shado's bookshelf:
Fair Fashion and Garment Workers' Rights
May – July 2023
This book club cluster will focus on the topic of Fair Fashion and Garment Workers’ Rights.
We will hear from activists with lived experience of the industry and learn more about the structures in place which need to be dismantled in order to create a fair fashion industry. Topics will include workers’ rights, anti-capitalism, intersectional feminism and climate justice.
Session 1: PROFIT AT ALL COST.
Speaker: Ayesha Barenblat. Founder and CEO of Remake with a passion for building sustainable supply chains that respect people and our planet.
Session 2: WHO ARE THE PEOPLE MOST AFFECTED?
Speaker: Anna Bryher. Advocacy Lead at Labour Behind the Label, an NGO campaigning for the rights of garment workers around the world.
Session 3: WHAT IS FAIR FASHION?
Speaker: Mikaela Loach. 24 year old climate activist and author of the book It's Not That Radical where Mikaela offers a fresh and radical perspective for real climate action.
Sessions
Session 1
PROFIT AT ALL COST.
9th May 2023
Speaker: Ayesha Barenblat.
In this session we will be using Aja Barber’s text Consumed to understand the historical roots of the fashion industry. We will also be unpacking the legacies of colonialism and the current capitalist system.
Aja hopes Consumed will expose readers “ to the endemic injustices in our consumer industries and the uncomfortable history of the textile industry; one which brokered slavery, racism and today's wealth inequality. And how these oppressive systems have bled into the fashion industry and its lack of diversity and equality. I will also reveal how we spend our money and whose pockets it goes into and whose it doesn't (clue: the people who do the actual work) and will tell my story of how I came to learn the truth.”
Session 2
WHO ARE THE PEOPLE MOST AFFECTED?
6th June 2023
Speaker: Anna Bryher.
In this session we will be using Corban Addison’s text A Harvest of Thorns to look at garment workers’ rights movements around the world.
Human rights lawyer Corban Addison reimagines what it would be like if the victims of the Tazreen factory fire had had their day in court. The storyline follows workers in Jordan, Bangladesh and Malaysia and mirrors many real events but is a fictional story.
A gripping thriller that unpacks the horrors of exploitation in the garment industry, blending the nail-biting courtroom drama of John Grisham with the emotional heart of Khaled Hosseini.
Session 3
WHAT IS FAIR FASHION?
4th July 2023
Speaker: Mikaela Loach.
In this session we will use Naomi Klein’s text No Logo to explore anti-globalisation, the pervasiveness of greenwashing and how to create a truly fair fashion economy.
Equal parts cultural analysis, political manifesto, memoir, and journalistic exposé, No Logo was the first book to put the new grassroots resistance to corporate manipulation into clear perspective. It vividly documents the invasive economic practices and damaging social effects of the ruthless corporatism that characterises many of our powerful institutions. It tells a story of rebellious rage and self-determination in the face of our branded world, calling for a more just, sustainable economic model and a new kind of proactive internationalism.
Session 1
PROFIT AT ALL COST.
9th May 2023
Speaker: Ayesha Barenblat.
In this session we will be using Aja Barber’s text Consumed to understand the historical roots of the fashion industry. We will also be unpacking the legacies of colonialism and the current capitalist system.
Aja hopes Consumed will expose readers “ to the endemic injustices in our consumer industries and the uncomfortable history of the textile industry; one which brokered slavery, racism and today's wealth inequality. And how these oppressive systems have bled into the fashion industry and its lack of diversity and equality. I will also reveal how we spend our money and whose pockets it goes into and whose it doesn't (clue: the people who do the actual work) and will tell my story of how I came to learn the truth.”
Session 2
WHO ARE THE PEOPLE MOST AFFECTED?
6th June 2023
Speaker: Anna Bryher.
In this session we will be using Corban Addison’s text A Harvest of Thorns to look at garment workers’ rights movements around the world.
Human rights lawyer Corban Addison reimagines what it would be like if the victims of the Tazreen factory fire had had their day in court. The storyline follows workers in Jordan, Bangladesh and Malaysia and mirrors many real events but is a fictional story.
A gripping thriller that unpacks the horrors of exploitation in the garment industry, blending the nail-biting courtroom drama of John Grisham with the emotional heart of Khaled Hosseini.
Session 3
WHAT IS FAIR FASHION?
4th July 2023
Speaker: Mikaela Loach.
In this session we will use Naomi Klein’s text No Logo to explore anti-globalisation, the pervasiveness of greenwashing and how to create a truly fair fashion economy.
Equal parts cultural analysis, political manifesto, memoir, and journalistic exposé, No Logo was the first book to put the new grassroots resistance to corporate manipulation into clear perspective. It vividly documents the invasive economic practices and damaging social effects of the ruthless corporatism that characterises many of our powerful institutions. It tells a story of rebellious rage and self-determination in the face of our branded world, calling for a more just, sustainable economic model and a new kind of proactive internationalism.
Speakers
Book Club Perks
GOLD MEMBERSHIP = £65 - NOW SOLD OUT
Includes the sessions, resources, full membership box + one Lumie ‘sunrise alarm’ lamp [RRP £49] + an additional book.
SILVER MEMBERSHIP = £62
Includes the sessions, resources, full membership box + 2 additional books
REGULAR MEMBERSHIP = £55
Includes the sessions, resources and full membership box (3 core texts, 3 additional books, a Sheep Inc beanie, and a collection of beauty and food products from some of our favourite ethical brands).
PAY IT FORWARD FOR A MEMBER OF OUR COMMUNITY: £55
Book Club Reviews
The shado book club was an intellectually stimulating experience which encouraged me to read material and consider ideas which I knew little about-this was really helpful and I’m so glad I did it I can’t wait to be involved in the future!
I’m so glad that I joined shado’s bookshelf! I wanted to learn more about the theme of Caste and Identity, as it’s something I knew very little about. Through the book extracts and monthly discussions with other members from around the world, I now have a much better understanding of the topic. I’m so looking forward to more sessions that explore equally fascinating and important themes, and meeting like-minded people.
shado provided a safe and inclusive space to read and learn about India's caste system, the issues it creates for the people forces to live by its confines, and the ways activists, journalists and scholars are fighting to dismantle and subvert this system. The bookclub also challenged many of the racist and sexist rhetoric around caste by introducing readers to diverse and inclusive voices and materials during its three-month run. I highly recommend their bookclub to anyone looking for nuanced readings and conversations about pressing issues. I look forward to their explorations on sex work in September in the wake of the many crackdowns on online sex work over the last five years.
Past Book Clubs
