Another way to avoid participating in slavery is to buy or swap second-hand items. For example! Instead of spending way too much money on Gymboree kids' clothes (a company, by the way, which has not yet agreed to stop using child-picked cotton from Uzbekistan), go to kidswear consignment stores or thrift stores. I have lately found brand-name clothing, in perfect condition, for pennies - and best of all, providing for my children did not exploit someone else's children.
I truly needed some new pants, so I got over my ego and went clothes shopping at Goodwill. I was not expecting to find much, and I confess I was not surprised to find a fair number of rather hideous castoffs. But as I kept looking through the racks, I rejected about as many pairs of pants as I would have in any department store, and soon I had a stack of perfectly nice, respectable pants to try on. I ended up leaving the store as the proud owner of brand new (with original tags) Banana Republic dress pants, marked down
from $148.00
to $8.99.
For this shopping trip, at least, System of oppression: 0, this Starfish seeker: 1.
