I just can’t believe that these children are forced to work long hours in perilous conditions. This is no childhood for them. They are barely paid, barely spoken to; these children become cogs in what can only be dubbed a sweat shop. It absolutely horrifies me to think that these children are living such a miserable, cruel life, just so that those of us in affluent countries can buy fake bags that look like their designer counterparts for a fraction of the price.
I get angry thinking about the injustice these children are facing. Can you really put a price on a child’s life? I mean, companies behind these fake bags do over 10 times their cost with the help of mankind’s most innocent citizens. I firmly believe these corporations behind the fake bags are exploiting the children as laborers, as their young age allows for them to be easily controlled.
The terrible thing is, these children don’t even know that what their life should be like. Most of them are unable to even dream of the better life they should be having. Instead, they suffer from physical and mental labor and have their most basic rights, such as freedom of movement, restricted.
There have countless attempts to try and curb the use of children in labor as well as stopping the production and distribution of fake bags. But it’s so hard to track them down. The issue of fake bags and child labor is bigger than we think, and the attempts to try and tackle it are consistently falling short.
We all know child labor isn’t a choice; it’s exploitation of the poorest and most vulnerable people on the planet. It’s draining, it’s oppressive and it deprives these young people of their childhood and all the learning, joy and potential these years should offer.
It’s really sad reading stories of how these children are forced to take vow of silence and live on the premises of their factory owners. They suffer from malnutrition, physical and verbal abuse, and are deprived of the medical help they desperately need in case of work-related injuries.
It’s also cheapening luxury and respected fashion brands – turning the fashion industry into a fake façade. This only encourages companies to increase their production of these goods and cheapen the actual products made in ethical fashion houses. It’s an unending cycle, really, and I feel like this is far from over.
We have yet to see just how deep this exploitation goes and how far it reaches. All we know is that it’s slowly but surely becoming more and more widespread. We must take action now and do our part in helping to protect these children and their right to freedom and equality.
Change won’t happen overnight, but each time somebody chooses to fight against fake bags and child labor, it signifies that we are all here and we are not backing down. We must work together to make sure that these children get the justice they deserve.
I know that plenty of us find it hard to fathom the horrible impact of fake bags and child labor but it’s time we make it a top priority. If we don’t turn a blind eye to these issues, eventually we can make a real change and give these children the brighter tomorrow they so desperately need.