The University Board of Regents will convene for its monthly meeting on March 15. Many student organizations will be present to ask the regents to take steps that reaffirm the University's position as the "leader and best."

These groups, calling themselves Campus Unite!, are disenchanted with the University's unproven commitment to its own principles. They are disappointed with its lackluster use of renewable energy, flimsy commitment to diversity, investment in military contractors, unfair treatment of campus workers and possible removal of same-sex partner benefits. These are all important issues related to the manner in which the student body is involved in the University's structure.

March 15 also happens to be the deadline for adoption of the Designated Suppliers Program presented to the administration by the Sweatfree Coalition. The Sweatfree Coalition is an amalgam of student groups that wish to see the University take a firm and definite stance against the sweatshop production of apparel bearing the University logo.

The University has stalled adoption of the DSP for almost two years. University President Mary Sue Coleman was introduced to the program in the fall of 2005, but she promptly sent it to a committee where it has remained ever since. However, while the DSP has been tied up at the University, more than 30 other major universities have joined the program, including Duke, Georgetown, Columbia and Wisconsin. These admirable institutions are changing and molding the DSP so that it addresses concerns brought forth by administrations and apparel producers.

Our university deserves to have input in this process, and we have a responsibility to share the expertise of our talent-rich institution. Yet the committee here has still not offered any alternative to more successfully enforce our code of conduct. While students have spent precious time being patient, there is already a national program that is doing just that.

Failing to take a stand against sweatshops is not the only consequence of Coleman's inaction. Since the proposal has been presented to her, several factories have been shut down, workers have been fired, unions disbanded and rights squelched. Examples of unfair treatment can be found in factories such as Rising Sun in Kenya, Gildan Activeware in Honduras, Hermosa in El Salvador and Chong Won in the Philippines. The University could have prevented all these things by adopting the DSP several semesters ago.

For instance, less than two weeks ago, a factory in the Dominican Republic called BJ&B was forced to close down. This was one of the few apparel factories allowed to unionize, thanks to the University's Code of Conduct. Unfortunately, after the workers formed a union, Nike decided that BJ&B lacked the resources to compete globally. The corporation moved its orders to Asia, where labor is considerably cheaper because workers have no unions. This situation illustrates the need for a program that rewards, not punishes, unionization and the guarantee of worker's rights. If we are to fight the race to the bottom, we must first compensate factories that give human life priority. This is the goal of the DSP.

On March 15, we will ask the University why it continues to shirk its responsibilities to workers who produce apparel bearing the Block M. We intend to inform the regents of the problems workers are facing under the status quo. We will then request that Coleman endorse the DSP. In this way, our university will prove to students, alumni and the rest of the campus community that it is willing to work to end the horrors of sweatshop labor. Joining the DSP means joining a national coalition of universities willing to take a stand against unethical labor practices.

The University must support and sign onto the DSP, the only solution to the problem of sweatshop production of collegiate apparel. We ask that the students of this university - those who care about how and where their team apparel is made - join Campus Unite! on March 15. Change is possible only with our insistence.

Aria Everts is an LSA junior and member of Students Organizing for Labor and Economic Equality. Kelly Simmons is an LSA junior and member of Students for a Democratic Society. Art Reyes is an LSA junior and member of the MSA Peace and Justice Commission. The authors are all members of the Sweatfree Coalition.