Rana Plaza, The Bangladesh Accord & the Real Cost of the Clothes We Buy

Perhaps you’ve heard of the Rana Plaza collapse?

No shade if you haven’t and if that is the case, I am particularly glad that you’re here. In order to understand why the Bangladesh Accord is vitally important to the people it helps to protect, here is a brief overview of the history that got us here.

Sadly, it typically takes a tragedy for the world to sit up and take notice of the atrocities that are an everyday experience for many people on this planet.

But there has been progress in the garment industry—in the wake of the Rana Plaza collapse with the creation of the Bangladesh Accord. But that progress could become mute if the Accord is allowed to expire on August 31st, 2021.

Rana Plaza was an eight-story building located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It housed five garment factories, many of which made clothing for some of the world’s most recognizable brands (including Zara, Walmart, Mango, Primark, United Colors of Benetton, The Children’s Place, and Joe Fresh). The April 2013 collapse killed 1,134 garment workers and left the survivors with deep emotional and physical scars causing many to be unable to return to work with no compensation or accountability for the injuries sustained.

Read the full article on Elephant Journal.