SEND GAP CLOTHES BACK

Press Release

Costa Mesa- November 29, 2007 - "Close The Gap"

A Nationwide protest against retail clothing giant Gap, Inc. is scheduled to coincide with the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party.

On Dec.16th, 2007, hundreds of young people will gather at Gap Stores around the country to give back their GAP, Inc. clothing in order to protest recent news that the retail chain has been using child slave labor in India.

"December 16th is the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party," said J.R., organizer of the planned protest. "We want to make a similar statement, as young people who have helped Gap build their clothing empire with our clothing purchases, that we no longer want to buy our clothes from an organization that supports or employs child slaves to produce their products."

Protests are currently scheduled to take place at Gap stores in San Francisco, Southern California, Miami, and at the Gap in Times Square in New York City. The protest will involve hundreds of people who are encouraged to bring all of their Gap, Inc. clothes items (which include Bannanna Republic and Old Navy) to the nearest Gap store and drop them on the front doorstep with a note to the owners that they will no longer support the retail chain or purchase their clothes.

According to a recent investigative report published by "News Of The World" (http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk) the nationwide clothing giant was caught using child slaves in a New Delhi, India sweatshop where children as young as ten were branded and forced to work 19 hours a day for nothing.

The Gap, Inc. acknowledged the use of child slaves to produce their clothing and quickly issued an official statement to condemn the practice, claiming ignorance of the situation and promising to discontinue contracts with the specific offender identified in the investigation.

For many former Gap customers the statement from the company's president was too little, too late.

"This most recent report of The Gap using children as slaves to produce their clothing is nothing new," says J.R., "This company has a history of employing child slaves over the years. If they really care to stop this practice, maybe they should stop producing their clothing in India- the child slavery capital of the world."

The Gap was founded in 1969 by Donald Fisher, who is one of America's wealthiest businessmen. Last year the firm embarked on a huge poster and TV campaign for Product Red, a charitable trust to help fight AIDS and treat other diseases in Africa.The Product Red Campaign was launched by U2 singer Bono and backed by celebrities like Oprah Winfrey, film director Steven Spielberg and actress Penelope Cruz.

The irony is that Gap, Inc. participated in the Red Campaign by selling branded products to raise awareness about the needs of the world's poorest and oppressed, even though their own products were created by poor, oppressed children who had no voice and often work for no pay.

"We want to give back our Gap, Inc. clothes because we are so repulsed at their use of children as slaves, who are forced to create their clothing under penalty of torture and abuse, that we cannot in good conscience continue to wear their clothing in public," said J.R. "This is our generation's Boston Tea Party. This is a statement against the exploitation of children. We will not participate in this atrocity."

For more info on the December 16th "Send Gap Clothes Back" Protest go here:http://www.sendgapclothesback.com/