I just wanted to remind everyone, to only buy Canadian diamonds. If in doubt, ask, because other diamonds come at the price of theivery and human suffering, usu. through the pain of Africans and South American natives. I looooove diamonds, but not more than other people around the world, and I thought that y'all might like to know this.
Human Rights Diamonds
- Thread starter shajopri
- Start date
I agree it is very important to buy diamonds that haven't come from slave labor mines in Africa or Madagascar (do they use slave labour there?)Politically correct diamond lovers do not have to restrict themselves to Canadian diamonds. There are far too many limitations, the price is usually not competitive (many Canadian vendors charge a premium for their product) and although the color and clarity from these mines is better than most the crystals are small generally not yielding finished product larger than 1 carat. I am a diamond buyer for a large company and I get written guarantees from some vendors stating that stones are conflict free. Don't forget that stones can come from Russia, Australia, China, and many many African stones are not blood diamonds but legitimate sources of income for some of the poorest people on this earth, buying their stones helps them to educate their children, put food on the table and build hosptials. Canadian diamonds are of course definitely conflict free but don't buy the hype that they are the ONLY legitimate diamonds available.
Thanks for the new info. I have some good news, too, Cartier diamonds are 96% human rights okay. That means that about 96% are from mines that are definitely not creul to humans. Msmanolo -- if you could please post a list of "good mines" or "safe stores" so that we know in more detail where to spend our money without hurting others, I'd really appreciate it, thank you.
The best way to avoid purchasing conflict diamonds is to work with a reputable retailer. A reputable and established jewelry store would almost never buy conflict diamonds because the sellers are generally unknown and there is no guarantee for consistent supply of quality goods.
But how can you tell if someone's reputable? I mean, someone who sells DeBeers is established and has a reputation but DeBeers diamonds are still full of conflict. How do you know whom to trust? I'm not trying to argue, but I appreciate the opinion of someone like you who's in the industry, and I just want to have all of the info possible before spending money.
i saw one in the window of GRAFF in london which was 62.3 carats clarity vs1
sooooo god damm gorgeous...but probhably with an equally gorgeous 3 million pound price tag.
diamond mines are scarey places from what i've seen....but there isnt really any alternative
sooooo god damm gorgeous...but probhably with an equally gorgeous 3 million pound price tag.
diamond mines are scarey places from what i've seen....but there isnt really any alternative
it's hard to restict it just to diamonds...what about clothing? Some of the clothing you wear (non designer, have you) such as Nike or Gap are produced in horribly poor nations where labor is paid out at just literally pennies a day
Just saying - this thread is a reminder of some of the labor cruelty throughout the world Just because it's legal doesn't make it all right
Just saying - this thread is a reminder of some of the labor cruelty throughout the world Just because it's legal doesn't make it all right
The majority of Cartiers 96% conflict free diamonds ARE DeBeers diamonds you know. Actually its DTC now (the diamond trading commission) and frankly I would trust DTC stones to be more conflict free than any other black market stones around. DTC diamonds cannot be traced to their original mines because of their sorting practices but they are constantly working to ensure they do not purchase any blood diamonds.
The reasoning behind working with an established and reputable jeweler is because the "discounters" and "wholesalers" that sell shoddily cut stones at too good to be true prices obtain these low priced bargains by buying conflict stones. Those stones cannot be sold through legitimate channels and end up being bought in the back rooms of these slimy retailers who only care about making a fast buck for themselves.
The reasoning behind working with an established and reputable jeweler is because the "discounters" and "wholesalers" that sell shoddily cut stones at too good to be true prices obtain these low priced bargains by buying conflict stones. Those stones cannot be sold through legitimate channels and end up being bought in the back rooms of these slimy retailers who only care about making a fast buck for themselves.
I'm sorry to say but most -not to say all- African diamond money do not go back to local African people, so they do not help in educating local children, put food on the African table or build hospitals. They go straight to the pocket of the big 'global' companies that use/rent African land for close to nothing. Basically Africans are robbed by the westerns from their diamonds, if only those huge amounts of money went back to Africans, Siera Leone etc, would be some of the richest countries of this world.
Iman said it all. I'm absolutely against diamonds myself, apart maybe from Canadian or 'laboratory' constructed ones.
so that's why Cartier, Tiffany & such charge astronomical prices? i believe that paying for the brand name itself has a lot to do with the high price too. and i don't think that if the retailers are small & "not known", their diamonds are always "covered in blood". bottom line is, that most people buy dimonds as gifts & engagement rings, and most of these people don't want to pay an arm & a leg for a diamond from Tiffany's, when they can buy a biger diamond of the same quality from their own jewler in a diamond district. sorry, but that's reality.
i agree with Elle, it's noit just diamond trade that raises issues of human rights, pretty much everything that's imported from the developing countries is problematic one way or another. much suffering in these countries is caused by corrupted leaders who shamelessly rob their own people with plenty of help from huge corporations.
Of course that is not why Cartier and Tiffany charge such high prices. It is because they stock a million different finger sizes for rings, have a ton of backstock, enormous marketing budgets and huge operating costs. I am a buyer for a very nice luxury chain, small with only 2 stores and we give great prices. I even buy product from some of the same manufacturers that Tiffany and Cartier use and my retail prices run about 30 percent less.
Buying diamonds is my profession and I know that the majority of blood stones are sold to bad cutters who then sell them to bad retailers. The fact is that most bad retailers are small independants, they are the ones that are looking to make a fast profit. (note, I did NOT say that all small independants are bad retailers, after all I work for a small independant) A reputable jeweler (small or large) buys only from someone they trust because in the long term you need a dependable supplier that has quality goods.
adorefaith
i'm almost ready..
- Joined
- Mar 11, 2005
- Messages
- 14,388
- Reaction score
- 1
just wanted to bump this thread..
i think its so important...and there's some valuable info here...
i think its so important...and there's some valuable info here...
For my job I deal w/ diamonds on a regular basis so Ive become quite familiar. The movie "Blood Diamond" sent the industry into a small state of panic. We've had people flat out ask us if we sell blood diamonds, my rule of thumb is, if you're dumb enough to ask if we sell blood diamonds, you're dumb enough to be ripped off. No, to the best of our knowledge we do not carry blood diamonds, but at the same time, it is impossible to know what is and isn't a blood diamond.
Blood diamonds are a tragic, tragic thing but at the same time there is really no way to know if it is or isnt. I mean, anything can be a blood diamond. You might be wearing one right now.
Blood diamonds are a tragic, tragic thing but at the same time there is really no way to know if it is or isnt. I mean, anything can be a blood diamond. You might be wearing one right now.
Last edited by a moderator:
I did a project on the blood diamonds for my Contemporary Problems class-and some of the people in class wrote it off as not being a HUGE deal. The issue is why I will, when engaged, request that the ring have either a) only conflict-free diamonds, or b) not have ANY diamonds at all.
