Foreign Affairs; Don't Punish Africa  Published: March 07, 2000
There is a travesty brewing in Congress that, if allowed to
continue, will be a source of shame for all Americans. It will
certainly be an ugly stain on the U.S. labor movement,
particularly the apparel union and the A.F.L.-C.I.O. -- a stain
that will highlight all the unions' phony-baloney assertions in
Seattle that they just want to improve worker rights around the
world and help the poor.  This controversy has to do with a
stalled trade bill called The African Growth and Opportunity
Act. And the bottom line is this: At a time when Africa is
ravaged by AIDS, at a time when 290 million Africans -- more
than the entire population of the U.S. -- are living on a dollar
a day, the main U.S. textile union, UNITE!; the main textile
manufacturers' lobby, ATMI; and the lawmakers who bow to both of
them are blocking a bill that would allow Africans to export
clothing to America duty free -- instead of with the current 17
percent import tax.  Why the opp