Goodbye iSlave

Jack Linchuan Qiu

"Welcome to a brave new world of profit making, propelled by high technology, guarded by enterprising authority, and carried forward by millions of workers. These millions of bodies gather in gigantic factory complexes to produce coveted commodities--iPhones, iPads, and other gadgets--for consumers worldwide. Yet, at these same factories, working conditions are notoriously oppressive, to the point that a number of employees there have committed suicide. In this study, Jack Linchuan Qiu examines systems of domination, exploitation, and alienation in an era of information technology, global connectivity, and individual consumerism engineered by corporations in collusion with national and regional state authorities. Focusing on notorious Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn, Qiu conceptually develops the idea of iSlavery and the planetary Apple-Foxconn alliance he calls Appconn. Beginning with...