SLAVERY STILL EXISTS
it's just called human trafficking
But slavery's illegal, right?
In the United States, slavery was made illegal in 1865. Globally, Mauritania became the last country to officially make slavery a crime in 2007 (although it was abolished in 1983). But despite this, there are still between 20 and 30 million people worldwide who are still forced to work against their will with no pay and miserable working conditions.
Still a thriving industry:
20-30 million people are enslaved worldwide, more than at any other point in history.
Incredibly inexpensive:
Today, humans are being bought and sold all over the world for an average of around $90.
All over the world:
There are 196 countries in the world. 162 of them have slavery. (Global Slavery Index 2013)
20 - 30 MILLION PEOPLE WORLDWIDE
How Children are Sold
Deception
Imagine living in a small village in the mountains where a very small percentage of people have electricity, almost no one has running water, and you're barely making enough money to survive. Then, a stranger comes to town saying that your child can get a good job in the city. They would be paid decent wages and be able to send money back home. The stranger even offers to give you some money before your child leaves with them.
For the first couple weeks after they leave, you content yourself with the thought that your child is getting enough to eat and has probably already sent you some of the money. As time goes by, however, you start to get worried. Why haven't you heard anything. After several years of silence you may figure out that your child has been trafficked-- and that you were the one who sold them. But by then it will be too late.
The Only Option
In other cases, families knowingly sell children into slavery because they feel like they don't have any other options. In many countries, particularly in Asia, selling children (mostly daughters) into slavery is sometimes seen as the only way to get by. In Cambodia, where almost half of the people live on a few dollars per day, daughters are routinely sold into brothels to pay off debts. In India, young girls are illegally sold into marriage, where they are abused by their husbands and in-laws.
Different Types of Slavery
Bonded Labor
Bonded laborers are trapped working to pay off a never-ending debt. Employers will continue to add to the things that the enslaved person must pay for, such as food, housing, clothing, medication, and other basic necessities, and pay the person almost nothing. Because the amount of money the enslaved person owes increases faster than their pay, they are forced to work for the employer their entire life, and then usually the debt is passed on to family members.
Forced Labor
Forced laborers are made to work under the treat of either violence either to themselves or to family members or some other type of consequence.
Forced Marriage
This refers to women and girls (but mostly young girls), who are forced into marriage with no realistic escape option. They usually face emotional and physical abuse from their husbands and members of their husbands's families.
Descent-Based Slavery
Describes people who are born into a class or group regarded to be below everyone else and therefore acceptable to enslave.