【269-272】India’s Engineering Students Join Gay Rights Fight

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*【269】AS IT IS

Clothing Manufacturers Use 3-D Images to Speed Up Production

July 29, 2018

In this Feb. 15, 2018 photo, designer Tiffany Tam shows sketches of a handbag she designed on her computer at a Betabrand store in San Francisco.

When Betabrand recognized that knitwear was becoming a popular look in running shoes, the company asked users of its website what kinds of footwear they liked.

Using their answers, the clothing manufacturer had its version of the shoe available on the website in just one week.

What the users saw was a three dimensional (3-D) picture of the running shoe. The image had height, width and depth. Yet no such footwear existed yet.

Normally, it would take six to nine months to create a traditional prototype, or model, of the shoe. By waiting so long, the company might have missed out on the interest in the knitwear.

“The web attention span is short,” noted Chris Lindland, chief executive officer (CEO) of Betabrand. “So if you can develop and create in a short time, you can be a real product-development machine.”

Buyers still needed to wait a few months for the real shoe to be manufactured. Yet the use of digital technology in designing and selling means new fashion products are getting to people faster than under the old system.

In this Feb. 15, 2018 photo, Ayesha Tellis holds up shoes she designed on her computer at a Betabrand store in San Francisco.

Companies and store owners who welcome this technology are going to be “the winners of the future,” said David Bassuk, managing director of AlixPartners, a marketing advisory service.

Cutting the time in half

The use of 3-D imaging is a big cultural change for clothing makers. For years, designers created images on paper, a design got approved, and then images went to a factory that created prototypes. Designers and developers made changes and sent prototypes back and forth. Once a final version was approved, it was sent to the factory to be copied for mass production. From start to finish, the process could take as long as a year.

Now, some companies have designers creating images on high-resolution computer tablets. They use software programs that can email 3-D images of clothing with measurements immediately to factories. The goal is to reduce to six months or less the time it takes to get new products to stores.

For clothing manufacturers and stores, this change means design decisions can happen closer to when new fashions arrive at stores.

Currently, the 3-D technology is only used in just two percent of overall suppliers, says Spencer Fung, CEO of Li & Fung. But he believes that will change as stores realize that reducing design time and prototypes saves money.

Li & Fung advises more than 8,000 manufacturers, including Betabrand, and 15,000 suppliers worldwide.

“You can create an entire collection of clothes before actually making one real product,” noted Whitney Cathcart, CEO of the Cathcart Technologies. She said this “reduces waste, it reduces lead times, it allows decision-making in real time, so the entire process becomes more efficient.”

In this Feb. 15, 2018 photo, Betabrand CEO Chris Lindland holds up a shoe while being interviewed at a Betabrand store in San Francisco.

Fung said he imagines a situation where a social media image with a famous person wearing a red dress gets 500,000 “likes.” A message goes to a clothing manufacturer that the dress is trending. Within hours, a digital version of a similar product is on the company’s website. A factory can start to produce the dress in days.

Nicki Rector lives in Northern California. Last year, she bought a pair of Betabrand’s boots based on the 3-D image.

“It looked real,” said Rector. She did not worry about buying from a digital image, she said, because in online purchases, you cannot really know whether you bought the right product until you put it on your feet.

Betabrand has sold 40,000 pairs of shoes, priced from $128 to $168 over the past year, all from digital images. The company says it plans to add 15 to 20 more projects this year.

In this Feb. 9, 2018 photo, a machine marks wear patterns and damage on a pair of jeans with a CO2 laser at Levi's innovation lab in San Francisco.

Few companies are yet selling directly to buyers off digital images like Betabrand. They are instead showing the images to store buyers or factories.

Xcel Brands, which owns several clothing companies, uses them for their women’s clothes, as well as for the Judith Ripka jewelry company. Xcel’s chief, Robert D’Loren, hopes to start putting 3-D images on its website next year.

Tommy Hilfiger uses a touchscreen table where buyers can see every product in the collection and create special orders. And Deckers Brands is using digital images of its boot in 10 colors, removing the need for 10 prototypes for store buyers. That helps reduce cost and increases speed.

Using digital designs also means that companies like Levi Strauss & Company can put information into a machine that can change the color or look of their products. This can shorten a 30-minute-long process, done by hand, to as quickly as a minute and a half.

Bart Sights, who works for Levi’s, said that 30 years ago the company’s jeans were only available in three colors. Now, the company can design 1,000 finishes each season.

I’m Phil Dierking.

Anne D’innocenzio reported this story for the Associated Press. Phil Dierking adapted her story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

Would you feel comfortable buying pants from a digital image? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

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Words in This Story

boot - n. a covering usually of leather or rubber for the entire foot and the lower part of the leg

digital - n. showing the time with numbers instead of with hour and minute hands

online - adj. connected to a computer, a computer network, or the Internet

trending - adj. when a topic is the subject of many posts on a social media website within a short period of time.

dress - n. a piece of clothing for a woman or a girl that has a top part that covers the upper body and a skirt that hangs down to cover the legs

efficient - adj. capable of producing desired results without wasting materials, time, or energy

tablet - n. a flat, rectangular computing device that is used for connecting to the Internet, watching videos, reading books, etc.

fashion - n. a popular way of dressing during a particular time or among a particular group of people

span - v. to continue throughout (a period of time)

knitwear - n. knitted clothing

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Wives of Boko Haram Militants Struggle with Group’s Image

July 29, 2018

In a new, two-level building near low-cost housing, more than 20 women, all covered in brightly colored clothing, listen to their teacher.

He speaks to them in two languages, Hausa and Kanuri. He explains how the women can save money and use it together. He suggests they set up a cooperative – an organization owned and operated by the people who use its services.

For these women, this class is the answer to changing their lives. Some of the women are married to militants, members of Boko Haram. The group has terrorized northeastern Nigeria and nearby areas since 2009. Most of the women are widows. They are trying to provide for their children after their husbands were killed. Others say their husbands are being held by the government.

All of the women say they face stigma in their communities.

“People are afraid. Some people, because of who they think my husband was, they won’t even like to help me,” said Aisha Ali, a mother of eight children.

Seeking financial independence

Her husband was killed by Nigerian security forces. She wants to separate herself from Boko Haram. Like the other women, Ali knows that she needs to have business skills because some of her neighbors are too afraid to give her financial help

Ali has been coming to the Future Prowess women’s skills training center to learn the art of weaving. All of her financial hopes lie in becoming an expert weaver.

“This training that I am receiving will help me and my children and, if possible, help me take them to school and end my suffering,” Ali told VOA.

The Future Prowess Islamic Foundation School teaches business and artisanal skills to women, while a local nongovernmental organization operates a nearby school for some of their children.

“Some of them, their parents were killed in their presence,” says Suleiman Aliyu, the head of the school. “We try to organize a trauma session for the new ones that will be enrolled plus their mothers.”

The school, which receives aid from nongovernment agencies, operates on trust and keeps personal information private. Teachers do not tell anyone which students are the children of Boko Haram members.

The effects of the militant group’s violence can be seen across the Borno State capital, which is where the group started.

Some schools are still being re-built following Boko Haram attacks. Thousands of people whose homes and villages were destroyed still live in camps around the city.

Since 2009, Boko Haram forces have destroyed homes, crops, bridges and other infrastructure. The World Bank and the Nigerian government estimate the group has caused about $9 billion worth of damage just in northern Nigeria.

But there is no value that can be put on the damage and trauma done to the lives of people who call the area home.

Support program for the women

Back at the training center, widows of Boko Haram members work side-by-side with widows of men who were killed by Boko Haram.

At first, getting the women to sit together was difficult. They were required to join in a support program to talk about the violence they experienced.

Kamil Issa, the administration assistant for the Future Prowess training program for women, described the discussions.

“This one is not the one that killed you, this one is not the one that killed,” she said.

Hadiza Ali’s husband died of a heart attack four years ago. He once belonged to Boko Haram.

Ali says she is seeing results after attending the training program.

“Even right now, I’ve been making bags and I sold some four bags,” Hazida Ali said.

These women hope for a new start, away from a life of terror and violence, to a life of financial security and happiness.

I’m Susan Shand.

VOA’s Chika Oduah reported this story. Susan Shand adapted her story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

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Words in This Story

widow – n. a woman whose husband has died or was killed

stigma – n. a set of bad and often unfair beliefs that a group of people have about something

weave – v. to make cloth by connecting pieces of material

trauma – n. a very difficult or unpleasant experience that causes someone to have mental or emotional problems

bag – n. a soft container that holds a woman’s possessions

*【271】AS IT IS

India’s Engineering Students Join Gay Rights Fight

July 29, 2018

Twenty-seven-year-old Debottam Saha remembers how he became a victim of blackmail earlier this year.

Saha is a gay man. One night, he went to meet a man who seemed kind to him, at first. But, as he told VOA, that soon changed. The man started making demands. He threatened to cut Saha’s throat unless he gave him money.

In the end, Saha gave him money and left unharmed. Yet he could take no legal action: An Indian law dating back to colonial times says sex between members of the same sex is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Saha is doing research at the Indian Institute of Technology in New Delhi. He recently joined an effort to overturn the anti-gay law. He is working with a group of current and former students from the country’s top engineering schools, called the IITs.

Debottam Saha, a gay man, recalls a time as a child when his father asked him to see a doctor for help.

Hopeful court will reverse law

Anjana Pasricha, VOA’s reporter in New Delhi, says many Indians are hoping that the Supreme Court will do away with the law. Earlier this month, the court heard several petitions disputing its 2013 ruling to uphold the measure.

One of the petitions came from members of an IIT group called “Pravritti,” or Different Thoughts. These engineers say the decision to add their voices is meant to demonstrate that India’s LGBT community has some of the country’s best minds.

Indians compare the IITs to America’s best colleges and universities. Many IIT graduates now work for technology companies in California’s Silicon Valley.

Saha says their stories exemplify what the gay community suffers from — discrimination, trauma, threats, dishonor and violence. The anti-gay law has made it difficult to change opinions in a country that is still mostly conservative.

Saha recalls that his father treated him poorly after his mother read his diary, a book in which he kept notes about his day-to-day experiences. In the book, he had written about his interest in boys. Saha was in the seventh grade at that time.

After Saha’s mother told his father, his father told him to seek medical help.

“And then he asked me to consult a doctor so that, you know, I can change myself.”

And he went through school afraid that other students would learn his secret. He knew that another boy was severely punished because of his interest in boys.

“He was put behind the class and the doors were closed and I don’t know what hellused to happen with him. And often, at that point of time, we were really scared, and we didn’t know. It may happen the next day with us also.”

Support group's help

During his studies at IIT, an LGBT support group at school helped Udai Bhardwaj leave behind the uneasiness he had felt for years about his interest in boys.

That is the biggest problem, says the 23 year old: Having to live with this secret while growing up. He admitted to himself that he was gay when he was 13. But, he was afraid to tell anyone else.

Udai Bhardwaj once needed medication for his depression but now works for an LGBT-friendly company.

Bhardwaj is another petitioner against the anti-gay law.

He has battled depression twice, the first time in grade school and later at the university.

“One of my friends told me that he thought that gay people should be set on fire. I had to hear that and that really affected me because I thought, ‘OK, this guy was supposed to be my friend.’”

In his final year of undergraduate studies, Bhardwaj struggled a lot.

“I was quite depressed. I took counseling. I took medication and I got off medication only a few months ago. So, yeah, I mean... and this is something that’s very, very common in the LGBT community.”

But now, Bhardwaj works for an international company that is LGBT-friendly.

He only told his family about his sexual preferences two years ago. His parents were hugely supportive. This helped him join the petition and talk freely to the media. He admits he is the exception: He has many friends who can never hope for that kind of support.

“I just thought that with this petition it would be easier for kids to start coming out. It would be easier for kids to you know, accept themselves. It would be easier for families to accept their kids.”

The fact that only 20 of the 350-member group “Pravritti” could come out is a sign of Indian public opinion on the issue.

Battle for gay rights

The battle for gay rights has taken a complex path in India. The law criminalizing sexuality was ended in 2009 by the Delhi High Court. But, then in 2013, it was restored by the Supreme Court, making India one of the few countries that outlaws gay sex.

However, the hearings in July come 10 months after the top court defended privacy as a basic right, and that includes sexual preference. Some observations by judges have also raised hopes in the community that things are finally changing.

The activists also hope that their petition will increase sensitivity among university officials about the need to support student LGBT groups.

I’m Alice Bryant.

Anjana Pasricha reported this story for VOA News. Alice Bryant adapted the report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

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Words in This Story

blackmail – n. the crime of threatening to tell secret information about someone unless the person being threatened gives you money or does what you want

gay – adj. sexually attracted to someone who is the same sex

petition – n. a written document that people sign to show that they want a person or organization to do or change something

LGBT – adj. lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender

graduate – n. a person who has earned a degree or diploma from a school, college, or university

trauma – n. a very difficult or unpleasant experience that causes someone to have mental or emotional problems usually for a long time

consult – v. to go to someone, such as a doctor or lawyer, for advice

hell – n. the place where the devil lives and where evil people go after they die according to some religions

come out – v. to say openly that you are a homosexual

*【272】AS IT IS

Philippine Leader Signs Law Giving Autonomy to Muslim South

July 29, 2018

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte gestures while addressing the crowd after leading the flag-raising rites at the 120th Philippine Independence Day celebration at the Emilio Aguinaldo Shrine at Kawit, Cavite province south of Manila, June 12, 2018.

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte has signed a law to give greater self-rule to Muslims living in the country’s south.

The legislation received full congressional approval before Duterte signed the measure on July 26. The law aims to settle a nearly 50-year-old conflict between the Philippine government and Muslims fighting for an independent state. Negotiations on the deal began more than 20 years ago.

The measure is called the Bangsamoro Organic Law. The law creates an autonomousarea on the southern island of Mindanao. While the rest of the Philippines is mainly Catholic, an estimated five million Muslims live in the southern area.

Fighting by Muslim rebels in the south has left more than 120,000 people dead since the 1970s. The area has traditionally suffered from lower rates of employment, income, education and economic development than the rest of the country.

The law gives the new autonomous region expanded political and economic powers. A government payment of about $1.3 billion is to be set aside to support new development. The measure also permits the area to collect its own taxes.

Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebels celebrate the signing of the peace agreement during a rally at Camp Darapanan, Sultan Kudarat town, in southern island of Mindanao, March 27, 2014.

The agreement aims to enforce a historic, but uneasy, peace deal between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) rebel group.

In that 2014 peace deal, the MILF promised to give up its fight for an independent homeland and surrender weapons. In return, the group would gain expanded self-rule for the area in the south.

Last year, former MILF militants helped Islamic State-linked fighters from the Philippines and other countries take over the southern city of Marawi.

Philippine troops, supported by U.S. and Australian surveillance and intelligence, recaptured the city. The fighting killed more than 1,200 people. Most were Islamic fighters, but the fighting left the city in ruins.

FILE - A sign that reads "I love Marawi" is seen in front of damaged houses, buildings and a mosque inside a war-torn Marawi city, southern Philippines, Oct. 26, 2017.

Al Haj Murad Ebrahim is head of the MILF. He told reporters he was hopeful the new law would help bring together different rebel groups and prevent fighting like what took place in Marawi. He says the measure has widespread public backing. That will make it harder for foreign extremists to form local alliances and win support.

Asec Felix Castro is the local manager of the government agency in charge of rebuilding Marawi. He told VOA he thinks the new autonomous area can help people in the Muslim south if they can find the right individuals to lead self-rule efforts.

Al Haj Murad Ebrahim, chairman of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front, gestures as he answers questions from reporters, Manila, Philippines, July 24, 2018.

“I’d like to think that they could achieve their hope with the proper leadership from among themselves.”

Henelito Sevilla is an assistant professor of international relations at the University of the Philippines. He says a sense of autonomy for Muslims should make Mindanao safer.

“The self-determination that they are longing for in terms of practicing their own religious and cultural rights - as well as the exploitation of their own resources - that would bring growth and development, and of course, which follows is security in their Muslim areas.”

People in the southern area will get the chance to approve the new law during a referendum planned for this fall. After that, President Duterte is expected to appoint an 80-member group to discuss setting up an independent parliamentary system.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from VOA News, the Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. Mario Ritter was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

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