I was starting to feel bad about dragging my feet in support of NOW (National Organization for Women), but not anymore. Well, I’ll let my letter speak for itself [link added]:
I’m a young feminist who has been aware of NOW for quite some time, but I haven’t made the decision whether to join yet. I was browsing through your catalogue and seriously considering buying a few items until I happened upon your “We do it for Money” shirt. I noticed that it was made by American Apparel and, frankly, I would like to know why NOW, a feminist organization, supports a company that exploits young women in a softcore porn-esque advertising campaign, has more than one sexual harassment suit filed against the CEO, and is known for it’s anti-union bullying.
I also added the following links to the bottom of the e-mail:
For information on AA’s advertising practices:
- Images from AA itself
- Exchange between a feminist and AA: Part 1 | Part 2
Info on the sexual harassment lawsuits:
I’ll post a reply when (if) I get one, but until I have a darn good explanation and/or they pull their support of American Apparel, they aren’t getting one red cent of my money, nor an iota of my support.
Update [2005/10/22]: I received a reply from Olga Vives, Executive Vice President.
Thank you for your comments. We are discontinuing the American Apparel
shirts. Looking for a comparable shirt.
My reply[link added]:
Thank you for your prompt response.
If you haven’t already, I suggest considering No Sweat Apparel as one alternative to AA’s gear.
I look forward to seeing the AA shirts replaced with those from a better company.
I’ll keep an eye on the site. Hopefully they’ll replace the shirts soon, ’cause some of them really were cute. Now if only I could find a really nice looking “This is what a feminist looks like” shirt…
