I remember my first few minutes with Gabriel.  I knew in an instant that something was different about him but I couldn’t place it.  Then it struck me and shocked me: No ears.

Gabriel was born without ears because a U.S. mining company poisoned his small town by pulling nickel from the ground using outdated (cheaper) methods that are illegal in America.  That nickel is turned into batteries for cell phones, toys, laptops and other electronics.  Meeting Gabriel left me feeling angry but powerless: What can I do about this? How can I know where my batteries came from and whether or not their production is harming some community somewhere?

On that same trip to the Dominican Republic I spent a morning on a sugar plantation, harvesting cane and speaking with the workers. They all came from Haiti. They were led to believe they were coming across the border to work construction jobs.  But when they arrived in the DR, their Haitian citizenship was stripped from them, no new citizenship was granted to them in the DR, and they were put to work for pennies an hour without the freedom to leave the plantation for home or a better opportunity.  These men were slaves and I was told that the U.S. company they worked for makes two out of every three cups of sugar purchased in America.  Meeting these men left me with more anger and more questions: How can I possibly know where everything I buy comes from and how those who produce it are being treated?

Before the Dominican Republic I had begun to take a stab at frugality.  After the Dominican Republic I had a new quest: to balance frugal with fair.

You see, the greatest lesson I learned from Daniel and the sugar harvesters was that a low price for me often comes at a high price for someone else.

Some of the best examples of this come from the clothing industry.  That bargain at the mall might have a $10 price tag because the nine year-old who put it together didn’t get paid.

Before the Dominican Republic trip I bought some Hanes underwear and two Mossimo shirts from Target. After the trip I discovered that Hanes has been accused of operating sweatshops in – you guessed it – the Dominican Republic and that Mossimo has been accused of operating sweatshops in Laotia, among other places.

It’s hard to find fair and frugal clothing.  It’s even more difficult to find fair, frugal, good-fitting and great-looking clothing.  It’s nearly impossible when your legs and arms are freakishly long!  But I’ve done it.  Among the brands I now buy with a clean conscience, Loomstate is my favorite.  I own their jeans, which are usually pricey ($130-190 US), but I got mine on sale for 50% off at thegreenloop.com a while back.

For a limited time Loomstate has a small collection of men’s and women’s clothing available at Target.com and several select Target stores.  The dress code for the India trip is dressier than what I have in my closet so I bought Loomstate at Target, confident that no one was poisoned or enslaved in the making of my two new shirts.  And – the best part – the prices are less than half of what you’d ordinarily pay for something made by Loomstate.

I’m no economist, but I figure stores stock and companies manufacture what there’s demand for.  A lot of people like me are ticked at Target for carrying sweatshop clothing. Now, for a limited time, Target is willing to give Loomstate a little rack space to celebrate Earth Day.  I don’t know, but it looks a little like PR; image correction.  But what if Target makes a lot of money from its temporary partnership with Loomstate? Could it be extended? What if there’s actual demand for clothes that do no harm?  Could more fairly crafted merch hit the shelves of Target stores?  I’m hoping.

I’m not suggesting any of us go out and buy stuff we don’t need just to make a statement.  And of course secondhand is best. But, if you’re in the market for some new clothes already? Consider Loomstate from Target and let your dollars speak for the Daniels of the world.

What products do you recommend that are both frugal and fair?