Sportswear companies are basking in the reflected glory of the Olympics while they continue to exploit women in their factories abroad, human rights groups claim. In March, activists from UK Feminista gathered outside Nike stores in London and Glasgow and proceeded to ‘cheat’ their way through a series of races, later holding a medal ceremony that awarded Nike the title of ‘biggest cheat’.
‘Nike’s neglect of the endemic abuses of women’s rights in their supply chains makes their claims to a belief in “unleashing human potential” and their association with Olympic values laughable,’ says Fiona Ranford, UK Feminista spokesperson. ‘By sourcing from factories that use sexual harassment to intimidate and deny maternity rights in order to meet impossible production targets, Nike are profiting from gender inequality.’
