Cracking Down On Adidas Human Rights Abuse

Photo by Fachry Zella Devandra on Unsplash  

Adidas has been neck to neck with Nike recently. With new sneakers such as the Adidas Sambas and Black Superstars, as well as open leg track pants and oversized jackets, Adidas has made sure to follow up with all of the latest fashion trends. Yet, while they’re keeping up with social media and fashion, there’s something they’re not keeping up with. That’s their factory workers. 

Chances are, with most fashion you purchase in America, the clothing is never going to be made in America. Outsourcing (fulfilling jobs in other countries where it is cheaper) in America fuels our capitalistic and consumer society. However, it rejects notions of our privileged human rights in other countries. In Myanmar, a country in South East Asia bordering China, lies an Adidas supply factory that produces many of the clothes we wear. In October of 2022, over 2,000 workers protested to demand higher salaries to meet inflation in Myanmar. 

Alongside higher salaries are demands for a trade union to allow negotiations and representation, better working conditions, and punishment for verbally abusive supervisors. 

However, have recent events at Berlin Fashion Week proven that Adidas has recognized these behaviors and started to reform? 

Unfortunately, some things are too good to be true. But here’s what did happen during Berlin Fashion Week and how it disrupted Adidas. 

Starting with a fake Adidas Fashion show “inspired” by Cambodian Adidas factory workers, a new “reality-wear” collection was supposedly released to recognize Cambodian workers and the same clothing they wore everyday due to poverty and terrible working conditions. This event led by The Yes Men, an activist group, even sent emails to large fashion companies and magazines from a fake Adidas email address claiming they have appointed a Cambodian union leader as its new co-CEO to take hold of these issues. 

But when Adidas had to deny all of these claims, what does that leave them with? Shame, embarrassment, and a frazzled media team. 

In fact, a statement piece at the fake Adidas show highlighted a pair of Adidas slides with spikes poking upwards from the soles, a message about the shoes we wear and the pain it causes others.

As a company that claims to value human rights in its marketing campaigns, we can only hope that these messages align with their actions soon.