Boycotting toys?

Crystal’s post on her concerns regarding all of the recent toy recalls really struck a chord with me today. It’s something that my husband and I have been talking about in recent weeks, especially in light of our daughter’s 3rd birthday and Christmas coming up in the next 2 months.

I have heard and read about so many recalls of toys made in China, being recalled because they are made with many dangerous chemicals, including lead based paint. Lead is an incredibly toxic heavy metal, that would wreak havoc with any adult’s body, let alone a small child’s. This is appalling, and dangerous beyond belief.

So now the question has arisen- what is our stance on these imported toys? We have personally chosen not to purchase anything that is made in China, at this point in time. Although we are not big toy buyers ourselves, my daughter and son have quite the generous bunch of grandparents, who love to shower them with gifts for birthdays, Christmas, etc. We try to keep it minimal, but still, I’m amazed at how many toys we have after only 3 short years of parenthood.

When my Mom called a couple weeks ago to ask what the kids needed for Christmas, I just had to mention that I am incredibly leery of toys made in China, and would prefer that my children didn’t receive any at this point. I have since mentioned this to our other sets of parents. I am also planning to sort through all of the children’s toys and if I can tell that they are from China, they will promptly be pitched into the trash.

Not only do I believe that we need to avoid these toys for our children’s sake, but then there is the entirely other complex issue of outsourcing and cheap overseas labor. This has a huge impact on the economy (in both positive and negative ways). I’m not sure that I want to keep supporting this mass exodus of manufacturing to Asia, but I also know that there are so many sides to the issue that I do not understand fully.

Has anyone else taken action or made decisions with regards to toys from China? How do you feel about the outsourcing? Just curious…