Consumer Activism
Consumers—people who buy products—can pressure companies to change how they do business. Such consumer activism may improve the quality and safety of products as well as the conditions under which they are made, advertised, sold, or recycled. Tactics might include boycotts, pickets, or legal suits. In many cases, consumer activism can bring the quickest results.
| Keyboard Shortcut | Action |
|---|---|
| Space | Pause/Play video playback |
| Enter | Pause/Play video playback |
| m | Mute/Unmute video volume |
| Up and Down arrows | Increase and decrease volume by 10% |
| Right and Left arrows | Seek forward or backward by 5 seconds |
| 0-9 | Fast seek to x% of the video. |
| f | Enter or exit fullscreen. (Note: To exit fullscreen in flash press the Esc key. |
| c | Press c to toggle captions on or off |
Teens for Safe Cosmetics
This video highlights how Jessica, a high school student and leader of Teens for Safe Cosmetics, encouraged consumers to pressure a multinational corporation to change how it makes beauty products. Concentrate on the first three minutes of the video. You can stop watching at the start of the section called “Legal Action.”
Take Notes
After watching the video, write down two or three reasons why you think a large corporation or a legislator would respond to pressure from an individual or a small group of consumer activists. Be sure to click "Save." Then watch the rest of the video to learn how Teens for Safe Cosmetics successfully lobbied California legislators to support their cause.
