on the Clothing Retailers operating in the United Kingdom. These include: Nike, Gap, Levi Strauss and Marks and Spencer. The task of this report was to examine how these multinational firms uphold human rights in their operations all over the world. The report has found out that among other factors, globalisation also contributed to a great extent for international firms to violate human rights. In the 1980s, shaped by globalization, clothing retailers and brand manufacturers were forced to source their produce and manufactured goods from low-wage, economically less developed countries. These less developed countries were in most cases characterised by child labour, sexual harassment, and intolerable working conditions. Global awareness about inhuman conditions in working places drew together voices of numerous activists from all over the world to divert the trend. During the 1970s, various national and multinational organization, Non governmental organization and trade unions accused these clothing retailers companies for violating human rights. These multinational companies were specifically blamed for their failure to put into consideration the economic level of less developed countries in which they operated. This criticism led to establishment of voluntary labour codes by these companies in an effort to uphold their image. Most of these voluntary labour codes adopted principles in the International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions. Among other things, this report examines the historical aspect of clothing retailers and the challenges involved in upholding human rights in their supply chain production. The report further examines the role played by these clothing retailers in upholding human rights in their operations all over the world. CHAPTER ONE: 1. BACKGROUND INFORMATION 1.1. Introduction Human rights or sometimes referred to as natural rights are free and fundamental liberties entitled to an individual without the interference from any government or group of people for whatever reasons. A persons civil liberties are protected by the constitutions that define them and the organizations that exist to promote them. Under any circumstances the implementation of human rights does not go unexcused in any place or situation. Every individual regardless of his/her social economic status deserves to be treated with dignity. But due to rapid economic development, multinational companies are becoming more susceptible to violating human rights because of increasing international competition, undistributed wealth, and weak national laws (Krage, 2007). The World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization (2004) in one of its reports indicated that the global economy is changing in many ways. These massive changes affect multinational investment, capital markets, technology and business, more specifically impacting companies, consumers, workers and governments. The report further concludes that globalization has led to interdependence in economic relations that has created more opportunities for the advancement in business, investment, finance, organization of global production, and also more social and political interaction between organizations and individual around the world (World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization, 2004). It is unfortunate that not all countries are developing with the same pace and outcomes. Some countries specifically the developing countries, cannot utilize these rapidly growing expansion to their advantages (Misol, 2006). For example, there are plenty of evidences that increasing g lobal competition puts workers human rights in jeopardy because company protection standards are lowered and an employees civil liberties are often denied (Christerson and Applelbaum, 1995; Hathcote and Nam, 1999). In the 1970s, considerable criticism was raised against multinational companies regarding their operations in less developed countries. Nongovernmental organizations, national and international trade unions and many host countries raised concern that these multinational companies carried out their activities without giving any considerable and attention to host countries where they subcontracting or outsourcing their clothing factories to the economic and social development of those countries. This endless criticism by a number of activists from all over parts of the world led to the establishment of voluntary labour codes of conduct by these multinational companies (White and Taft, 2004). This report therefore is a result of the search of literature review regarding the upholding of human rights standards by large clothing retailers in their day to day operations, both within their countries of origin and overseas. 1.2 Aims and Objectives The general aim of this report is to examine the trend of large clothing retailers in upholding human rights in their operations with particular emphasis to those operating in the United Kingdom. These multinational large clothing retailers in question are: Nike, Gap, Marks Spencer and Levi Straus. To realize the desired aim, the report focused on the following objectives: Â · To explore the historical background with regard to textile sector and their compliance to human rights. Â · To examine the rise of the ethical business and the effects of Voluntary Labour Standards (Codes of Conduct) in the textile industry. Â · To examine the role played by these multinational large clothing retailers in upholding human rights as well as challenges facing them. CHAPTER TWO: 2. LITERATURE REVIEW, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 2.1 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1.1 Human Rights, Ethics and Business Ethics defined Human rights, ethics and business ethics defined in differently ways by different authors and all the definitions in the essence of the same thing. According to Rory Sullivan, he define Human rights as a moral right that apply to all employees in all nations regardless and acknowledge and protects those rights in the sense that human right are said to be unchangeable. On the other hand, Boddy (2005) argues that human rights means the idea that people have fundamental rights and liberties, and affected, those rights include consent, privacy, conscience, free speech, fair treatment and to life and safe. Similarly, the United National Universal Declaration for Human Rights (UDHR) defines human rights as a way of the incorporated economic, social cultural rights, such as right to work, right for educations, respect for their culture and a decent standard of living (Rude Mares). Crane (2007) refers as the ethics as the study of morality and the application of reason to explain special rul es and principles that determine right and wrong for a given situation at given time, those rules and doctrine are called ethical theories. However Fritz et al, (1999), and Hunt et al (1989) define ethical company as the conduct of conduct which are positively related to employees organizational commitment. Boddy (2005) define ethics as code of right principles and values that guide the actions of people and groups through set standard of the behaviour which is acceptable, especially when an action or decision can harm others. Taylor (1975) define business ethics as the business environment and basis of right decision, principles, and set of laws of the ways of carrying out the businesses activities between different parties within the organization, such as employees, customers, suppliers and the shareholders in the determination of the what is right or wrong to all parties. White and Taft (2004) indicate that ethics have been divided into two main categories, namely: teleological and deontological. With teleological ethics the emphasis is on the consequences or results of actions. This approach to ethics takes no accoun t of whether actions are rights or wrong but rather depends on whether harm or good results from the action. On the other hand, the teleological theories, includes utilitarianism, egoism, and care. The essence of the approach maintain that acts do not have intrinsic value but should be evaluated on the basis of the actions they produce and their effects others. The utilitarianism approach is based on the early ideas from Jeremy Benthams belief in empiricism and that of John Stuart Mill in the 18th century (Rosenstad, 1997; Velasquez, 1998). Utilitarianism takes a societal perspective on costs and benefits of ethical choice, indicating that any action should be evaluated in terms of its consequences. The idea is to determine how much good or harm it causes and the effects it impart on all parties. Utilitarianism is thus meant to promote the welfare of all persons by minimizing harm and maximizing benefits. This approach gives much attention to achieving desirable effects to many people taking into consideration human rights. The recent United States health care policy is seen as one of the utilitarian-driven public policy decision, in which the change is geared to a system that provides fundamental health and illness services to everyone. With deontological approach to ethics, White and Taft (2004) explain that an action or a decision in itself has intrinsically good or bad (or right or wrong) and thus it cant be judged by the mere results. Rights, justice, fairness, truth-telling, and virtue ethics form the deontological approach of reasoning. For example, a moral person would based on what is rights to her or him in making an ethical decision, putting into consideration the moral principles, rules or regulations, regardless of the circumstances of results. 2.1.2 Sourcing in the Textile Industry Christerson and Appelbaum, (1995) pointed that during the nineties there was a massive shift in the manufacturing of clothing to low wage countries throughout the world. International companies sourced products internationally in order to achieve a cost advantage. Traditionally, the framework of competition in the textile/clothing sector is described by dividing operators into two different strategic groups in terms of production management models. Firstly, there is a group identifiable as clothing operators (either manufactures or retailers). This group is primarily concerned with designing, modelling, forecasting and contributing to the development of fashion trends. Firms in this category are busy working on marketing strategies of product designed and proposed long before the actual time of consumption. The second group includes firms that compete with one another on the basis of their ability to adjust to the fashion trends imposed by others. By doing this they ensure speed and reliability to their already secured markets. These firms compensate for the lack of product planning by virtue of a production management model whose main characteristics are rapidity and flexibility. The two groups, therefore, have different factors that lie behind their success. In the first group, priority in their operations is to make sure that they have good command and influence fashion trends associated with a strong brand image. In the second group, the emphasis is on effective marketing strategies (Hathcote and Nam, 1999). Stiff competition, shaped by globalization, clothing retailers and brand manufacturers were forced to sourced their produce and manufactured goods to low-wage, economically less developed countries (Crewe, 2004; Klein, 2000). Consequently the late 1980s and early 1990s saw traditional European and U.S. based garment and footwear companies start off shoring and outsourcing much of their production from developing countries (Jones, 2005). This trend was particularly visible in low-skilled industries, such as the garment, footwear, and toy industries (Christerson and Appelbaum, 1995; Hathcote and Nam, 1999). Under conditions of competition, individuals cannot comply with moral norms. This leads to higher costs which in turn leave them worse off than their competitors. Situations like this systematically lead to an erosion of compliance with moral norms. Via evolution, individuals behaving morally will be signed out. Karl Marx and Max Weber saw this problem clearly. Both pointed out that competitive market makes it impossible for single individuals to follow the calls of morality and self-interest at the same time. The structures of society have changed in modern times, but ethical concepts and categories have at least to a large extent not changed. Most conceptions of ethics still require us to be moderate, to share, to redistribute, to sacrifice. They call for altruism, for the priority of common good and the like. The pursuit of self interest, of individual advantages, is often still ultimately seen as something like and evil drive that needs to be tamed (Christoph, 2005). Globalization has therefore been one of the factors for previous human rights violations in many multinational companies (Misol, 2006). Ambitious to mass super profits, these multinational companies embarked on child labour exploitation, suppression of labour rights in their supply chains. This led to persistence public outcry that helped to amplify global awareness about the injustices and human rights violations done by multinational companies in their chain supply production. 2.1.3 The Rise of Ethical Business and Corporate Social Responsibility There is a wide spread attention and interest in self-regulation, corporate social responsibility that continually press many companies to adhere to human rights in their operations. Ethical business, involving corporate codes of conduct for worker welfare and environmental protection, it is a subject that has attracted significant interest from academicians, the media and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) for many years now (Hughes, 2005). (Crane et al 2007) indicate how the importance of business ethics it is, in attracting different massive amount attention for various people example the shouter of the consumers and pressure groups that appearing to have an increasing of the challenging the firms in the asking of the more ethical and reasonably ways of doing business. Ethical business has emerged since the early 1990s as a specific example of corporate social responsibility, most commonly involving the establishment of minimum labour standards for producers in supply chains (Hathcote and Nam, 1999). Blowfield (1999), however, highlights that the issue of ethical business is broadened to incorporate a wider range of standards, including those concerned with the environment. Furthermore corporate social responsibility stand in the implementation for set core values that includes avoiding human rights abuses, upholding the right for the workers to join or form labour unions, elimination of compulsory and child labour and avoiding workplace discrimination (Cavusgil, Knight and Riesenberger 2008) However people like the later Rev. Leon Sullivan had been much concerned about code of conduct of human rights in workplace and in 1999, he developed a set of guidelines for corporate social responsibility, he argue that for the companies operations around the world should support and follow the Global Sullivan of corporate social responsibility. The aim and objectives was to maintain economic, social, and political justice by companies where they are doing business, to support human rights and to encourage equal opportunity at all levels of employment in developed and developing countries (www.thesullivanfoundation.org). Concerns in the early 1990s over child labour, physical and verbal abuse and violations of core labour rights in the production of toys, soccer balls, rugs, and garments marked the beginning of a wave of anti-sweatshop protests and media campaigns (Varley, 1998). Some of the earliest campaigns focused on production in China for companies like Levi Strauss and others, where the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 and U.S.-China trade negotiations drew special attention to human rights abuses. Bonacich and Appelbaum (2000) mentioned other anti-sweatshop protests that brought remarkable attention regarding human rights violations were those that showed child labour in the production of soccer balls in Pakistan, rugs in India, and garments in Bangladesh and Honduras. One of the most dramatic early sweatshop scandals occurred in the U.S, in the Los Angeles, California suburb of EI Monte. It was there, in 1995, that government inspectors discovered Thai immigrants working as indentured serv ants in an apartment complex, sewing garments to be sold by major retailers, including Montgomery Ward, Target, and Sears (Su 1997). The next year, labour rights activists brought sweatshops further into the American media spotlight, by exposing child labour in a Honduran factory producing Kathie Lee Giffords line of clothing for Wal-Mart, as well as a New York City sweatshop also producing Kathie Lee Giffords brand (Bonacich and Appelbaum 2000). Further to this, the suppression of labour rights in Indonesia, El Salvador, and several shocking instances of physical abuse in other parts of the developing world raised concern. In the early 1990s activists first accused footwear companies like Nike, Wal-Mart, and the Gap of profiting from exploitation, child labour, and the suppression of labour rights in their supply chains. These companies, however, responded by denying the responsibility (Hughes, 2005). According to Cavusgil, Knight and Riesenberger (2008) activists also accused International business specifically in the case of the multinational companies for ignores human rights by exploited workers around the world mostly in labour standard; low wages factories in developing countries by create substandard working conditions, example for the sweatshops in Asia where they imported clothing and auto workers in Mexico. Jenkins et al (2002) argue that the rise of voluntary corporate code of conduct in the 1990s can be linked to some extent to the processes of globalization. They mention the specific drivers of voluntary ethical trading initiatives as being: a) the growth of global supply chains that extend beyond the reach of national governments; b) the rise in the power of corporate brands and reputation, which makes large companies vulnerable to negative publicity; c) an increase in public awareness of overseas production conditions via improvements in global communications; and d) the growing importance to the investment community of ethical performance on the part of public companies. Furthermore, there were various initiatives concerned with labour and environmental issues that were categorized as ethical business. These included: (1) Multistakeholder organizations such as the UK Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), the Dutch Fair Wear Foundation, and the Fair Labour Association and Worker Rights Consortium in the USA, which all set minimum labour standards for producers; (2) labelling initiatives such as the Kenya Flower Council, which cover industry-specific environmental and labour standards; (3) individual corporate initiatives for establishing minimum standards in supply chains (Blowfield, 1999). These early initiatives were among the significant steps in promoting ethical business. Blowfield (1999) and Jenkins et al, (2002) argue that these initiatives also developed within the context of the United Nations Global Compact such as international standards which aimed to promote corporate citizenship in the global economy. Despite the organizational differences between existing ethical trading initiatives, most companies used some kind of code of conduct as the key tool for establishing workplace standards. 2.1.4 Voluntary Labour Standards (Codes of Conduct) Pressures on multinational companies by anti-sweatshop groups, labour unions, shareholders, activists, and consumer groups played an important role for companies to adopt labour standards. Standards refer with corporate code standard mention International by ILO (International Labour Organization) to the extent to which is explicitly or implicitly can either be done through the inclusion of the basic provisions of international organizations in the corporate codes standards (Van Tulder Kolk, 2002). Similarly, there were also greater pressures from governmental campaigns all over the world. Where in European countries, some of the government such as France were be advocating for greater attention to human rights in the sphere of international business. Along with such efforts from various countries, the European Commission had been carried out a research in the international subcontracting companies about the social aspect of textile clothing and footwear firms. Aiming to the extent in which the researches discover that these multinational companies adhered to human rights in their operations (Kolk and van Tulder, 2002). In 1996, President Clinton Launched the White House Apparel Industry on Workplace Standard (AIP), he launched the AIP after seen the violation of human rights in the clothing industries by multinational companies, the aim was to established standards and to ensure apparel and footwear were not made under sweatshops working conditions (Meyer and De Wit (2004). Due to the human right violation in textiles sectors precisely in the sweatshops conditions, The Clinton Administration established campaign against sweatshops in the clothing Textiles worked under sweatshops conditions in USA, the campaign was called No-Sweat and was introduced for the purpose fighting against sweatshops in which resulted to establishment of the Trendsetter List of companies in the Textiles Clothing and Footwear Factories. The campaign was aiming for the Clothing Textiles Factories to respect human rights and labour legislation in the production and marketing activities of the clothing and footwear in general, to make sure that both the clothing companies and their subcontracting companies as are, they must significant put into consideration and respecting these rights. The lack of the about not respect the rights, a number of labour legislation and human rights had been identified by the Department of Labour in the Textiles Clothing and Footwear factories, in subcontracting in particular of apparel production, facing the multinational companies, that was exploitation with a number of cases involving in human rights particularly the immigrant workers in sweatshops established on the United States regional, took steps to clean up the sectors. However, United States boundary put up on the sweatshops issue, took up steps to clean the sector (Elliot and Freeman (2001). Specifically in the area of child labour and, for example, the United States Government took a number of steps to alleviate the problems. Between 1994 and 1996 because of the important of the issue, the Bureau of International Labour affairs managed to organize three public gatherings to have views on child labour. These public platforms brought together a number of activists and the public at large to discuss various issues related to child labour. Specifically, they focused on the worst conditions of child abuse in the less developed countries that they exported products to the United States. A number of resolutions were made but all geared to put to end the merciless violations of human rights and child labour (Elliot and Freeman (2001). The Association of the Clothing Manufacturers of the USA and the Amalgamated Clothing Textiles Workers Union in 1995 agreed to have a National Branch for Collective Agreement. The agreement among other things included: the need to establish minimum standards regarding number of working hours, wages, and working conditions. In addition, the agreement also focused on a number of issues ranging from non-intolerance forced work, child employee, liberty of association, to occupational safety and health (White and Taft, 2004; and Giwerth, 1982). This was a trend in many parts of the world. Several national and multinational organizations and trade unions endeavoured to draw attention to respect human rights. Pressures from activities increased the formation of human rights association and in 1998 established of the Fair Labour Associations (FLA) to the overseas compliance, the Workplace Code of Conduct. The goals of Fair Labour Association (FLA) were for the companies required to monitor t heir own factories and their subcontractors to make sure there is compliance of the Code of Conduct in the textile factories (Meyer and De Wit, 2004). Klein (1999) pointed out that many firms had invested heavily in branding and reputation capital and therefore any high profile scandals and political pressures could tarnish their reputation. In the face of such pressure, it was not surprising that firms adopted voluntary standards to try to deflect criticism, pre-empt regulation, and signal their social responsibility to consumers and investors. The important factor in adoption of voluntary labour codes was to uphold public image which the company wanted to project to its customers, employees, suppliers and shareholders. Thus the clothing retailers public image became important than anything else. These multinational companies worked hard to clear their images and had no option but to promote codes of conduct. The public image was particularly important because it determined the extent to which the companys products could be bought. Given the rapidly growing competition in the global markets and communication in technology, it was essential for a company to improve the working conditions in its operations and retain its good image to customers (Kolk and van 2002). The United Nation Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the General Assembly in 1948 (Schulz, 2001). The declaration proclaims on the issue of the slavery or servitude subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment put them into detention or exile and arbitrary arrest subjected. Moreover the declaration goes on to proclaim that everyone needs to live in liberty and everyone have a right to security, everyone have equal protection against any discrimination, and everyone have a the rights for work, everyone have free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work, and to protection against unemployment as a result of discrimination has entitled. The international Labour organization (ILO) was created in 1919 as a tripartite organization of government, business, and union representatives from 174 nations. Since then, it has adopted 177 lengthy labour conventions or standards. Seven of these are considered fundamental human rights, addressing issues such as forced labour, equal pay for men and women, discrimination in the workplace, and the minimum age for employment (White and Taft, 2004). Organizations such as Amnesty International have specified clearly workers right such as freedom of association, the right of collective bargaining and working conditions and soon. The organization is for Human Rights and as Watch Report on human rights well being all around the world and strives to ensure the protection and progression of them as well. Amnesty International is an organization whose vision was derived from the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, was adopted by the General Assembly Resolution in 1948. It is adopted for the reasons monitoring the protection and standard of human rights as were established in thirty articles that later set the primary foundation to the policies and standard that carried out by NGOs and other agencies with the purpose to protect and promote fundamental rights (www.amnesty.org). The Social Accountability International (SAI), established in 1977, is an organization that for promotes human rights for workers around the world. Its SA8000 standards are obtained from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) convention. The standards are designed to make workplace more humane and also to offer more benefits for the companies and its employees. Employees that work under SA8000 standards they have profit from the enhanced opportunity of collective bargaining and to organize trade unions. Also, employees become more educated about their rights which in turn, commits to have assurance for a better work environment. The companies as whole, benefits from the SA8000 guidelines because it strengthens and put company values into action and enhances the company reputation (Krage, 2007). The International Labour Organization Declaration (ILO) on the Fundamental Principles at work were adopted in 1998 and was an expression of commitment by governments, employers and workers organizations to uphold basic human rights (Kolk et al 2001).The Declaration covers four areas; liberty of the trade union and the right to collective bargaining, elimination of forced and compulsory work, Abolition of child employee and elimination of discrimination of human rights. The Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights were developed by governments of the U.S. UK, Norway, Netherlands and NGOs, who all were have the common interest in human rights and corporate social responsibility (voluntaryprinciple.org). There were six principles that all participants agents agreed on in order to promote and protect human rights in multinational companies. The six Voluntary Principle as stated on their website are as follows: acknowledge that security is a fundamental need; Understanding that governments have the primary responsibility to promote and protect human rights; Particularly those set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human rights; Emphasizing the importance of safeguarding the integrity of company personnel and property; Taking note of the effect of those companies, activities and decisions affect the local community; Understanding that useful, credible information is a major component of security and human rights. The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is multi-stakeholder governed institution that provides global standards for the promotion of sustainable development. Judy Henderson, immediate past-Chair, Board of Directors says The GRI is a unique, multi-stakeholder organization founded on the conviction consistent, regular and comparable reporting, provides transparency and can be a powerful catalyst to improve performance (globalreporting.org). There are nearly 1000 organization in over 60 countries that have established their involvement with the GRI reporting framework. This reporting framework guides corporations and organizations on the reporting their sustainability performance to promote company progression and improvement in all area of business. The reporting guidelines contain principles, guidance, and standard disclosures that formulate a structure that cooperating organizations can voluntarily adopt (www.globalreporting.org). The UNs Global Compact is a purely voluntary guide to promoting responsible corporate citizenship. Its two main objectives are: to mainstream its ten (10) principles in business activities around the world and initiate actions to support United Nations goals (www.unglobalcompact.org) 2.1.5 Adoption of Voluntary Labour Standards (Codes of Conduct) by Multinational Companies and their Impact The rapid diffusion of labour standards (codes of conduct) stems from the response to external pressures (actual or threatened) from media, activists, government, and consumers (Shaw, 1999). In a like manner, (H Supply Chain Human Rights in Clothing Retailers Supply Chain Human Rights in Clothing Retailers EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The present report is about the Importance of upholding human standards of the workers both inside and outside their home countries in the large clothing retailers. Human rights still remain to be one of the most challenging issues all over the world because of international variations in politics, history, social and cultural differences. The implementation of human rights, however, does not go unexcused in any place of situation regardless of the circumstances. Upholding of human rights is very important and it is the fundamental right of every human being. This report specifically focused on the Clothing Retailers operating in the United Kingdom. These include: Nike, Gap, Levi Strauss and Marks and Spencer. The task of this report was to examine how these multinational firms uphold human rights in their operations all over the world. The report has found out that among other factors, globalisation also contributed to a great extent for international firms to violate human rights. In the 1980s, shaped by globalization, clothing retailers and brand manufacturers were forced to source their produce and manufactured goods from low-wage, economically less developed countries. These less developed countries were in most cases characterised by child labour, sexual harassment, and intolerable working conditions. Global awareness about inhuman conditions in working places drew together voices of numerous activists from all over the world to divert the trend. During the 1970s, various national and multinational organization, Non governmental organization and trade unions accused these clothing retailers companies for violating human rights. These multinational companies were specifically blamed for their failure to put into consideration the economic level of less developed countries in which they operated. This criticism led to establishment of voluntary labour codes by these companies in an effort to uphold their image. Most of these voluntary labour codes adopted principles in the International Labour Organization (ILO) Conventions. Among other things, this report examines the historical aspect of clothing retailers and the challenges involved in upholding human rights in their supply chain production. The report further examines the role played by these clothing retailers in upholding human rights in their operations all over the world. CHAPTER ONE: 1. BACKGROUND INFORMATION 1.1. Introduction Human rights or sometimes referred to as natural rights are free and fundamental liberties entitled to an individual without the interference from any government or group of people for whatever reasons. A persons civil liberties are protected by the constitutions that define them and the organizations that exist to promote them. Under any circumstances the implementation of human rights does not go unexcused in any place or situation. Every individual regardless of his/her social economic status deserves to be treated with dignity. But due to rapid economic development, multinational companies are becoming more susceptible to violating human rights because of increasing international competition, undistributed wealth, and weak national laws (Krage, 2007). The World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization (2004) in one of its reports indicated that the global economy is changing in many ways. These massive changes affect multinational investment, capital markets, technology and business, more specifically impacting companies, consumers, workers and governments. The report further concludes that globalization has led to interdependence in economic relations that has created more opportunities for the advancement in business, investment, finance, organization of global production, and also more social and political interaction between organizations and individual around the world (World Commission on the Social Dimension of Globalization, 2004). It is unfortunate that not all countries are developing with the same pace and outcomes. Some countries specifically the developing countries, cannot utilize these rapidly growing expansion to their advantages (Misol, 2006). For example, there are plenty of evidences that increasing g lobal competition puts workers human rights in jeopardy because company protection standards are lowered and an employees civil liberties are often denied (Christerson and Applelbaum, 1995; Hathcote and Nam, 1999). In the 1970s, considerable criticism was raised against multinational companies regarding their operations in less developed countries. Nongovernmental organizations, national and international trade unions and many host countries raised concern that these multinational companies carried out their activities without giving any considerable and attention to host countries where they subcontracting or outsourcing their clothing factories to the economic and social development of those countries. This endless criticism by a number of activists from all over parts of the world led to the establishment of voluntary labour codes of conduct by these multinational companies (White and Taft, 2004). This report therefore is a result of the search of literature review regarding the upholding of human rights standards by large clothing retailers in their day to day operations, both within their countries of origin and overseas. 1.2 Aims and Objectives The general aim of this report is to examine the trend of large clothing retailers in upholding human rights in their operations with particular emphasis to those operating in the United Kingdom. These multinational large clothing retailers in question are: Nike, Gap, Marks Spencer and Levi Straus. To realize the desired aim, the report focused on the following objectives: Â · To explore the historical background with regard to textile sector and their compliance to human rights. Â · To examine the rise of the ethical business and the effects of Voluntary Labour Standards (Codes of Conduct) in the textile industry. Â · To examine the role played by these multinational large clothing retailers in upholding human rights as well as challenges facing them. CHAPTER TWO: 2. LITERATURE REVIEW, ANALYSIS AND DISCUSSION 2.1 LITERATURE REVIEW 2.1.1 Human Rights, Ethics and Business Ethics defined Human rights, ethics and business ethics defined in differently ways by different authors and all the definitions in the essence of the same thing. According to Rory Sullivan, he define Human rights as a moral right that apply to all employees in all nations regardless and acknowledge and protects those rights in the sense that human right are said to be unchangeable. On the other hand, Boddy (2005) argues that human rights means the idea that people have fundamental rights and liberties, and affected, those rights include consent, privacy, conscience, free speech, fair treatment and to life and safe. Similarly, the United National Universal Declaration for Human Rights (UDHR) defines human rights as a way of the incorporated economic, social cultural rights, such as right to work, right for educations, respect for their culture and a decent standard of living (Rude Mares). Crane (2007) refers as the ethics as the study of morality and the application of reason to explain special rul es and principles that determine right and wrong for a given situation at given time, those rules and doctrine are called ethical theories. However Fritz et al, (1999), and Hunt et al (1989) define ethical company as the conduct of conduct which are positively related to employees organizational commitment. Boddy (2005) define ethics as code of right principles and values that guide the actions of people and groups through set standard of the behaviour which is acceptable, especially when an action or decision can harm others. Taylor (1975) define business ethics as the business environment and basis of right decision, principles, and set of laws of the ways of carrying out the businesses activities between different parties within the organization, such as employees, customers, suppliers and the shareholders in the determination of the what is right or wrong to all parties. White and Taft (2004) indicate that ethics have been divided into two main categories, namely: teleological and deontological. With teleological ethics the emphasis is on the consequences or results of actions. This approach to ethics takes no accoun t of whether actions are rights or wrong but rather depends on whether harm or good results from the action. On the other hand, the teleological theories, includes utilitarianism, egoism, and care. The essence of the approach maintain that acts do not have intrinsic value but should be evaluated on the basis of the actions they produce and their effects others. The utilitarianism approach is based on the early ideas from Jeremy Benthams belief in empiricism and that of John Stuart Mill in the 18th century (Rosenstad, 1997; Velasquez, 1998). Utilitarianism takes a societal perspective on costs and benefits of ethical choice, indicating that any action should be evaluated in terms of its consequences. The idea is to determine how much good or harm it causes and the effects it impart on all parties. Utilitarianism is thus meant to promote the welfare of all persons by minimizing harm and maximizing benefits. This approach gives much attention to achieving desirable effects to many people taking into consideration human rights. The recent United States health care policy is seen as one of the utilitarian-driven public policy decision, in which the change is geared to a system that provides fundamental health and illness services to everyone. With deontological approach to ethics, White and Taft (2004) explain that an action or a decision in itself has intrinsically good or bad (or right or wrong) and thus it cant be judged by the mere results. Rights, justice, fairness, truth-telling, and virtue ethics form the deontological approach of reasoning. For example, a moral person would based on what is rights to her or him in making an ethical decision, putting into consideration the moral principles, rules or regulations, regardless of the circumstances of results. 2.1.2 Sourcing in the Textile Industry Christerson and Appelbaum, (1995) pointed that during the nineties there was a massive shift in the manufacturing of clothing to low wage countries throughout the world. International companies sourced products internationally in order to achieve a cost advantage. Traditionally, the framework of competition in the textile/clothing sector is described by dividing operators into two different strategic groups in terms of production management models. Firstly, there is a group identifiable as clothing operators (either manufactures or retailers). This group is primarily concerned with designing, modelling, forecasting and contributing to the development of fashion trends. Firms in this category are busy working on marketing strategies of product designed and proposed long before the actual time of consumption. The second group includes firms that compete with one another on the basis of their ability to adjust to the fashion trends imposed by others. By doing this they ensure speed and reliability to their already secured markets. These firms compensate for the lack of product planning by virtue of a production management model whose main characteristics are rapidity and flexibility. The two groups, therefore, have different factors that lie behind their success. In the first group, priority in their operations is to make sure that they have good command and influence fashion trends associated with a strong brand image. In the second group, the emphasis is on effective marketing strategies (Hathcote and Nam, 1999). Stiff competition, shaped by globalization, clothing retailers and brand manufacturers were forced to sourced their produce and manufactured goods to low-wage, economically less developed countries (Crewe, 2004; Klein, 2000). Consequently the late 1980s and early 1990s saw traditional European and U.S. based garment and footwear companies start off shoring and outsourcing much of their production from developing countries (Jones, 2005). This trend was particularly visible in low-skilled industries, such as the garment, footwear, and toy industries (Christerson and Appelbaum, 1995; Hathcote and Nam, 1999). Under conditions of competition, individuals cannot comply with moral norms. This leads to higher costs which in turn leave them worse off than their competitors. Situations like this systematically lead to an erosion of compliance with moral norms. Via evolution, individuals behaving morally will be signed out. Karl Marx and Max Weber saw this problem clearly. Both pointed out that competitive market makes it impossible for single individuals to follow the calls of morality and self-interest at the same time. The structures of society have changed in modern times, but ethical concepts and categories have at least to a large extent not changed. Most conceptions of ethics still require us to be moderate, to share, to redistribute, to sacrifice. They call for altruism, for the priority of common good and the like. The pursuit of self interest, of individual advantages, is often still ultimately seen as something like and evil drive that needs to be tamed (Christoph, 2005). Globalization has therefore been one of the factors for previous human rights violations in many multinational companies (Misol, 2006). Ambitious to mass super profits, these multinational companies embarked on child labour exploitation, suppression of labour rights in their supply chains. This led to persistence public outcry that helped to amplify global awareness about the injustices and human rights violations done by multinational companies in their chain supply production. 2.1.3 The Rise of Ethical Business and Corporate Social Responsibility There is a wide spread attention and interest in self-regulation, corporate social responsibility that continually press many companies to adhere to human rights in their operations. Ethical business, involving corporate codes of conduct for worker welfare and environmental protection, it is a subject that has attracted significant interest from academicians, the media and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) for many years now (Hughes, 2005). (Crane et al 2007) indicate how the importance of business ethics it is, in attracting different massive amount attention for various people example the shouter of the consumers and pressure groups that appearing to have an increasing of the challenging the firms in the asking of the more ethical and reasonably ways of doing business. Ethical business has emerged since the early 1990s as a specific example of corporate social responsibility, most commonly involving the establishment of minimum labour standards for producers in supply chains (Hathcote and Nam, 1999). Blowfield (1999), however, highlights that the issue of ethical business is broadened to incorporate a wider range of standards, including those concerned with the environment. Furthermore corporate social responsibility stand in the implementation for set core values that includes avoiding human rights abuses, upholding the right for the workers to join or form labour unions, elimination of compulsory and child labour and avoiding workplace discrimination (Cavusgil, Knight and Riesenberger 2008) However people like the later Rev. Leon Sullivan had been much concerned about code of conduct of human rights in workplace and in 1999, he developed a set of guidelines for corporate social responsibility, he argue that for the companies operations around the world should support and follow the Global Sullivan of corporate social responsibility. The aim and objectives was to maintain economic, social, and political justice by companies where they are doing business, to support human rights and to encourage equal opportunity at all levels of employment in developed and developing countries (www.thesullivanfoundation.org). Concerns in the early 1990s over child labour, physical and verbal abuse and violations of core labour rights in the production of toys, soccer balls, rugs, and garments marked the beginning of a wave of anti-sweatshop protests and media campaigns (Varley, 1998). Some of the earliest campaigns focused on production in China for companies like Levi Strauss and others, where the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 and U.S.-China trade negotiations drew special attention to human rights abuses. Bonacich and Appelbaum (2000) mentioned other anti-sweatshop protests that brought remarkable attention regarding human rights violations were those that showed child labour in the production of soccer balls in Pakistan, rugs in India, and garments in Bangladesh and Honduras. One of the most dramatic early sweatshop scandals occurred in the U.S, in the Los Angeles, California suburb of EI Monte. It was there, in 1995, that government inspectors discovered Thai immigrants working as indentured serv ants in an apartment complex, sewing garments to be sold by major retailers, including Montgomery Ward, Target, and Sears (Su 1997). The next year, labour rights activists brought sweatshops further into the American media spotlight, by exposing child labour in a Honduran factory producing Kathie Lee Giffords line of clothing for Wal-Mart, as well as a New York City sweatshop also producing Kathie Lee Giffords brand (Bonacich and Appelbaum 2000). Further to this, the suppression of labour rights in Indonesia, El Salvador, and several shocking instances of physical abuse in other parts of the developing world raised concern. In the early 1990s activists first accused footwear companies like Nike, Wal-Mart, and the Gap of profiting from exploitation, child labour, and the suppression of labour rights in their supply chains. These companies, however, responded by denying the responsibility (Hughes, 2005). According to Cavusgil, Knight and Riesenberger (2008) activists also accused International business specifically in the case of the multinational companies for ignores human rights by exploited workers around the world mostly in labour standard; low wages factories in developing countries by create substandard working conditions, example for the sweatshops in Asia where they imported clothing and auto workers in Mexico. Jenkins et al (2002) argue that the rise of voluntary corporate code of conduct in the 1990s can be linked to some extent to the processes of globalization. They mention the specific drivers of voluntary ethical trading initiatives as being: a) the growth of global supply chains that extend beyond the reach of national governments; b) the rise in the power of corporate brands and reputation, which makes large companies vulnerable to negative publicity; c) an increase in public awareness of overseas production conditions via improvements in global communications; and d) the growing importance to the investment community of ethical performance on the part of public companies. Furthermore, there were various initiatives concerned with labour and environmental issues that were categorized as ethical business. These included: (1) Multistakeholder organizations such as the UK Ethical Trading Initiative (ETI), the Dutch Fair Wear Foundation, and the Fair Labour Association and Worker Rights Consortium in the USA, which all set minimum labour standards for producers; (2) labelling initiatives such as the Kenya Flower Council, which cover industry-specific environmental and labour standards; (3) individual corporate initiatives for establishing minimum standards in supply chains (Blowfield, 1999). These early initiatives were among the significant steps in promoting ethical business. Blowfield (1999) and Jenkins et al, (2002) argue that these initiatives also developed within the context of the United Nations Global Compact such as international standards which aimed to promote corporate citizenship in the global economy. Despite the organizational differences between existing ethical trading initiatives, most companies used some kind of code of conduct as the key tool for establishing workplace standards. 2.1.4 Voluntary Labour Standards (Codes of Conduct) Pressures on multinational companies by anti-sweatshop groups, labour unions, shareholders, activists, and consumer groups played an important role for companies to adopt labour standards. Standards refer with corporate code standard mention International by ILO (International Labour Organization) to the extent to which is explicitly or implicitly can either be done through the inclusion of the basic provisions of international organizations in the corporate codes standards (Van Tulder Kolk, 2002). Similarly, there were also greater pressures from governmental campaigns all over the world. Where in European countries, some of the government such as France were be advocating for greater attention to human rights in the sphere of international business. Along with such efforts from various countries, the European Commission had been carried out a research in the international subcontracting companies about the social aspect of textile clothing and footwear firms. Aiming to the extent in which the researches discover that these multinational companies adhered to human rights in their operations (Kolk and van Tulder, 2002). In 1996, President Clinton Launched the White House Apparel Industry on Workplace Standard (AIP), he launched the AIP after seen the violation of human rights in the clothing industries by multinational companies, the aim was to established standards and to ensure apparel and footwear were not made under sweatshops working conditions (Meyer and De Wit (2004). Due to the human right violation in textiles sectors precisely in the sweatshops conditions, The Clinton Administration established campaign against sweatshops in the clothing Textiles worked under sweatshops conditions in USA, the campaign was called No-Sweat and was introduced for the purpose fighting against sweatshops in which resulted to establishment of the Trendsetter List of companies in the Textiles Clothing and Footwear Factories. The campaign was aiming for the Clothing Textiles Factories to respect human rights and labour legislation in the production and marketing activities of the clothing and footwear in general, to make sure that both the clothing companies and their subcontracting companies as are, they must significant put into consideration and respecting these rights. The lack of the about not respect the rights, a number of labour legislation and human rights had been identified by the Department of Labour in the Textiles Clothing and Footwear factories, in subcontracting in particular of apparel production, facing the multinational companies, that was exploitation with a number of cases involving in human rights particularly the immigrant workers in sweatshops established on the United States regional, took steps to clean up the sectors. However, United States boundary put up on the sweatshops issue, took up steps to clean the sector (Elliot and Freeman (2001). Specifically in the area of child labour and, for example, the United States Government took a number of steps to alleviate the problems. Between 1994 and 1996 because of the important of the issue, the Bureau of International Labour affairs managed to organize three public gatherings to have views on child labour. These public platforms brought together a number of activists and the public at large to discuss various issues related to child labour. Specifically, they focused on the worst conditions of child abuse in the less developed countries that they exported products to the United States. A number of resolutions were made but all geared to put to end the merciless violations of human rights and child labour (Elliot and Freeman (2001). The Association of the Clothing Manufacturers of the USA and the Amalgamated Clothing Textiles Workers Union in 1995 agreed to have a National Branch for Collective Agreement. The agreement among other things included: the need to establish minimum standards regarding number of working hours, wages, and working conditions. In addition, the agreement also focused on a number of issues ranging from non-intolerance forced work, child employee, liberty of association, to occupational safety and health (White and Taft, 2004; and Giwerth, 1982). This was a trend in many parts of the world. Several national and multinational organizations and trade unions endeavoured to draw attention to respect human rights. Pressures from activities increased the formation of human rights association and in 1998 established of the Fair Labour Associations (FLA) to the overseas compliance, the Workplace Code of Conduct. The goals of Fair Labour Association (FLA) were for the companies required to monitor t heir own factories and their subcontractors to make sure there is compliance of the Code of Conduct in the textile factories (Meyer and De Wit, 2004). Klein (1999) pointed out that many firms had invested heavily in branding and reputation capital and therefore any high profile scandals and political pressures could tarnish their reputation. In the face of such pressure, it was not surprising that firms adopted voluntary standards to try to deflect criticism, pre-empt regulation, and signal their social responsibility to consumers and investors. The important factor in adoption of voluntary labour codes was to uphold public image which the company wanted to project to its customers, employees, suppliers and shareholders. Thus the clothing retailers public image became important than anything else. These multinational companies worked hard to clear their images and had no option but to promote codes of conduct. The public image was particularly important because it determined the extent to which the companys products could be bought. Given the rapidly growing competition in the global markets and communication in technology, it was essential for a company to improve the working conditions in its operations and retain its good image to customers (Kolk and van 2002). The United Nation Universal Declaration of Human Rights was adopted by the General Assembly in 1948 (Schulz, 2001). The declaration proclaims on the issue of the slavery or servitude subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment put them into detention or exile and arbitrary arrest subjected. Moreover the declaration goes on to proclaim that everyone needs to live in liberty and everyone have a right to security, everyone have equal protection against any discrimination, and everyone have a the rights for work, everyone have free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work, and to protection against unemployment as a result of discrimination has entitled. The international Labour organization (ILO) was created in 1919 as a tripartite organization of government, business, and union representatives from 174 nations. Since then, it has adopted 177 lengthy labour conventions or standards. Seven of these are considered fundamental human rights, addressing issues such as forced labour, equal pay for men and women, discrimination in the workplace, and the minimum age for employment (White and Taft, 2004). Organizations such as Amnesty International have specified clearly workers right such as freedom of association, the right of collective bargaining and working conditions and soon. The organization is for Human Rights and as Watch Report on human rights well being all around the world and strives to ensure the protection and progression of them as well. Amnesty International is an organization whose vision was derived from the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights, was adopted by the General Assembly Resolution in 1948. It is adopted for the reasons monitoring the protection and standard of human rights as were established in thirty articles that later set the primary foundation to the policies and standard that carried out by NGOs and other agencies with the purpose to protect and promote fundamental rights (www.amnesty.org). The Social Accountability International (SAI), established in 1977, is an organization that for promotes human rights for workers around the world. Its SA8000 standards are obtained from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) convention. The standards are designed to make workplace more humane and also to offer more benefits for the companies and its employees. Employees that work under SA8000 standards they have profit from the enhanced opportunity of collective bargaining and to organize trade unions. Also, employees become more educated about their rights which in turn, commits to have assurance for a better work environment. The companies as whole, benefits from the SA8000 guidelines because it strengthens and put company values into action and enhances the company reputation (Krage, 2007). The International Labour Organization Declaration (ILO) on the Fundamental Principles at work were adopted in 1998 and was an expression of commitment by governments, employers and workers organizations to uphold basic human rights (Kolk et al 2001).The Declaration covers four areas; liberty of the trade union and the right to collective bargaining, elimination of forced and compulsory work, Abolition of child employee and elimination of discrimination of human rights. The Voluntary Principles on Security and Human Rights were developed by governments of the U.S. UK, Norway, Netherlands and NGOs, who all were have the common interest in human rights and corporate social responsibility (voluntaryprinciple.org). There were six principles that all participants agents agreed on in order to promote and protect human rights in multinational companies. The six Voluntary Principle as stated on their website are as follows: acknowledge that security is a fundamental need; Understanding that governments have the primary responsibility to promote and protect human rights; Particularly those set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human rights; Emphasizing the importance of safeguarding the integrity of company personnel and property; Taking note of the effect of those companies, activities and decisions affect the local community; Understanding that useful, credible information is a major component of security and human rights. The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) is multi-stakeholder governed institution that provides global standards for the promotion of sustainable development. Judy Henderson, immediate past-Chair, Board of Directors says The GRI is a unique, multi-stakeholder organization founded on the conviction consistent, regular and comparable reporting, provides transparency and can be a powerful catalyst to improve performance (globalreporting.org). There are nearly 1000 organization in over 60 countries that have established their involvement with the GRI reporting framework. This reporting framework guides corporations and organizations on the reporting their sustainability performance to promote company progression and improvement in all area of business. The reporting guidelines contain principles, guidance, and standard disclosures that formulate a structure that cooperating organizations can voluntarily adopt (www.globalreporting.org). The UNs Global Compact is a purely voluntary guide to promoting responsible corporate citizenship. Its two main objectives are: to mainstream its ten (10) principles in business activities around the world and initiate actions to support United Nations goals (www.unglobalcompact.org) 2.1.5 Adoption of Voluntary Labour Standards (Codes of Conduct) by Multinational Companies and their Impact The rapid diffusion of labour standards (codes of conduct) stems from the response to external pressures (actual or threatened) from media, activists, government, and consumers (Shaw, 1999). In a like manner, (H

Symptoms and Treatment of Bronchitis :: Health Medicine

Symptoms and Treatment of Bronchitis Bronchitis is the inflammation of the bronchi. It may develop suddenly, following a head cold (acute bronchitis), or it may persist or return regularly for many years, causing progressive degeneration of the bronchi and lungs (chronic bronchitis). Certain people are more susceptible than others; Men are more of a target to bronchitis than women, out numbering them 10 to 1 cc the reasons are unclear. Of course smokers are 50 times more likely to get chronic bronchitis than nonsmokers. Acute bronchitis is a bacteria or virus infection, often following a cold smoking. People who have acute bronchitis usually have a mild fever, soreness under breast bone, irritated by coughing. First they have a dry cough then the cough later brings up green and yellow mucus. The cough may persist to 4 to 6 weeks. Chronic bronchitis is produced by other chronic problems: sinusitis, smoking, TB, etc. The Bronchi becomes thick, inelastic, and accumulate mucus and pus in lower part of lungs instead of bringing discharges up and out. The result is chronic cough, shortness of breath, sometimes spasm, and frequent infection. In acute bronchitis, the basic symptoms are a head cold, fever and chills, running nose, aching muscles and possibly back pains. This is soon followed by the obvious persistent cough. At first the cough is dry and racking and eventually becomes phlegmy. The persistent cough is worse at night than during the day, and when the person breathes in smoke and fumes. The main symptoms most recognized in chronic bronchitis is, again, a cough, with sputum, often occurring in paroxysms. Other symptoms in chronic bronchitis are dependant on how much, or how little, emphysema is present. This disorder causes the lungs to become overstretched, making the breathing process difficult. The chronic bronchitic with no emphysema tends to be overweight and often has a bluish tinge to his or her lips due to lack of oxygen. Shortness of breath only occurs during exercise and other strenuous activity. The bronchitic with a great deal of emphysema, who has lost a lot of his or her oxygen cc exchanging ability, due to the condition, is short of breath at all times. The bronchitic with emphysema very often are underweight and, as the disease comes worse, develops a barrel chest. The Chronic bronchitic also wheezes because of the obstruction. NOTE: Emphysema is a state of overdistention of the tiny air-containing sacs of the lung. The cause of bronchitis are from viral or bacterial infections which spreads to the chest.

A Brief Analysis on the Film King of Masks

The film King of Masks deals with and challenges the feudal idea that men are superior to women; this ideology, as the film portrays, results in alienation, tragedy and bitterness for girls in Chinese society and particularly the protagonist Doggie. In contrast, out of darkness, corruption, and poverty, the goodness of humanity and the human love sprung up from the master-apprentice relationship between Wang and Doggie will ultimately reign over narrow and backward traditional notions.Evidence that everyone desires a boy can be found throughout the film. In fact, preference for boys over girls is not just a fad but rather deep-rooted in Chinese society. Feudal ideas that men superior to women is embedded and prevails in Chinese culture as early as the end of the Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 B. C. ) during which Confucian teachings advocates and fosters gender inequality (Jiang 229). Under influence of Confucianism, women are given low status and expected to be obedient to husban d.This produces a sequence of expectations for men and women: men are expected to work outside and support family living while women only stays home and take care of family and household. This is also the reality in King of Masks, in which almost every man has a job: Wang is a street performer; Master Liang is an opera performer; Wang’s friend is a liquor dealer. However, the occupation of women is not clearly revealed. Notable examples are the crowds of women joining the parade and women from TianCi’s family whose main role is taking care of the child.It is worth noting that Master Liang plays as a female impersonator. Despite its name, a female impersonator is played by a male in traditional Chinese opera because women are believed to corrupt men on stage and thus banned from performing (Johnson 380). The storyline of the film is triggered by Wang’s quest for a male heir to pass on his secret ancestral art of BianLian or its literally meaning of changing faces . In Wang’s conversation with Master Liang, he firmly states,† only a son may inherit [the skills]. It is an ancient rule. In fact, only son has the right inherit property including all Chinese secret skills and medical prescription. Also, in Chinese tradition, boys are expected to carry on the family line and occupation whereas girls leave and separate from the family after marriage. It is then not surprising that Wang worries that his secret skill may leak out and insist on passing it to a boy. The gender inequality that feudal and Confucian ideas bring about and gender biased Chinese traditions underlies the cruelty and unfair treatment from which girls and particularly Doggie suffer.In the opening scene, the background music immediately creates a strong sense of melancholy and sadness. As Master Liang boldly admits that â€Å"no one values girls†, the society undeniably treats girls harshly. In the back alley black market, desperate parents beg to sell their daughters for very little value and yet still no one wants them. The fact that Wang paid ten dollars for Doggie is because he craves for a boy. When Doggie confesses that she was abused and sold seven times by different owners because they don’t like girls, audience can feel the bitterness and sympathize with her.Indeed, girls like Doggie experience alienation and estrangement from society and its people, including the protagonist Wang. To further illuminate, we observe a sharp change in Wang’s attitude towards Doggie after he finds out that she doesn’t have â€Å"a little tea spout! † Since their encounter, Wang enjoys being called â€Å"grandpa†; however, he asks Doggie to call him â€Å"Boss† when he feels betrayed by her. The intimacy between them dissolves; instead, emotional alienation and detachment begin to emerge. Doggie’s status changes from a beloved grandson to whom Wang determines to inherit his skill to a servant who onl y does housekeeping.Also, the pitiless gender inequality contrasts strongly with the colorful and joyful settings like opera, firework, festival, and pipe-smoking ceremony. Aside from the pain that Chinese girls bear, King of Masks also reveals poverty, hardship, corruption, and darkness that Wang and Doggie experience in the world that they live in. The mist in opening scene and overall color tone of grey suggests that Wang is paddling into a world of dullness. With his houseboat- his only sanctuary- Wang travels around to make a living by performing Bianlian in return of donation from people who appreciate his art on the street.Desperation and poverty are not only accompanying people in the slave market but also Wang: his wife left him after the death of his son; his only companion is not a human but a monkey. Master Liang’s confession that â€Å" we all have our own sorrows† reflects the folk artists fate of twists and turns and bitterness. During one performance, W ang is intimidated and oppressed by soldiers, but he can only chant woefully â€Å"The dragon in the shallows is toyed with by the shrimp†. Many proverbs like this in the film convey to audiences his hardship and helplessness.Government corruption is also disclosed in the movie when Wang is falsely charged of all kidnap cases and imprisoned. In his quest for an heir, Wang visits Buddhist temple to pray and buys a Buddha to worship in the hope that it may gift him a son. All Wang’s spiritual sustenance is on the Buddha body. This showed Wang’s inner weakness and helplessness towards his own destiny. Nevertheless, out of the darkness in this world, we witness the goodness of human nature. When Master Liang invites Wang into his theater troupe, Wang excuses himself from joining. This shows that Wang is man of independence and principle.Besides, Wang scolds Doggie for stealing a bottle of wine, also showing his integrity. In the film, Master Liang is a popular opera star cherished by his followers; nevertheless, he upholds humbleness, and just like his stage name, Master Liang is indeed a â€Å"Living Buddha† with kindness and sympathy to Wang and Doggie throughout. It is also him who offers help and plays a key role in rescuing Wang out of prison. Even some insignificant character shows the goodness of human nature: the liquor dealer offers alcohol when Wang wounds; the prison guard allows Doggie to visit Wang.King of Mask also portrays the sentimental love between an unrelated grandpa and unwanted child. In their early encounter, Wang treats Doggie as a treasure by buying new clothes, performing BianLian to entertain her, and telling her that â€Å"this is all yours† during a meal. We can also feel the sorrow and anguish in Wang’s heart when he knows that Doggie is abused by her previous owners. Along with the soothing music, when Doggie first attempts to scratch Grandpa’s back, the goodness of relationship immedi ately manifested.At the same time, Wang shows his commitment to love as he throws his scratcher into water. In fact, their relationship develops not without some complications of the storyline. This initial intimacy between grandpa and grandson almost breaks when he feels betrayed by Doggie’s lying as a boy. Despite this, he jumps into the freezing water without hesitation to save Doggie and allows her to stay. While he trains Doggie of aerobics and Doggie does the housekeeping, he gradually learns that Doggie- without â€Å"a teapot spout†- is as competent as boys.However, as one film reviewer describes, â€Å"throughout, sadness permeates [Doggie]'s every move, a reminder that acrobatic flexibility means nothing to a child throughout, sadness permeates. † Indeed, what Doggie longs for is love and recognition. Throughout, Doggie wholeheartedly tries to please Wang. Even though there is some misunderstanding in place, she appreciates Wang’s love and carin g by bringing the boy TianCi for him. As for Wang, he also cannot hide his missing of Doggie. He runs out immediately searching for Doggie.When Wang is put into jail, Doggie is panicked and desperate, she begs for help by kneeling down in front of Master Liang’s house all night long. The film reaches its climax when Doggie ventures to sacrifice herself by performing an acrobatic feat that finally touched the heart of the military official. When Wang is condemned to death, Doggie comes to visit him in prison. In that scene, Wang and Doggie are physically separated by bars between them, but the camera moves closer to doggie as if death cannot separate them now.This is soon followed by a touching moment when Wang and Doggie cries and hugs each other. It is not surprising that King of Masks finish with happy ending in which Wang inherits BianLian to Doggie and they live happily after. Beyond the surface, King of Masks reveals both the dullness and the goodness of human nature. Th rough the interaction between characters, audience can truly appreciate Master Liang’s saying â€Å"the world is a cold place but we can bring warmth to it†. Last but not least, the film praises the sentimental love between Wang and Doggie that touches the heart of every audience.

The Ways in Which Toni Morrison Portrays Negative Representations of her Female Characters - Free Essay Example

Sample details Pages: 8 Words: 2480 Downloads: 2 Date added: 2017/06/26 Category Literature Essay Type Analytical essay Level High school Tags: Feminist Essay Did you like this example? To Explore the Ways in Which Toni Morrison Portrays Negative Representations of her Female Characters and How She Goes Further to Challenge These Representations in Relation to Black Feminist Thought Introduction Toni Morrison is considered to be one of the most popular and most important authors of the 20th Century, especially considering that much of her literary work has actively challenged the stereotypes that have been imposed on African American women throughout history. The characters in her novels are beautifully crafted in order to allow the reader to explore their journeys and the way in which they are presented, thus questioning the perspective of history that has been created. However, many of the stereotypes have undoubtedly stuck in the African American conscious and so it is necessary to initially perpetuate women in those images prior to examining exactly how to expel those stereotypes for good. Don’t waste time! Our writers will create an original "The Ways in Which Toni Morrison Portrays Negative Representations of her Female Characters" essay for you Create order According to Ghaly, â€Å"Rethinking the traditional perspectives on identity and its relation to culture, [Morrison] eschew binary logic to explore multiple forms and root causes of social marginality.† As such, with this in mind, this essay will examine the African American female self in its stereotypical form within Morrisons work and how it is constructed in relation to black feminist thought. This will be done with a view to concluding that Morrison undoubtedly goes some way to dispelling such negative representations and furthers the achievements of black feminism thought in the process. The book used for examination will be Sula (1973). Black Feminist Thought and Negative Stereotypes Patricia Hill Collins is one of the foremost scholars concerning the way in which African American women have been portrayed since the 19th Century, offering analysis as to how and why many black authors, intellectuals and prominent figures have been able to challenge stereotypes over the years. She stated that: â€Å"Black women intellectuals have laid a vital analytical foundation for a distinctive standpoint on self, community, and society and, in doing so, created a multifaceted, African-American womens intellectual tradition.† Collinss argument is indeed correct in that numerous authors have provided a firm analysis of the races female self through the eyes of the individual rather than the dominant white perspective. In highlighting this, Collins has also identified numerous themes, or â€Å"six distinguishing features that characterize Black feminist thought may provide the common ground that it so sorely needed both among African-American women, and between African American women and all others whose collective knowledge or thought has a single purpose.† Those six areas that provide common ground and thus a common feminine experience are work and family, controlling matriarchs, self-definition, sexual politics, love relationships, motherhood and activism. Although these six areas provide common ground and thus can also form a collective identity of African American womanhood, they also provide the foundation of negative representations. Dubey states that â€Å"the black writer must replace negative stereotypes with positive images.† However, the use of the term â€Å"replace† gives the impression that negative stereotypes should be ignored rather than examined and developed in order to expel them, ensuring that female characters are allowed to evolve into positive images. Conversely, Collins advocates empowerment via experience and consciousness and that implies exorcising negative representations by exploring them thoro ughly in order to humanise the black female experience. Morrison subscribes to this particular perspective, as her characters prove. However, it is necessary to explore the characters in Sula in order to assess whether or not she goes further to challenging representations in relation to black feminist thought or not. The Whore and the Good Wife Morrison offers two specific characterisations of the negative stereotypes that had traditionally been foisted on African American women – the whore and the good wife. The former is of course a means of describing Sula and the latter her â€Å"good† counterpart, Nel. The relationship between the two serves as one of the â€Å"black womens friendships† that Collins states are vital to expelling negative representations. However, before examining the relationship between the two, it is important to examine the stereotypes they present individually. Sula is the promiscuous black woman that steps neatly into the role of whore at first glance as a result of her attitude towards sex and thus womanhood:   â€Å"To Sula, sex is disconnected from emotion, a disembodied act of the body that allows her to feel a sorrow unattainable through any other means.† Although this highlights the aspect of the negative stereotype that suggests that black women are promiscuo us by nature, it also hints at a far deeper significance that the act itself adopts for Sula, thus challenging the traditional representation. This is reinforced in the description of her upbringing that is offered by Morrison. Her mother â€Å"taught Sula that sex was pleasant and frequent, but otherwise unremarkable.† As such, the stereotype presented by the character is effectively created by a maternal liberal attitude towards sex rather than it being an innate destructive quality that she was born with, as the traditional stereotype suggests. This directly challenges the stereotype by humanising the figure of the whore and thus also dispels the negativity associated with it, regardless of how taboo the subject of promiscuity may be. However, the stereotype of the whore, which Sula is designed to both embody and challenge within the book, is not only challenged via the use of the her back story but also via her attitude towards sex: â€Å"For Sula, sex becomes a means to assert herself and to defy social convention. She seduces her best friends husband and is accused of the worst degradation of all: sleeping with white men.† As Collins highlights, African American women were traditionally used by white men and objectified as a result. However, in the case of Sula the roles are reversed. She actively uses men to feel alive, to explore who she is and to form her own self-identity that does not depend on conforming to the social expectations that were imposed on African American women at that point in time. Sula is therefore not a whore but instead a woman simply searching for her place in the world, thus rendering her race incidental. Finding that sex put her â€Å"in a position of surrender, feeling her own abiding strength and   limitless power†, Sula explores her true self by rejecting the accepted boundaries of sex and forming her own expectations of life: â€Å"Single-handedly, she rejects the values of the margin to which she belongs, a margin that mirrors the centre in that it represses any stirrings of discontent.†Sulas discontent is tangible and thus renders the stereotype of the whore a societal construction that is designed to oppress rather than a viable label with which it is possible to brand her. Morrison therefore uses the themes established by Collins in order to examine the negative representation of the whore and pushes back the boundaries that had previously been imposed with little understanding of what drove the women perceived as promiscuous. Even though the entire community condemned Sula, including her best friend Nel, the judgement is subtly passed by Morrison on them for not embracing the collective conscious rather than Sula herself. The whore is not the only negative representation of the African American woman that black feminist thought has acknowledged and tried to dispel. The timid good wife who absolves her husband of all fault is another. The role is filled by Nel i n Sula: â€Å"Nel, Sulas complementary â€Å"other,† is presented as the prim and proper child who grows up to be a selfless wife and mother who unquestioningly conforms to the stereotypes of womanhood. She is everything   that Sula was supposed to become but did not and would not.† She is subordinate to Jude, her husband, keeps house, remains faithful and never goes against her man in any way. In essence, she releases her own identity in order to assume that of her husband, thus meaning that she has no identity and so cannot be said to be living her life on her own terms as Sula is. The two girls contrast greatly but Morrison ensures that they share one element of their lives – that their characters and thus representations are not inevitable but instilled. Just as Sulas promiscuity is encouraged, so is Nels role of the good wife: â€Å"Under Helenes hand   the girl became obedient and polite. Any enthusiasms that little Nel showed were calmed by the mothe r until she drove her daughters imagination underground.† She was forced to relinquish her identity and only ever retained it when around Sula, with whom she shares a sisterhood that Collins advocates as being essential in dispelling stereotypes. However, that sisterhood is negated by the conscience of the good wife: â€Å"And Nel creates a scapegoat in Sula to absolve Jude of deliberate acts of moral evil, marital infidelity and familial desertion, which destroy their marriage. Nel abnegates Judes potential for evil.†. The wife overtakes the sisterhood, thus subverting the notion of community once again. However, although the good wife stereotype is adhered to initially, Morrison later challenges it via a process of self realisation, self determination and the discovery of an autonomous identity. The realisation comes as Nel rejects the stereotype. Marriage is consistently perceived as damaging by Morrison. She states the following in relation to the institution and its effect on women like Nel, the good wife: â€Å"Those with husbands had folded themselves into starched coffins, their sides bursting with other peoples skinned dreams and bony regrets† In doing so, she highlights the importance of other elements of life through the eyes of Nel and Sula with particular emphasis on friendship. However, it is Sula who initially realises the value of friendship in black womanhood: â€Å"She had been looking all along for a friend, and it took her a while to discover that a lover was not a comrade and could never be – for a woman.† This is somewhat ironic given the fact that she threw that friendship away by sleeping with Nels husband. However, Sula dies without having been given Nels forgiveness. It is not until after her death that Nel realises the true nature of friendship between African American women, as per Collinss examination of black feminist thought and Morrisons will to push the women further in order to dispel stere otypes: â€Å"It is only after Sulas death and burial that Nel realizes that it has been Sula – not Jude – whom Nel has missed through the years.† In short, according to Morrison, it is the love of the sisterhood that is necessary to survive and nurture an identity instead of the institution of marriage. This undoubtedly rejects the stereotypes of the whore and the good wife because it negates the role of men in general, thus empowering women to forge their own destinies. This is undoubtedly an evolution of black feminist thought rather than in keeping with it. Conclusion In conclusion, Morrison uses her characterisations of Sula and Nel in order to thoroughly examine the viability of African American female stereotypes and effectively offers enough proof as to why they must be challenged and dispelled. They not only mask the true nature of what it means to be a woman but also set her alone when in fact the collective conscious defies the imposition of any such stereotype. Collinss theory as to the nature of African American womanhood via black feminist thought provides an excellent foundation for understanding Morrisons work, but she goes above and beyond the values and factors offered by Collins in order to ensure that the novel undoubtedly goes some way to dispelling such negative representations and furthers the achievements of black feminism thought in the process. In Sula and Nel, the whore and the good wife are undoubtedly negated in favour of friendship, identity and true black womanhood. Bibliography Beaulieu, Elizabeth Ann, 2006. Writing African American Women: An Encyclopedia of Literature by and About Women of Color. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group. Collins, Patricia Hill, 2000. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge. Davis, Anita Price, 1998. Toni Morrisons Sula. Piscataway, NJ: Research Education Association. Dubey, Madhu, 1994. Black Women Novelists and the Nationalist Aesthetic. Indianapolis, IN: Indiana University Press. Eckard, Paula G., 2002. Maternal Body and Voice in Toni Morrison, Bobbie Ann Mason, and Lee Smith. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press. Ghaly, Salwa, 2004. Evil Encounters with â€Å"Other† in Tayeb Salih and Toni Morrison: The Case of Mustafa Saeed and Sula Peace. In Richard Paul Hamilton Margaret Sonser Breen eds. The Thing of Darkness: Perspectives on Evil and Human Wickedness. Amsterdam: Rodopi, pp. 21-36. Jennings, La Vinia Delois, 2008. Toni M orrison and the Idea of Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Morrison, Toni, 1987. Sula. New York: Penguin Books. Salwa Ghaly, 2004. Evil Encounters with â€Å"Other† in Tayeb Salih and Toni Morrison: The Case of Mustafa Saeed and Sula Peace. In Richard Paul Hamilton Margaret Sonser Breen eds. The Thing of Darkness: Perspectives on Evil and Human Wickedness. Amsterdam: Rodopi, pp. 21-36, p. 21. Patricia Hill Collins, 2000. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge, pp. 2-3. Patricia Hill Collins, 2000. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge, p. 22. Madhu Dubey, 1994. Black Women Novelists and the Nationalist Aesthetic. Indianapolis, IN: Indiana University Press, p. 94. Patricia Hill Collins, 2000. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerme nt. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge, p. 103. Elizabeth Ann Beaulieu,   2006. Writing African American Women: An Encyclopedia of Literature by and About Women of Color. Westport, CT: Greenwood Publishing Group, p. 827. Toni Morrison, 1987. Sula. New York: Penguin Books, p. 44. Madhu Dubey, 1994. Black Women Novelists and the Nationalist Aesthetic. Indianapolis, IN: Indiana University Press, p. 91. Paula G. Eckard, 2002. Maternal Body and Voice in Toni Morrison, Bobbie Ann Mason, and Lee Smith. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press, p. 56. Patricia Hill Collins, 2000. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge, p. 135. Toni Morrison, 1987. Sula. New York: Penguin Books, p. 123. Salwa Ghaly, 2004. Evil Encounters with â€Å"Other† in Tayeb Salih and Toni Morrison: The Case of Mustafa Saeed and Sula Peace. In Richard Paul Hamilt on Margaret Sonser Breen eds. The Thing of Darkness: Perspectives on Evil and Human Wickedness. Amsterdam: Rodopi, pp. 21-36, p. 29. Toni Morrison, 1987. Sula. New York: Penguin Books, p. 120. Salwa Ghaly, 2004. Evil Encounters with â€Å"Other† in Tayeb Salih and Toni Morrison: The Case of Mustafa Saeed and Sula Peace. In Richard Paul Hamilton Margaret Sonser Breen eds. The Thing of Darkness: Perspectives on Evil and Human Wickedness. Amsterdam: Rodopi, pp. 21-36, p. 29. Toni Morrison, 1987. Sula. New York: Penguin Books, p. 18. Patricia Hill Collins, 2000. Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment. 2nd Edition. London: Routledge, p. 191. La Vinia Delois Jennings, 2008. Toni Morrison and the Idea of Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, p. 51. Toni Morrison, 1987. Sula. New York: Penguin Books, p. 122. Toni Morrison, 1987. Sula. New York: Penguin Bo oks, p. 121. Anita Price Davis, 1998. Toni Morrisons Sula. Piscataway, NJ: Research Education Association, p. 9.