For too long, debates over international trade have been dominated by corporate elites and economic ideologues, rather than rooted in the experiences of ordinary people. 

The Trade Stories Project allows people who have been affected by policies and institutions like NAFTA and the WTO to share their views on a matter crucial to the global economy. 

This includes displaced workers, farmers, small business owners and immigrants who have been typically excluded from the trade debate.

Angel Andasola

Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico

Angel is an organizer for CETLAC, a worker rights organization in Juarez. 

Hear part of Angel's story...

“There are not any independent unions within Ciudad Juarez.  That’s a government campaign.  They don’t want any independent unions in Ciudad Juarez, and actually, they don’t want any independent unions in all of Mexico…

“One of the things to understand is that in Mexico there are ‘ghost unions’ that exist.  So, I might be a worker.  Nobody is taking dues from me.  Nobody is saying that they’re representing me.  It’s not until the workers organize themselves and say that they want a contract, that an arbitrator will come in and say, ‘You already have a union.  What’s going on here?’ 

“It’s also in the interests of the government to, as much as possible, obscure any labor conflict.  If word gets out that there is unionization and labor unrest, then investors will be like, ‘Well, we don’t want to touch that.’  So, the government’s interest is very much to hide any conflict within the unions, and to project an image of labor peace here.”