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.

Victor Hugo

Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico

Victor is the director of Pastoral Obrera, a faith-based worker rights organization operating in Juarez.

Hear part of Victor's story...

“We’re not saying that labor standards in Mexico have to be exactly the same as in the United States, but that we strengthen the system here so that it is centered around working people.  We’re not talking about having a utopia, but we need to start thinking about competition in another way.  At the macro-level competition sounds really good, but at the personal level it means a more precarious life.

“I always say that the way you know whether your economy is functioning well is to look at the lives of workers, and the real possibilities for their development.  If real opportunities do not exist, then the economy is bad, even if the price of stocks is really high.”