Emphasizing the need to organize, UB Students Against Sweatshops held an eight-hour long tutorial class about sweatshops and activism on Saturday in Baldy Hall.
Over a dozen students participated in the seminar, which was taught by members of the group.
Group members called upon the student attendees to take up the cause of low-paid factory workers across the globe.
"It was a great chance for members of the group to get to know each other and to better solidify our activist skills," said Creighton Randall, a sophomore mechanical engineering major.
The agenda touched on many aspects of activism such as action planning, media skills, and the importance of recruitment.
"Carefully planning out rallies, educational actions and community outreach for our cause is an invaluable thing," said Colin O'Malley, a sophomore undecided major and main speaker at the event.
Attracting attention is an essential aspect of activism, organizers said. Being loud and exciting through the use of megaphones, sound systems and banners can help turn a mediocre gathering into an exceptional event, O'Malley said.
Another member of the group, sophomore math major Jessica Carrancio, added that the use of open spectacles and demonstrations has led to increased public awareness and interest in the many different branches of activism.
Last December, SAS stayed out all night with chalk outlines around themselves, dressed in black from head to toe, and wore skull masks made out of paper plates to get the message out about the dangers of sweatshops.
"The message behind an event, spectacle or rally is really the most important thing, if you're not saying anything worthwhile, no one will be interested in the long-run," Carrancio said.
The group also highlighted the need for UB to join over 100 other universities in the Workers Rights Consortium.
"The WRC's purpose is to assist in the enforcement of manufacturing Codes of Conduct adopted by colleges and universities; these codes are designed to ensure that factories producing clothing and other goods bearing college and university names respect the basic rights of workers," the organization's Web site states.
UB officials have declined to join the consortium, saying that UB's current policy, which requires vendors to comply with state regulations, is sufficient.
Recruitment was another issue tackled by the group. The positive aspects of mass recruitment and one-on-one recruitment were discussed, and the criticality of planning ahead and using campaign events to assemble an activist group was emphasized.
By 6 p.m., the training session came to a close. Participants applauded the success of the day and the organization of the group.
"Colin O'Malley, in particular, impressed me with his wealth of knowledge about activism and sweatshops," said Melissa Nguyen, a sophomore biology major. "I never expected to spend Saturday in Baldy Hall at a tutorial, but I would gladly go again."
