DES MOINES, IOWA (August 16, 2024) — Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird has joined a 21-state coalition in a letter to Temu, a Chinese-based online marketplace, demanding information on its ties to slave labor and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The letter follows concerns that Temu is profiting off of slave labor, breaking consumer protection laws, and violating Americans’ data privacy.
Last year, Congress reported that Temu is illegally selling products made through the slave labor of religious and ethnic minorities. Temu has since admitted that it does not have any policies in place to prevent the sale of slave-made products from China’s Xinjiang region. The States also believe Temu is breaking consumer-protection laws by failing to warn buyers of the dangers associated with Temu’s products or notify them that the products are subject to safety recalls. There are further concerns that Temu is violating state data-privacy laws, given CCP-affiliated companies’ history of targeting and tracking Americans.
“I am deeply concerned by the reports of Temu’s ties to slave labor and the Chinese Communist Party,” said AG Bird. “Slavery is a devastating humanitarian crisis, and it is absolutely illegal to sell products made through slave labor in the United States. It is past time Temu gives us some answers.”
The States are demanding information from Temu following reports that the company is breaking consumer-protection laws, exploiting Americans’ data, and violating federal law by selling products in the US that were made through slavery. The States are also demanding information regarding Temu’s ties to the CCP.
Iowa joined the Montana-led letter. They were joined by Alabama, Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.
Read the full letter here.
