As prospective students and parents got their first taste of campus at this year’s Weekend on the Square, a group of protesters picketed semi-naked in front of the Kimmel Center for University Life, calling for increased transparency from NYU on its apparel supply. 

Around a dozen members of NYU’s chapter of Students for International Labor Solidarity joined the demonstration, which was part of the group’s “Follow the Thread” campaign — a push for administrators to disclose all factory locations involved in the production of NYU-branded clothing. Students, most of whom wore only undergarments, marched on West Fourth Street, chanting “Students, workers, stand together, solidarity forever” and holding signs that read “STOP SECRET SWEATSHOPS” and “DISCLOSE THE CLOTHES.” 

“We’re building on the shoulders of campaigns from the early 2000s where students were advocating for supply chain disclosure,” Liberal Studies sophomore and SILS member Jamie Hesseltine told WSN. “Our current campaign has to do with getting deeper supply chain disclosure. NYU is contractually obligated to provide that information.”

Students began protesting shortly after noon. That day, over 3,000 students and parents visited the Kimmel Center for Weekend on the Square, the university’s series of welcome events for newly admitted students. Gallatin sophomore and SILS member Ariya Reddy said that the picket was the group’s “final straw” following unsuccessful efforts asking the university to send an email blast to brands disclosing their supply chain.

“We launched this campaign at the start of the semester, and we’ve been ramping up,” Reddy said. “We’ve had two meetings with admin, and they’ve been acting as though they’re trying to ask for disclosure, but all they’re doing is stalling. They’re making excuses for why they can’t disclose where their clothes are being made from, and we’re escalating because they’re not listening to us.”

Steinhardt admit Elyse Gardner said she felt encouraged by seeing students express their beliefs openly and firmly in the form of a public protest. 

“It’s a very positive reflection of the student body, especially considering that NYU is a very worldwide known school,” Gardner told WSN. “I love that the students are so strong in their core beliefs, especially if it’s opposing some of the university’s values or challenging the way they regularly do things.” 

In the last month, SILS also initiated a campaign known as the “NYU pantser” — staged skits in which someone has been pulling down people’s pants around campus. The campaign similarly aims to symbolize SILS’ core demands for transparency and awareness surrounding labor rights violations in garment factories. 

SILS has advocated for labor rights at NYU for years, sending weekly letters to administrators and protesting outside the NYU Bookstore. The group previously focused on urging the university to cut ties with Nike, which has faced wage theft allegations since 2021.

“When consumers don’t know where their clothes are being made, brands can get away with horrible labor violations,” Hesseltine said. “The whole point of ‘Follow the Thread’ disclosure is that students, consumers, we all deserve to know where our clothes are being made. How are we supposed to wear our NYU merch with pride, not knowing whether or not it was made by a child’s hands?”

Contact Greg Cutler and Jada Lee at [email protected].