There's No Such Thing as a Free (Trade) Lunch

I walked into a hot, florescently lit warehouse packed with hundreds of people assembling my clothing. I watched as poorly clothed individuals packed up $90 North Face jackets knowing that they would only receive a third of that for the entire week. Each person there makes about $123 per month when they need $400 per month to support their families. However, this is one of the draws for investors; the low wages and lack of taxation. Free trade, especially in Central America, seems to promote a race to the bottom and we as members of the United States support this injustice whether we are aware of it or not.

This is not an actual picture from the factory, but looks very much like the place I visited

In the National Free Zones Commission flier they actually brag that they pay the lowest wages in all of Central America. They also advertise the law that gives investors exemption from all taxes…so Nicaragua does not benefit from the presence of these companies in their country, but it cuts costs for our big businesses in the US that have money to spare.

What can be done to change this? The system is so founded that it is basically out of the question to fundamentally change the entire system. This experience reinforced the feeling even more that this world is corrupt and structurally screwed up and I haven't figured out how to adapt to and function within this system in a productive manner. That's all I can do if I can't change it…adapt. But here is the problem I am facing:

While I am hurt by what I saw and heard at the National Free Zones Commission, they are providing a great number of jobs to impoverished people. They employ nearly 74,000 Nicaraguans who wouldn't be able to feed their families otherwise. So, if everyone stopped supporting the companies who take advantage of the Nicaraguan people, these individuals would lose their jobs. However, it is hard to justify supporting such institutions. 

Maybe the answer is to simply change our consumption patterns. Consumers are truly an untapped power in the US. We make the demands on the market. Right now we are telling them that we want our closets packed with the labels that take advantage of underdeveloped nations and not only that, but we want seventeen of each type of clothing. Why don't we start spending on only what we need and not necessarily on everything we want? Then maybe the structure would begin to change and the people I am living with every day can live their lives with a little more dignity and a little less difficulty.

The Sandovals

“Chicas! Desayuno!” Natalie and I walk out of our room after a cold shower and getting ready in our small, simple room. We sit at the table with a breakfast of gallo pinto (beans and rice), fried plantains, bread, eggs, sweet bread, coffee, and juice. Our host mother wishes us “buen probecho” as she kisses our cheeks. After breakfast we leave for school. “Adios, mi amor” our host mother tells each of us. In the afternoon we return to our family. As soon as we’re in the door the children run to us, eager for hugs. We spend time talking with our family, playing Uno, and entertaining the kids’ curiosity as we try to finish our homework before bed.

I am living in Managua, Nicaragua, the most impoverished country in Central America, for the next five weeks. I live with another student, Natalie, in the home of an astoundingly beautiful family. Living in our home are our host parents, Marta and Leonardo, their son, Leon, along with his wife and three children, Leo-8, Jose Andres-5, and Lupita-3. Marta and Leonardo also have a daughter who lives in the same neighborhood and a daughter getting her medical degree in Cuba.

After dinner one night Marta and Leonardo reminisce about their humble roots and how they overcame this obstacle to get an education. Each of them studied through secondary school and beyond. Marta continued with community education and Leonardo finished nursing school. As we talk about our histories, my host parents display pleased grins when sharing about their work with the National Literacy Campaign.

These proud parents love to boast about the accomplishments of their children. All three of them attended university. Now their oldest daughter, Lucy, went to works for DHL, Queyla received enough scholarships to study medicine and is now becoming a cardiologist, and Leon is currently finishing university as well as working as a supervisor at the Mercedes Bendz car dealership.

After dinner the adults spend time studying with the children. Leo recites information for his next exam, Andres practices his alphabet, and Lupita writes her numbers, each of them eager to share with us what they know. I can’t tell you how many times I have yelled out letters and numbers shown to me by the kids or how many words I have written for them to practice writing, each time they come back pointing yelling proudly, “Mira! Mira!”

As I study each night, shrieks of laughter seep through the walls as Leonardo or Leon play with the children. Of the families I have been a part of during my time here, this family is the most outwardly caring. As Leonardo speaks in a high-pitched voice, teasing his granddaughter, Lupita screams in delight, “Ay! Papa Abuelo!” a term of endearment. Every time I, or another family member leaves the home or goes to bed there is a mandatory round of hugs and kisses. Marta also blesses me with the sign of the cross when I am about to embark on another Central American adventure.

It’s people like the Sandoval family that are the true salt of the earth and are an absolute inspiration to me.