Further reading special: Russell Athletic

Here’s a digest of resources related to the allegations surrounding Russell Athletic

WITH RUSSELL

• The company itself has sent out three press releases on the subject. The first points to decisions at schools including Florida and Princeton to keep contracts with Russell. Another outlines efforts Russell is taking to clear its name with consumers. The last says some are being convinced.
• Russell’s own version of events is also available online. “We are the single largest employer in Honduras,” the company claims.
• The company has set up a Web site called “Russell Social Responsibility” which defends its record, citing a study by the Fair Labor Association, which, it must be noted, draws funding from Russell.
• There are articles in USC’s Daily Trojan, Princeton’s Daily Princetonian, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Gainesville Sun that detail colleges’ decision to keep the contract.

AGAINST RUSSELL

• The United Students Against Sweatshops runs a blog opposing Russell complete with cheesy illustrations featuring scissors and expressive Russell logs and updates on schools that cancel contracts.
• USAS‘ Web site.
• The Worker Rights Consortium’s Web site, which has coverage of efforts against Russell.
• The original WRC report that blew the entire thing open is available here. It says Russell has a “prior record of” doing things against unions, then claiming they’re economically motivated. On this page, WRC has a list of resources on Russell’s closure of the Jerzees de Honduras factory and the related closure of the Jerzees Choloma factory.
• The New York Times and Chronicle of Higher Education wrote articles about the closure in February, after the University of Michigan cancelled its license. It must be noted that Nike ended its relationship with Michigan after Michigan joined the WRC.