Student Athletes at a Nike-Sponsored University are Protesting Against the Brand

Student-athletes at Georgetown University are protesting against Nike for its poor working conditions abroad.

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Complex Original

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We're used to seeing athletes at Georgetown University wearing exclusive Nike and Jordan Brand gear, but now some of those students are taking a stand against the Swoosh and its questionable labor practices abroad. Leading the charge is social activist Jim Keady, who took to Twitter to share a photo of unidentified Georgetown student-athletes with tape over the Nike Swooshes on their sneakers. 

The Georgetown Voice is reporting that the activists believe the university should hold itself and its licensing partners to standards that are consistent with Jesuit values. The biggest issue in question is the overseas sweatshops that Nike uses for production, which pay very little and are dangerous to workers, especially women. "Both their living and working conditions are cramped and dirty, and the laborers, mostly young women and girls, face physical, verbal, and sexual abuse everyday," said Keady. In a response to The Georgetown Voice, Georgetown Licensing Committee Chairman Callahan Watson defended the university by referencing its licensing code of conduct, which sets work and wage standards that are designed to be socially responsible. Hopefully the stand that these student-athletes are taking can lead to more discussions and actions that will improve the working conditions in question.

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