Class 11_24

Today’s articles reminded me a lot of our current economic situation and the fight over globalization. With the recent controversy over WalMart and their use of globalization, this article is especially interesting since it discusses the actual workers that are claimed to have produced WalMarts’ products. I found it especially interesting in Enloe’s article about how the industry relied on third world women’s beliefs that they had to accept their role in society. If these women realized their potential and “reimagined their lives as daughters, as wives, as workers, as citizens” (Enloe, pg. 459), the entire industry would collapse. I was also disgusted at the treatment of these women and their countries by the big sneaker corporations. As Enloe describes, Nike, and other companies, did not place their factories in third world countries to help the countries, but instead to exploit the cheap labor and gain profits. I also found it interesting how at the end of the article, she discusses the role of countries playing women off of each other and setting up competition. This was one of the first issues we discussed in the class; the fact that women can’t help each other, and instead compete against each other and wish the worst on others. I think that for our country and the world to grow and women to gain equal rights as citizens and workers (and erase the wage gap between men and women), women need to stand together, not against each other.

Grace Chang’s article was also extremely interesting, especially about the LCP with the Filipino women. The beginning of the article was interesting as well about the Structural Adjustment Programs (SAPs). I found it interesting that because of the SAPs, women have experienced increases in poverty and decreases in nutrition, health, and work conditions, yet no one seems to care as long as indebted countries can take out loans that are approved by financial institutions. I find that time after time, issues surrounding women are always intricately laced with economic issues between first and third world countries and businessmen. It was also interesting to read about the entire program and it’s severity. It seems as if this article also embodies the figure of a bird cage, since women are trapped for two years by sometimes abusive employers, and they are stick with the strict immigration policies by the US and Canada. On top of this all, the Filipino government makes extraordinary salaries by just processing these migrant workers. Women are also excluded from welfare benefits and workers rights because they are not citizens. This article perfectly exemplifies the conditions these women are put through all to support their families. This all seems even more absurd when reading about the nursing shortage in Canada, yet the laws remain unchanged because the government insists on exploiting these highly skilled and educated women, and giving them extremely low wages and subjecting them to abuse for enough years until they can obtain citizenship.

Overall these three articles make globalization seem a much bigger issue than this country is leading us to believe. I wish that this country could get an honest government who would be frank with its citizens and not turn a blind eye to serious problems occurring with the women in this country. Instead of financing a war against terrorists, which was started on false pretenses, the government should care more about other issues that are often left unnoticed. I think women’s rights should be a problem that is paid more attention to, brought under public scrutiny, and ultimately dealt with by our government. Without their cooperation, unfortunately, nothing will most likely be done. We need to work with our government to spread the word and garner support for these issues, both in the US and Canada.