Unravelling the Rag Trade

Jan Rath Associate Professor and Co-Director,Institute for Migration and Ethnic Studies, University of Amsterdam

Confounding the predictions of prophets and social thinkers alike, the garment industry, that avatar of cut-throat capitalism, 19th century style, hangs on in the new millennium, and by more than a thread. Travel the global cities with the contributors to this book, and one sees why: drawing on the insights of historians, sociologists, and anthropologists, Unravelling the Rag Trade shows how markets, politics, and migration ensure that clothing is still made in the advanced, post-industrial West. A true effort at comparative, not parallel, analysis, this book deserves the attention of anyone interested in migration, urban change, and globalization. Roger Waldinger, UCLA An innovative and fascinating comparison of parallel studies on the garment industry in seven major immigration receiving cities ... sets a new standard for research on the ethnic economy, and brings a range of new issues to the fore. Jeffrey Reitz, University of Toronto The wealth of detailed information on the social, political and economic context of each world city provides a thorough and thought-provoking investigation and is essential reading for anyone interested in immigrant entrepreneurship, the garment industry and globalization. Environment and Planning C Unravelling the Rag Trade is an outstanding volume. Richly detailed and theoretically refined, it exemplifies what can be accomplished through the use of high-quality international comparison. It is a must-read for specialists, students, and policy makers interested in migrant networks, ethnic entrepreneurship, urban ethnography, and the contexts of industrial production in an economic activity noted for its internationalization. American Journal of Sociology Unravelling the Rag Trade provides a coherent account of an industry in constant flux...this book presents a tightly integrated theoretical and empirical exposition of a key global industry, and in the process advances our understanding of immigrant entrepeneurship as well. Environment and Planning The book provides an updated, readable text that is highly relevant both to those interested in the theory of immigrant enterprise, and to those engaged in the past, present and future of the garment industry in large urban centres of the developed world. Eran Razin, The Hebrew University, Jerusalem, in 'Textile History' journal