The border wall between the United States and Mexico became front and center news this week as President Donald Trump on Friday traveled to California to visit a section of the border wall in Calexico.
A plaque on the Calexico fence refers to it as the first section of the border wall, but whether other sections will be built will likely be the subject of much debate.
Earlier in the week, Trump seemed to flip-flop on his threat to seal off the border. And on Thursday, the National Retail Federation, a trade organization for retailers, sent a letter to governmental officials stating that a border closure would hurt the retail supply chain. NRF wasn’t the only one against its construction.
On Friday, the American Civil Liberties Union requested a federal judge to impose a preliminary injunction to stop the border wall’s construction. And on the same day, a group of 20 states, led by California, also asked a federal judge to stop Trump from diverting federal funding to build his wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
Brexit: British Prime Minister Theresa May has requested from the European Union an extended Brexit exit delay until June 30. Meanwhile, negotiations connected to finding a compromise that both the Labour and Conservative members can back began on Friday and are expected to continue next week.
Trade War: On Friday there were reports in the U.S. and in China that both countries were optimistic about a deal getting done soon, and that both sides may have moved closer to finding common ground. But just exactly when a deal might be inked isn’t yet clear. For now, the planned tariffs by the U.S. on over $200 billion in Chinese imports including apparel and footwear remain on hold. And with reports that the U.S. economy is slowing down, having a trade deal in place could boost the stock market and give consumers something to cheer about.
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Border Wall: On Friday, President Trump tweeted that the wall is getting “built to keep Americans SAFE and our great country SECURE!” Given the cases already before the judiciary, expect the legal battles to be top of news for some time to come, as well as more tweets on the matter from President Trump.
Events: Fashiondex and LIM College will hold a Fashion & Sustainability Summit next Friday at LIM College in Manhattan. The even is open to the public. The program, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., will feature topics such as circular economy, circular textile innovations, textile waste and ethical and place-based manufacturing. Speakers include Jessica Schreiber of Fabscrap, Scott Miller of Sustainable Apparel Coalition, Hana Kajimura of Allbirds and Allison Sommer of The RealReal, among others.