Shirt hypocrisy

Che Guevara. He's a hugely galvanizing figure; while some see him as an advocate for the everyman, others see him as a murderer. Regardless of their stance, to many, the mere mention of his name elicits strong emotional reactions. \nThe fact that his image is now plastered on T-shirts and marketed to 16-year-olds alongside Godsmack, Nirvana and Napoleon Dynamite is disconcerting to say the least. I can't be the only one who sees the irony just pouring out of those red and black silhouettes adorning T-shirts, bags and, worst of all, wallets. Certainly, although his methods are debatable, his cause was noble. Guevara once wrote in a letter to Fidel Castro that his goal was "to fight against imperialism wherever it may be." \nFrom the words he's left behind, it's obvious Guevara understood the connection between corrupt governments, multinational corporations and capitalism. During a U.N. conference, he said that "the great capitalist colonialist powers ... make their way into domestic economic policy, foreign trade policy and domestic and external financial relations of all kinds." He knew that large corporations, through their off-shore production sites and deep pockets, could strong-arm impoverished third-world governments into looking the other way and ignoring the welfare of their own people. \nYet if you were to go to the local branch of any of the multiple nation-wide chains catering to disaffected youth (which I did, so you won't have to), you would find that the tags of a lot of the merchandise reads "made in Honduras" or Mexico or El Salvador -- countries obviously located in the very Latin America Che fought to liberate. You can't make up this kind of hypocrisy. I somehow doubt he would be happy knowing his "followers" paid $25 for a T-shirt made by a woman in El Salvador who, if lucky enough to work in a company that actually follows the law, might hope to make $5 a day. According to reports by the U.S. government, she likely also faces unhealthy drinking water, inadequate ventilation and unsanitary bathrooms and eating facilities. If she and other workers attempt to unionize in order to make their situation better, they risk the possible closure of their factory.\nAnd as for the famous, familiar silhouette — it's plagiarized. The photographer, Alberto Korda, received very little recognition and no royalties for his work. Korda, however, was not a Bourgeoisie artist, but a supporter of Guevara's revolution. After receiving around $50,000 in a settlement with Smirnoff, he donated the money to the Cuban medical system, noting that if Che were alive, he "would have done the same." All Korda wished was that his image not be used "for any purpose that denigrates the reputation of Che." \nI don't know of anything that would denigrate the reputation of Che more than the violence (physical and economical) committed by the sweatshop industry. Unfortunately, it's nearly impossible to completely avoid sweatshop-produced products, but wearing Che's face on a T-shirt that, in effect, perpetuates the suffering of impoverished families in impoverished countries is the ultimate form of degradation. Wouldn't conscientiously avoiding contributing to the suffering of others and giving that $25 to a worthy cause be a better tribute to Che and his ideals?