NEW YORK – The Council of Fashion Designers of America and FWD.us released a new report Monday calling for critical reforms in U.S. immigration policy to create jobs in the American fashion industry.
At a press conference Monday, speakers included CFDA chairwoman Diane von Furstenberg, CFDA president and chief executive officer Steven Kolb, FWD.us president Todd Schulte, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney and New York City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito.
Among those in attendance were designers Phillip Lim, Maxwwell Osborne, Dao-Yi Chow, Bibhu Mohapatra, Robert Geller and Waris Ahluwalia.
FWD.us is a bipartisan organization started by key leaders in the tech and business communities to promote policies to keep the U.S. and its citizens competitive in a global economy, starting with immigration reform and criminal justice reform.
The speakers highlighted critical policy changes that would promote industry growth and create opportunities for international designers and investors to come to the U.S. and create American jobs. They also discussed reforms to address the legal status of the majority foreign-born workforce of seamstresses, tailors and garments workers, many of whom are undocumented.