Child Slaves
Across the globe millions of children are currently enslaved, held against their will and forced to work. Children who’s human rights have been stripped away with little regard for their future. In a world where freedom has become a word used to defend war, a word used to incite passion, and a word to treasure…it is also a word that some 29 million people only dream of, many of whom are children.
Forced to work in brick kilms in China, enslaved in debt bondage with their families in India, held as a sex slave in Cambodia, a child soldier in Uganda, 0n a coffee or coco plantation, or held as domestic slave in the US, children around the world live their lives in fear. A life of brutality, filled with mental and physical abuse, children endure a suffering beyond that which most of us can imagine.
Can we afford to ignore these children? No, we as individuals, governments and nations must work together to end the needless suffering of millions of children. We must work to become more aware of the signs of slavery and trafficking, understand the facts of the business of slavery, and work to eliminate the root issues, such as poverty. First one must open their eyes to see that this is a modern day problem, and it will not go away if we ignore it. Slavery will only continue to grow if we ignore the issues, and slavery is more than just the denial of rights and the free will of a child, or adult, it is the destabilization of entire economies and the loss of generations of children. Imagine a village where their are no children free to play, or go to school…a village that is entirely consumed by debt bondage.
While the problem of slavery will not go away overnight we can begin to eliminate it now. So how do you go about joining the fight against modern day slavery and human trafficking?
1. EDUCATE YOURSELF ON THE ISSUES
2. INCREASE PUBLIC AWARENESS ABOUT MODERN-DAY SLAVERY - SHARE WHAT YOU HAVE LEARNED WITH YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS, CHURCH AND COMMUNITY GROUPS. EVEN TELLING ONE PERSON CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
3. SUPPORT A CHARITY OR GROUPS THAT WORKS TO END MODERN SLAVERY AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING - VOLUNTEER OR MAKE DONATIONS.
4. JOIN OR START YOUR OWN COMMUNITY ACTIVIST GROUP.
5. WRITE YOUR STATE REPRESENTATIVES AND SENATORS AND ASK THEM TO PASS ANTI-TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS LAWS
6. REPORT ANY SUSPECTED SLAVERY OR TRAFFICKING CASES
* Call the Department of Health and Human Services’ Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888.
* Information on how to recognize a potential human trafficking scenario and/or victim is available in the fact sheet “How Can I Recognize Trafficking Victims”.