CNN’s Freedom’s Project

Oct 2, 2012 by Judy

There is so much information regarding modern day slavery and all it’s forms that it is hard choose what to pass along from CNN’s Freedom Project. In my opinion it is all equally important in that it pertains to the effects slavery has on fellow human beings. Since those fellow human beings are sisters, brothers, mothers and fathers, how do you put a sequential value on that information.

One of the world’s leading workers’ rights groups has revised upward its global estimate of the number of people working in forced labor. Almost 21 million people are now in forced labor, according to the new study from the International Labour Organization. Ranking behind illegal drugs and arms trafficking, human trafficking is estimated to be the third largest international crime industry, according to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. It is believed to generate profits of an estimated $32 billion, according to a 2005 report from the International Labour Organization. Of that number, $15.5 billion is made in industrialized countries.

Now, when you read the monetary value of human trafficking, you can see why it is a problem. The number of slaves they quote, however, is lower than all other statistics I’ve read. Those numbers are at 27,000,000 which at 6,000,000 more than CNN’s numbers is significant. It really makes no difference though because 1 human caught in slavery is to many. You know the old saying that “money makes the world go around” is true but that does not mean we have to put up with it. The answer in most cases lies in overcoming poverty because the needs of many is what makes them vulnerable.

According to a United Nations report, the recruiter in 54 percent of human trafficking cases was a stranger to the victim. In 46 percent of the cases, the recruiter was known to the victim. The U.N. report said that the “majority of suspects involved in the trafficking process are nationals of the country where the trafficking process is occurring.”

Source of the following information: Free the Slaves 

What is slavery? See a definition here. But the following is a list of common words and phrases used by slave holders in order to avoid using the word “slavery,” according to Free the Slaves:

- debt bondage – bonded labor – attached labor – restavec – forced labor – indentured servitude and (my input) let’s not forget the sex trade industry preying on innocent children and adults in a most insidious way. I’m not sure what a slave holder would wish to call that.

 in·sid·i·ous/inˈsidēəs/

(CNN) – Since its launch in March, the CNN Freedom Project has helped shine a spotlight on all aspects of modern-day slavery and spurred action from governments, corporations and individuals.

CNN reported on sex slaves and bonded workers, children and adults caught in despair, and the inspirational against-all-odds work of individuals and organizations fighting the trade.

Nearly 2,000 people have come out of slavery, either directly or indirectly, as a result of the hundreds of  stories broadcast on air and published online.

Please read up on the issues at CNN’s Freedom Project website where you’ll find so much more information and as always, please buy Fair Trade Certified products. You can make a difference.