Paradoxes of Faith

Everyone should see this film.

A conservative estimate is that there are 27 million slaves worldwide – that’s not really debated anymore, it’s just taken as the baseline. Higher estimates are up to 200 million, but those are hard to substantiate, so the baseline is taken for legitimacy, though most of my friends in the anti-slavery nonprofit worlds say there are definitely more than 27 million. There were “only” (tho it was a ton, fo sho) slaves traded during the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade. Slavery currently looks different that ‘chattel slavery’ from the past – but it is still the control of a person by coercive, actual force, or the threat of force and violence against their will for economic benefit (for a very brief definition of modern day slavery).

Every country has laws against slavery, but it’s so lucrative and corruption is so rampant that bribery, economic interests, and other interests can easily lead to forced prostitution, bonded labor, debt slavery, etc. Slavery takes many such forms – from forced sexual assaults, to debt slavery of kids and adults, even whole families in rock quarries or cigarette-rolling businesses, rug-making businesses, cocoa harvesting (~80-90% of our chocolate products pass thru slave hands in West Africa and elsewhere), domestic servitude (migrant field/agricultural labor, household servants), textile workers, steel workers (esp in Brazil), brick kiln workers, and most recently those taken captive by US-supported Iraq contractors and their subcontractors – see warslavery.org

Currently the fastest growing regions in regard to modern day slavery and trafficking are southeast Asia and Eastern Europe. India and Pakistan are the largest in terms of sheer size, mostly in the form of bonded labor. Between 1 million and 2 million people are trafficked every year, and without aftercare, the likelihood of freed sex slaves being trafficked after release is about 1 every 2 weeks. It is estimated that at least $12bn a year is profited from human slavery and trafficking, and trafficking recently became the most profitable illicit activity in the ‘black market’ economy this past year (Drugs = #1, Trafficking = #2, Arms Dealing = #3).

Some great resources:
Disposable People, by Kevin Bales
Understanding Global Slavery, by Kevin Bales
The Good News About Injustice, by Gary Haughen

FreetheSlaves – anti-slavery org in DC and San Diego
International Justice Mission
Justice for Children International – aftercare/counseling/life leadership for rescued children.

Amazing Grace (film)
MariaFullofGrace (film)
Born Into Brothels (film)
Trade (film)

Free In Deed (Prism article by my friend Austin)
Human Trafficking (Wikipedia)
Child Soldiers (Wikipedia)

When history remembers our era, will your life have counted?

What about your faith?