Members of the anti-sweatshop campaign of the Progressive Student Labor Movement (PSLM) said they were surprised by Brown's statement.

"It's been clear that there was corporate domination [of the FLA]--I had just never heard him articulate it so blatantly," said PSLM member Anna M. Falicov '02.

But Brown said corporate involvement was necessary to produce significant change in the industry. He said he considered the decision by corporations to affiliate with the FLA's monitoring system more important than ensuring transparency to the public.

"We are convinced that the way to do this is to force the responsibility on the companies," he said.

O'Rourke, however, said companies would have no incentive to reform unless consumers were aware of the conditions under which their clothing was manufactured. He said all reports and audits should be made available to the public via the Internet.

About 35 people braved the elements to listen to the panelists. Among those in attendance was University Attorney Allan A. Ryan Jr., the administration's point person on sweatshop policy, who said he found the event informative.

"When you have three guys with different perspectives, it expands your mind a little bit," he said.