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Kaptur Requests Personal Narratives of those Impacted from
Free Trade Agreements’ Outsourcing of U.S. Jobs
In preparation for the debate over renewal of President
Obama’s Trade Promotion Authority, Congresswoman Marcy
Kaptur (OH-09) seeks assistance from constituents to gather
personal narratives of individuals whose jobs were
outsourced by past trade agreements.
A House Trade Working Group plans to include the voices of
individuals affected by past agreements in the debate to
emphasize that the old North American Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA) trade model has undercut the bargaining power of
American workers and cannot be expected to produce different
results if new agreements are negotiated under the same
model. In releasing a letter requesting personal narratives,
Kaptur acknowledged:
“Little has affected me more in my work than the stories and
personal narratives of displaced workers, the impact of lost
jobs as factories close, and of families struggling to
survive when jobs are shipped overseas. More than half of
all Representatives currently serving have not served during
debate of a free trade agreement, having been elected after
2007 when the last Trade Promotion Authority expired. It is
imperative these members hear the impact trade agreements
have had on Americans before we allow two more trade
agreements based on the same broken model to advance. This
time we face drastically larger agreements and are being
asked to simply slip them through both the House and Senate
without intricate scrutiny.
“It is our responsibility to ensure the individuals and
communities across the nation that bear the scars from
broken promises of free trade deals are not overlooked. I
aim to take their stories to the Floor of the House for
America to hear.”
Those interested in sharing their own experience, are urged
to send an 1-2 page summary to Congresswoman Kaptur at:
Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur
Attn: Trade Personal Narrative
1 Maritime Plaza, 6th Floor
Toledo, Ohio 43604
If you need assistance in sharing your experience, staff
will be happy to assist in the process and to address any
questions or concern. Please call 1-800-9OHIO99.
Trade Promotion Authority would allow the executive branch
to submit completed trade agreements to Congress for a
straight up-or-down vote, eliminating the ability to offer
amendments to alter the agreements. The need for TPA is of
particular importance to President Obama as negotiations for
two such trade agreements written in the old NAFTA model are
currently under negotiation. The first, the Trans-Pacific
Partnership (TPP) is between the United States and 11
Pacific-Rim nations and is nearing completion. The second,
the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) is
a mega-regional negotiation with the European Union.
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