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The labor question in China: Apple and beyond

Publication ,  Journal Article
Litzinger, R
Published in: South Atlantic Quarterly
December 1, 2013

This essay introduces recent efforts by activists, NGOs, and academics to investigate and report on the working conditions for Chinese workers along Apple's supply chain in China. Tracking the "suicide express" at the Foxconn factory complex in Shenzhen in 2010, the work of the Hong Kong-based activist labor organization Students and Scholars against Corporate Misbehavior, a coalition of environmental organizations headquartered in Beijing, and reporting by journalists, the essay shows how Apple was forced to go public about the myriad environmental, health, and labor problems in its outsourced factories. This essay also reflects on the theatrical activism and controversy surrounding Mike Daisey's "The Agony and the Ecstasy of Steve Jobs." Finally, highlighting the arguments of the three contributions to this section, it shows how China's new generation of workers is increasingly educated and gives voice to a range of desires and perspectives about the Chinese state, its relationship to global capital, and the ways of life, living, and labor for workers in the electronics industry. © 2013 Duke University Press.

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Published In

South Atlantic Quarterly

DOI

EISSN

1527-8026

ISSN

0038-2876

Publication Date

December 1, 2013

Volume

112

Issue

1

Start / End Page

172 / 178

Related Subject Headings

  • Political Science & Public Administration
  • 4705 Literary studies
  • 4702 Cultural studies
  • 4408 Political science
  • 2005 Literary Studies
  • 2002 Cultural Studies
 

Citation

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Litzinger, R. (2013). The labor question in China: Apple and beyond. South Atlantic Quarterly, 112(1), 172–178. https://doi.org/10.1215/00382876-1891314
Litzinger, R. “The labor question in China: Apple and beyond.” South Atlantic Quarterly 112, no. 1 (December 1, 2013): 172–78. https://doi.org/10.1215/00382876-1891314.
Litzinger R. The labor question in China: Apple and beyond. South Atlantic Quarterly. 2013 Dec 1;112(1):172–8.
Litzinger, R. “The labor question in China: Apple and beyond.” South Atlantic Quarterly, vol. 112, no. 1, Dec. 2013, pp. 172–78. Scopus, doi:10.1215/00382876-1891314.
Litzinger R. The labor question in China: Apple and beyond. South Atlantic Quarterly. 2013 Dec 1;112(1):172–178.
Journal cover image

Published In

South Atlantic Quarterly

DOI

EISSN

1527-8026

ISSN

0038-2876

Publication Date

December 1, 2013

Volume

112

Issue

1

Start / End Page

172 / 178

Related Subject Headings

  • Political Science & Public Administration
  • 4705 Literary studies
  • 4702 Cultural studies
  • 4408 Political science
  • 2005 Literary Studies
  • 2002 Cultural Studies