Today my husband and I, along with some friends, attended an event called "Let My People Go: Equipping NYC Pastors to Fight Modern-Day Slavery". It was an event to equip Christian church pastors and church leaders to involve their congregations in the fight against human trafficking, organized by The Price of Life Campaign. Human trafficking as discussed today encompassed not just sex trafficking but also labor trafficking. In essence, human trafficking was defined as force, fraud, and coercion of the vulnerable; basically, it is an exploitation of vulnerability. The UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) has a diagram that describes more in detail what human trafficking is; to take a look, click here. Whether it's children, adolescents, homeless, or marginalized groups, human trafficking exploits human beings and considers them objects rather than beings with dignity and value. And Christian or not, this should be an issue that concerns all of us.
As those who live in the United States, we ought to know that the U.S. is the number two destination for trafficked persons next to Germany. And in the U.S., Flushing, New York is the epicenter of trafficking for the East Coast. Personally, living on the East Coast (close enough to Flushing) of the U.S., these are terrible facts to know. It is horrific to think that consumerism has extended to the exploitation of vulnerable people for profit. And it is imperative to spread awareness and action in whatever small or large way possible so that this form of slavery will come to an end.
But I'm sure there are people who might ask why we should care as long as we don't participate in it (particularly when it comes to exploitation of persons for sexual purposes, such as girls and women who are being prostituted). Well, it's never that simple because we are talking about forced labor as well as sexual exploitation. And we all contribute in some way to forced labor if we are not aware of what we shop for and where we shop. The clothes we buy, the accessories we wear, the food and drinks we consume (like coffee and chocolate) all have the potential of contributing to forced labor, child labor, and exploitation. So, being informed and aware of all the issues related to human trafficking is certainly an important step in the movement to abolish modern-day slavery. I've blogged about certain things before like chocolate, child soldiers, child miners, and the like. And there will be more related blogs to come in the future I'm sure, so be on the lookout for those.
Some websites for resources aside from what I've mentioned above include:
As those who live in the United States, we ought to know that the U.S. is the number two destination for trafficked persons next to Germany. And in the U.S., Flushing, New York is the epicenter of trafficking for the East Coast. Personally, living on the East Coast (close enough to Flushing) of the U.S., these are terrible facts to know. It is horrific to think that consumerism has extended to the exploitation of vulnerable people for profit. And it is imperative to spread awareness and action in whatever small or large way possible so that this form of slavery will come to an end.
But I'm sure there are people who might ask why we should care as long as we don't participate in it (particularly when it comes to exploitation of persons for sexual purposes, such as girls and women who are being prostituted). Well, it's never that simple because we are talking about forced labor as well as sexual exploitation. And we all contribute in some way to forced labor if we are not aware of what we shop for and where we shop. The clothes we buy, the accessories we wear, the food and drinks we consume (like coffee and chocolate) all have the potential of contributing to forced labor, child labor, and exploitation. So, being informed and aware of all the issues related to human trafficking is certainly an important step in the movement to abolish modern-day slavery. I've blogged about certain things before like chocolate, child soldiers, child miners, and the like. And there will be more related blogs to come in the future I'm sure, so be on the lookout for those.
Some websites for resources aside from what I've mentioned above include:
- The Polaris Project
- Restore NYC
- New York City Urban Project
- List of Organizations that Oppose Human Trafficking (not a comprehensive list but you can cross-reference with another that I post)
- List of Organizations in the U.S. Working to Combat Human Trafficking
