(The Federalist) Some of the largest American companies — including Apple, Nike, and Coca-Cola — are actively lobbying the U.S. Congress to weaken legislation that would bar the import of products made with Uighur forced labor in Xinjiang province, China.
These corporations are opposing the bipartisan Uighur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which passed the House of Representatives 406-3 in September and is now under consideration in the U.S. Senate. The goal of the bill is to ensure “that goods made with forced labor in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China do not enter the United States market.”
Since Beijing has so far ignored international condemnation of its treatment of Uighur Muslims, the bill hopes to use economic pain to force Beijing to change its behavior.
It also includes a provision to hold publicly traded companies accountable by prosecuting for securities violations the companies found to use forced labor from Xinjiang in their supply chains…
For whom are these forced laborers working? Factories in the supply chain of “at least 82 well-known global brands in the technology, clothing and automotive sectors.”
The full list of companies includes some of the same American companies that have been using their corporate brands and financial power to push for social justice and other leftist agendas.
Nike, for example, announced a four-year, $40 million commitment in support of organizations focused on social justice, education, and addressing racial inequality in America.
Similarly, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook made known that Apple would spend $100 million on a new company initiative dedicated to racial justice.
