African Marketing

So since I'm leaving for Cape Town, South Africa for roughly three months in a few days, I thought writing something about Africa seemed pretty appropriate. The tough part though, is deciding exactly what to write. Once again, as it seems to always happen, inspiration came from a highly random source: a t-shirt, or rather, a tag on a t-shirt.

This one requires a backstory: A couple weeks ago when I was visiting my cousin in Chicago I was walking around downtown in a sundress and cardigan when, in typical Midwest fashion, the weather completely turned on us and it was freezing outside. I had already bought a pair of khaki capris so we went into Nordstrom and I bought a t-shirt to wear so I could put on my new pants and be warmer (unfortunately it continued to get colder and it didn't make much of a difference anyway). I found a plain white v-neck t-shirt on sale, bought it, and went in the dressing room to change when I noticed the logo on the tag. The shirt was made by a company called "Threads for Thought" and their tags boast sustainable production practices, organic cotton, and an outline of Africa, implying subtly that their name combined with a picture of Africa will help sell the shirts.

After I noticed this I looked into Threads for Thought and was disappointed, but not really surprised at what I found. It turns out that their connection to the continent they rely upon for marketing is, go figure, a charitable one. I hoped that their products were perhaps produced somewhere in Africa or at least made from materials of African origin. Nope. My shirt was made from US materials and assembled in Mexico. So instead of partnering with cotton farmers or textile producers in Africa to make clothes, Threads for Thought treats the continent like a charity case. In the company's blog, they even refer to Africa as "one of the three most critical challenges we face on our planet," with the environment and conflict being the other two.

Don't get me wrong, it is absolutely praiseworthy that their products are made of organic cotton and other sustainable materials; and the charities to which they donate (The International Rescue Committee and The National Resources Defense Council) do very important, laudable work. Their use of Africa as purely a marketing tool to attract well-intentioned consumers, however, is definitely not okay. This is especially disappointing since business organizations like Threads for Thought are exactly the ones that should stray away from the perpetuation of Africa as a tragic, sad place that we all need to help by participating in capitalism and buying things. In other words, I'd have a lot more respect for T4T if they treated Africa and Africans as partners in development rather than recipients of Western handouts and a "critical challenge" we have to address. (What exactly does that mean, anyway? In my mind, challenge implies something that must be overcome, so we have to 'overcome' Africa? Seriously?)

Because as it stands now, I'd only buy another t-shirt from them if I was even more desperate than I was in Chicago.

But that's just what I think.

PS-To my four loyal readers who aren't my family and thus feel obligated to read these posts, my entries for the next few months will be all about my time in Cape Town. Probably lots of anecdotes and observations, but I'll try and shake it up a bit to keep things interesting. Enjoy :)

Just for Clarification

As a symptom of being back in my small, mostly conservative hometown for a few weeks, I've often found myself driving behind cars decorated with all sorts of political bumper stickers. Today I encountered the same sticker twice on two separate cars and the blatant misrepresentation of a sensitive issue irritated me just enough to write about it.

I suppose I should specify exactly what the sticker said: ""I've noticed that everybody that is for abortion has already been born."-Ronald Reagan."

Okay, I'm going to use all-caps here because I want this to be as clear as possible: NO ONE IS FOR ABORTION. No one thinks abortion is a great asset to our society; no one loves the idea of purposely ending the life of an unborn baby; and no one would ever encourage more abortions. The pro-choice movement doesn't support abortion, it supports a woman's right to make a very personal, private, life-altering decision without the intervention of a detached, dispassionate state.

Abortion is an extremely sensitive issue, one that requires education, civil discussion, and holistic solutions aimed at reducing the number of abortions by providing support for less affluent pregnant women and their families. Making abortion illegal is not the answer. I mean, people didn't stop downloading songs on file-sharing websites because it's illegal, they instead started using riskier programs with the potential to damage their computers, just as people won't stop having abortions. It will just become a highly risky, dangerous practice if made illegal.

So before this hyperbolic, inflammatory diction penetrates our civil discourse any further, let's remember that we all have the same ends-reducing abortion practices. Where we differ is our means. And this discourse of intentional misperception and unwillingness to address the problem without partisan rhetoric only drives the wedge further between us.

But that's just what I think.

America's Royalty

As anyone that saw me in the past few days especially knows, I am a little enamored with the British Monarchy. While it's hard not to be given the extraordinary pomp and circumstance surrounding the Royal Wedding, I've always had a high level of admiration for the House of Windsor and all they represent-tradition, yet modernity, continuity, stability, poise, and class.

Obviously Americans don't have such an esteemed monarchy to revere, but that's not to say we don't have royalty. We have plenty of royalty in our country, from all facets of culture and society, that many of us almost unconditionally admire. So who is this famed royalty in the U.S. of A.?

Well the kings and queens, and you'd have a hard time convincing me otherwise, are professional athletes. For the most part they live extremely lavish and decadent lifestyles, drive expensive cars, own huge, grandiose houses, and, often, wear ridiculously extravagant jewelry. Plus they play sports, so most people automatically adore them. In a culture that tends to value consumption, wealth, and exuberant displays of masculinity via athletic prowess, these guys (emphasis on guys, as it is a male-dominated field) reign supreme. I'd argue even to the extent that they can get away with anything.

Just under the highest tier lies the cultural figures that are famous simply because they're famous. You know who I'm talking about-the Kardashians, Lauren Conrad, Snookie and the Situation, and Charlie Sheen. People love them, but why exactly? What have they done to earn our unyielding admiration? Well, nothing really. They were involved in a scandal of sorts, starred in a reality TV show, nicknamed their abdominal muscles, paraded around drunk on television, perhaps had a film career of sorts, or a combination of these attributes. Now they live extravagant lifestyles similar to those of the aforementioned athletes that continually capture the American public's affection.

Finally we have Hollywood (film stars and musicians are included here). And it goes without saying that we'll always find something we love about the glamour of Tinsel Town, even if they do come after the above strangely-famous "cultural" icons.

The problem with this facade of American royalty I think is that we tend to grossly  undervalue people that deserve all the reverence befitting a monarchy. We don't appreciate people like teachers, social workers, diplomats, intellectuals, scientists, etc. who are truly instrumental to our country's progress and future. And we have considerably less adulation for those of us that transcend cultural, political, and social constraints to make the world a better place for everyone. Think about it, Charlie Sheen can parade around on stage talking about nothing to sold-out crowds across the country, but lectures and presentations by prestigious intellectuals have a hard time filling seats even on a college campus.

So what I'm really saying is that we should reconsider who we admire. Our idols are a reflection of us as a nation, and right now, I'm not sure it's a flattering image.

But that's just what I think.