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Do unto others with fair trade
With the political polarization today between the right and the left, it’s often hard to find common ground where the two can meet. But one issue – fair trade – is increasingly uniting social progressives and religious conservatives.
Classical liberals may not like to admit it, but their commitment to propping up the less fortunate has its roots in Judeo-Christian philosophy. Caring for the poor is a bedrock of the faith, but American Christians in particular have historically wrestled with the Pauline mandate to pull your own weight. How can you promote self-sufficiency and yet insist upon an endless cycle of charity for those who will never be self-sufficient?
A growing body of evangelical Christians has come to terms with what was once a sort of paradox. Pointing out the difference between a “handout” and a “hand up,” they are returning to the core of Christ’s message that insists on a preferential option for “the least of these.” They are persuaded that most folks, if given a fair shake, can stand on their own two feet.
While governments of western nations have long been accustomed to giving aid to Third World countries, they’ve been less successful in promoting policies to help the poor here and elsewhere. They have rammed through trade treaties that have devastated the economies of poor countries, while stripping U.S. workers of jobs that pay living wages. These treaties best serve the wealthy at both ends of the bargaining table.
The May issue of Sojourners magazine offers an uplifting selection of articles on fair trade, and details how Christians are beginning to view this as a key mission field. An article by Adam Russell Taylor, “Making Trade Just,” describes the efforts of an anti-poverty group called Christian Aid, based in the United Kingdom. A 2005 study showed how countries in sub-Saharan Africa are $272 billion poorer because of “free trade” policies forced upon in exchange for aid and debt relief. Christian Aid has been working to shed light on this injustice.
Closer to home, most Americans are now aware the ratification of such treaties as NAFTA and CAFTA have acted as doubled-edged swords. Another Sojourners article – by Danny Duncan Collum, “One Side to Every Story” – describes how the mainstream media has turned a blind eye toward the havoc these treaties have wreaked. Collum cites a study by watchdog group Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting, which has data to show media coverage during NAFTA debates was grossly one-sided, almost universally favoring NAFTA proponents. Few environmental movement representatives were sought for comment, and as for the labor unions, major newspapers like The New York Times and The Washington Post ignored them altogether. The vast majority of sources – particularly from foreign governments – were pro-NAFTA. What NAFTA ultimately delivered, says the Economic Policy Institute, was “a continent-wide pattern of stagnant worker incomes, lost job opportunities, increased insecurity and rising inequality.” Few media mentioned that fact.
Lopsided major media coverage like this has a tragic trickle-down effect that works far better than the trickle-down effect claimed by proponents of supply-side economics. Smaller media outlets with no access to knowledgeable sources are influenced by the bigger media, and this influence – derived through inaccurate information – filters to readers and viewers of smaller media outlets. Many of us depended on the so-called “experts,” and they let us down.
Sojourners sources have an explanation for this deliberate oversight. Here’s a quote from Dean Baker, economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research: “While the owners of the media are generally among the group that has benefited hugely from the current path of globalization, most reporters and their friends and family also fall into this group. They are from the class of professionals that can get cheaper cars, clothes, restaurant meals, and household help because of this pattern of globalization.”
Thanks to the Internet, all of us – community newspaper reporters and other private citizens – can now do our own research. We can understand how NAFTA and similar pacts have depressed labor wages in the U.S., and have undercut farmers and other producers in impoverished countries. And while many of us may remain ambivalent on the sidelines, social liberals clamoring for action are finding allies in a rapidly growing body of evangelical Christian activists who are demanding fairness and equality for all the world’s people, not just for certain Americans.
What can you do? Sojourners has a number of suggestions, accessible at www.sojo.net (go to the May 2007 issue). Sojourners also offers, under the heading of “World Market 101,” a crash course in the fair trade movement and how to become part of it. There are articles on why it’s better for communities and the planet when we eat locally grown food (roadside vendors and the Oklahoma Food Cooperative will be pleased). There are links explaining how trade agreements hurt farmers and other peoples, and links explaining campaigns to give poor countries access to medicines. Most importantly, there are suggestions on what you can do to promote fair trade. Purchasing fair trade-certified products like coffee, tea and crafts is a good place to start. Pushing for changes to global trade rules, by writing to your congressman and joining activist groups, is another way. But first, educate yourself on the issues.
Most folks would at least pay lip service to the virtues of “doing unto others.” The fair trade movement is a way to do more than talk. Yes, you might pay a little more, but you’ll get a better product, and you’ll be following the Golden Rule. That’s a mandate we can all live with.
