I am passionate about Fair Trade because it keeps families together, something that would have helped my family when I was growing up. I was raised by a single mother who worked incredibly hard every single day so that I could receive a good education and go to university -opportunities she never had. She escaped the Cultural Revolution in China and had to do everything she could to climb out of poverty in a culture where being a woman was a huge disadvantage. When I was two months old, my mother sent me away to live with caretakers so that she could work more and give my sister and me a better future. That was the hardest thing I had to experience growing up, because families are meant to stay together.
Today, as a business owner working with artisans in Haiti, I see that Fair Trade is a long-term solution to ending global poverty. As Paul Rice, founder of Fair Trade USA says, “it is trade not aid.” It provides sustainable jobs for parents so that they can support their own family and send their children to school.
At Fair Trade LA, I found a community of people who share my passion in being the solution through our everyday purchases of Fair Trade products. Our everyday purchases have the power to bring about social justice and change lives around the world!
I invite you to join us in being the solution to ending global poverty.
Together, you and I can help keep families together.
