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A group of influencers have come under fire after posting glowing videos from their paid trip to a factory owned by controversial fast fashion retailer Shein in Guangzhou, China. Shein, which has been previously accused of labour abuse and admitted to breaching rules around working hours, brought the group of six fashion influencers from the US to tour its “Innovation Factory”. Influencer and model Dani Carbonari was one of the influencers who went on the trip and posted a video tour on her social media last week. After facing criticism from her followers – of which she was more than 481k on Instagram and nearly 300k on TikTok – Carbonari appears to have deleted the post. In her original post, she wrote in her caption that the trip to Shein’s factory gave her the opportunity to see with her “own two eyes what the entire process of Shein clothing looks like from beginning to end”. “I feel more confident than ever with my partnership with Shein. There are so many companies not taking half the initiative Shein is. They are aware of every single rumour and instead of staying quiet they are fighting with all of their power to not only show us the truth but continue to improve and be the best they can possibly be,” the “confidence activist” continued. The video showed a brightly lit factory, with staff working in clean, dust-free conditions and automated bots that assisted with processing and packaging orders. The other influencers, Destene Sudduth, Aujene, Fernanda Stephany Campuzano, Kenya Freeman, and Marina Saavedra, also shared similarly glowing Instagram posts about their visit. Viewers have pointed out that the influencers appeared to use a “script” for their posts, as they involved similar language. In her post, Saavedra said: “Like many others, I’ve heard a lot of misinformation”, while Carbonari wrote: “You have to remember our country is filled with so much prejudice – we want to believe we’re the best and no one else can be better.” @shein_us Get a glimpse of the process of how your purchases are packaged directly from our facility and delivered to your doorstep. Watch as our partners discover the cutting-edge tech that streamlines our operations and receive a hands-on experience in packaging. Stay tuned to the #SHEIN101 series to learn more of what goes on behind the scenes at #SHEIN #SHEINOnTheRoad ♬ original sound - SHEINUS But viewers have pointed out that the influencers’ comments about the Shein factory they saw – one of 6,000 factories that the online retailer has, according to Time magazine – do not address the allegations that have been levelled over Shein’s labour and environmental impact. Channel 4 launched an investigation last year that involved an undercover worker filming inside two Shein factories in Guangzhou and found that workers receive a base salary of 4k yuan per month (approximately £434) to produce 500 pieces of clothing per day. The investigation also found that workers in both factories were working up to 18-hour days regularly and were only given one day off a month. Later, Shein said that after conducting an independent investigation, it found that employees indeed working longer hours than the local laws allowed. Shein found that staff at one factory were working up to 13-and-a-half hour days with two to three days off a month, while those at the second site worked up to 12-and-a-half hour days with no fixed structure for days off. It said that “while these are significantly less than claimed in the documentary, they are still higher than local regulations permit”. At the time, Shein vowed to invest US$15m (£11.8m) to improve standards at its supplier factories. On Twitter, one person wrote: “Shein is sending the influencer girlies to China to some (PR) ‘innovation’ factory where it looks pristine and super clean and the workers are having fun while sewing and the company saying they pay a ‘competitive’ wage lol.” Another said: “The funniest part of the Shein debacle to me is the influencers acting like they went undercover to investigate. You were invited, of course, it’s PR.” A third added: “Them Shein influencers getting cooked and Shein ain’t [sic] defending them. Meanwhile, the girls are doing their best to explain to us why Shein ain’t too bad. It’s sad.” Shein told The Independent in a statement: “Shein is committed to transparency and this trip reflects one way in which we are listening to feedback, providing an opportunity to show a group of influencers how Shein works through a visit to our innovation center and enabling them to share their own insights with their followers. “Their social media videos and commentary are authentic, and we respect and stand by each influencer’s perspective and voice on their experience. We look forward to continuing to provide more transparency around our on-demand business model and operations.” The Independent has contacted Carbonari, Sudduth, Aujene, Campunazo, Freeman and Saavedra for comment. Read More Give Greenpeace a chance: Art and activism join forces for Glastonbury’s campaign for the future Harry and Meghan’s ‘lack of productivity’ left Spotify and Netflix bosses ‘underwhelmed’, report says A woman stopped cleaning after her husband accused her of doing ‘nothing’. 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A woman who felt she was being “suffocated” by her cystic fibrosis – and was told she had been just two weeks away from dying – has climbed Snowdon and run a half marathon after receiving two lungs from a transplant donor. Georgie Cooper, 26, was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) – a genetic condition which causes sticky mucus to build up in the lungs and digestive system – when she was two. The complaints and compliance officer, who lives in Essex, took medication and used nebulisers – machines which allow you to breathe in medicine – every day. She managed to maintain a “steady” lung function between 70 and 80 per cent until her health started deteriorating in her late teenage years. Cooper said 2018 was “the worst year” because she could not breathe properly and spent four months in and out of hospital as her lung function had dropped to 30 per cent and then to just 9 per cent. She was prescribed Orkambi, followed by Symkevi, to manage the condition. She was told she needed oxygen therapy 24 hours a day, which meant she had “tubes hanging out (her) nose”, and had to use a wheelchair. “It felt like constant suffocation, like I was being suffocated every minute, every second of every day.” Just two weeks before Christmas 2018, when she was 20, Cooper was told she had “a maximum of two years to live” and should consider a double lung transplant. While she waited for a donor, Cooper was prescribed Kaftrio to treat her CF, which she believes kept her alive. Her mother, Lesley, who she described as her “rock”, became her full-time carer and, after three false alarms, Cooper finally received the call that “we’ve got a set of lungs for you”. The surgery in June 2021, at Harefield Hospital in London, was successful – and came just in time. Cooper was told after the operation that her lungs had looked like “pulled pork” due to the CF damage, and she would have only lived for around two more weeks without the transplant. Before her surgery, Cooper had experienced three false alarms about suitable donors, and had started to believe that “to die would be peace”. During this time, she planned her funeral and created a “dream” bucket list – including going abroad again – to look forward to should she survive. She said she tried to stay positive as she knew she only had “a short time left on this Earth”, but found it extremely difficult knowing she was dying. “I had actually written my goodbye letters to my mum, dad, brother, my nan and pa, in case it didn’t work out, or in case I died before my transplant,” she said. She is incredibly grateful that the fourth call from the transplant service was a success. She describes her donor, who cannot be identified, as her “hero”. In August 2022, and after recovering, Cooper climbed Snowdon – now also known as Yr Wyddf and the highest mountain in Wales. She also completed the Bath Half Marathon in October 2023. “Snowdon, at that point, was my greatest achievement,” she said. “I felt like that’s the closest I’m going to get to my donor for now, which was really emotional. Someone else has selflessly given something of theirs to save another life – it’s incredible. She is the greatest hero that I never knew.” Cooper was born with no health complications, but soon developed a persistent cough, which raised alarm bells for her parents. After being referred to the Royal Brompton Hospital when she was two years old, she received her CF diagnosis and started taking medication and using nebulisers and having physiotherapy. While this was “normal” for Cooper, during secondary school she said she was “outed” as having CF during science lessons and her classmates and teachers discussed symptoms and life expectancy. According to the charity Cystic Fibrosis Trust, the median age of death of someone with CF in 2022 was 33. While Cooper was aware of the statistics, she said her peers at school would regularly say: “Oh you’re going to die soon, you haven’t got long left, have you?” Cooper says she cannot believe what she has overcome and achieved since the surgery, having also secured her first job as well as her running and mountain-climbing exploits. She now plans to climb Ben Nevis in Scotland – the highest mountain in the UK. While she still has to take immunosuppressants and struggles with survivor’s guilt, Georgie says she feels she has been “reborn” and now “lives for two people every day”. She was told her donor’s favourite quote was “your mountain is waiting”, which inspired her Snowdon adventure, and she wants to encourage others to “live every day like it’s your last”. She said: “Life is full of tablets, but I’m not having any physio, no nebulisers, and it’s like being reborn – it’s a life I’ve not known and I’m making up for lost time. I owe my life to my donor. She is my hero, she’s the greatest hero I never knew. It’s a gift of life, and that’s the best gift I’ll ever be given.” For more information and support, visit Cystic Fibrosis Trust’s website at: cysticfibrosis.org.uk. For more lung transplant information, visit: cysticfibrosis.org.uk/what-is-cystic-fibrosis/cystic-fibrosis-care/transplant-information-and-resources.

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