Fair Trade & International Politics

We Americans take much for granted and are, generally, a blind lot who do not understand how our greed and comfort contribute to the suffering of others. As we blissfully sip our morning cup-o’-joe in our air-conditioned car, home, or office, we tend to think of our own preoccupying lives, wishes, hopes, and desires. While we drive our cars to work, to the mall, or to baseball practice, we complain to ourselves about the rising cost of gasoline. Meanwhile, the coffee grower in another part of the world cannot afford to eat or educate his children because he was forced to sell his coffee beans at a price that is below the cost of production.