By DON McINTOSH
German-headquartered shoemaker Adidas basked in its personal advantage when it cancelled its partnership to make Yeezy footwear for Ye, after the rapper previously generally known as Kanye West made anti-Semitic feedback. However when a number of dozen Portland activists arrived as a delegation to Adidas’ Portland campus Dec. 2, they discovered it locked up tight, all entryways blocked by metallic fences and guarded by as many as 20 safety guards.
The delegation was headed by Kalpona Akter, president of the Bangladeshi Garment and Industrial Employee Federation, and about half the individuals had been from Machinists Lodge 1005.
Akter has a historical past of calling for improved circumstances for employees making Adidas merchandise. For instance, in Myanmar, which has one of many worst human rights information on the planet, garment employees earn lower than $3 a day to provide soccer attire for Adidas.
Coinciding with soccer’s World Cup, Akter billed the motion a “crimson card” protest. The aim of the delegation was to current a petition to Adidas administration, however activists couldn’t get in, and nobody from administration got here out. A safety guard pledged to go it on to firm administration.
The petiton calls on Adidas signal a binding settlement on wages, severance, and the liberty to prepare.
