Oaxaca, Mexico- Reports from small farm owners and workers who belong to Fair Trade cooperatives, such as Equal Exchange, are beginning to surface showing that workers are not being traded money for their goods, but rather various products, including outdated issues of Guidepost, jars of pickles, and bundles of Re-elect Reagan bumper stickers.
"Everybody says that fair-trade creates justice in the global economy, but how am I supposed to feed my family with 200 worn copies of the King James Bible?" stated a small farm owner. Another member of the Coffee Collaborative fumed, "I received two copies of Friends, Season 4 for a week's pay. How many times can you watch that stuff?"
A representative from Equal Exchange, further defended their payment methods by stating, "All the workers are paid in fair market wages. But, we never guarantee how those wages will be paid. We do guarantee that whatever they are paid in, it will be fair compensation for their work." The spokesperson also argued that this practice of bartering is conducive to building community and bypasses issues with fluctuating currency.
Despite a strong world-wide reputation as advancing the status of indigenous peoples in the global economy, residents of Caranavi, Bolivia remain unconvinced of Equal Exchange's contribution to their community. In exchange for the recent citrus harvest for the town's farmers, Equal Exchange built the town a state-of-the-art parking lot despite the absence of any automobiles. But as Tom Jansen, spokesperson for Equal Exchange explained, "It gives them something to work for. Wouldn't it be nice to have some fairly traded cars for that lot?"
