Made In China: A Prisoner, An SOS Letter, And The Hidden Cost Of America's Cheap Goods

In 2012, an Oregon mother named Julie Keith opened a package of Halloween decorations. The cheap foam headstones had been five dollars at Kmart, too good a deal to pass up. But when she opened the box, something shocking fell out: an SOS letter, handwritten in broken English. “Sir: If you occasionally buy this product, please kindly resend this letter to the World Human Rights Organization. Thousands of people here who are under the persecution of the Chinese Communist Party Government will thank and remember you forever.” The note’s author, Sun Yi, was a Chinese engineer turned political prisoner, forced into grueling labor for campaigning for the freedom to join a forbidden meditation movement. He was imprisoned alongside petty criminals, civil rights activists, and tens of thousands of others the Chinese government had decided to “reeducate,” carving foam gravestones and stitching clothing for more than fifteen hours a day. In Made in China, investigative journalist Amelia Pang explores Sun’s story and others like it, revealing the network of forced labor camps that underpin American consumerism. Through extensive interviews and reportage, Pang shows the true cost of cheap goods and urges consumers to demand more transparency and accountability.