2048 Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy
The attendees of the first of several workshops on modern
slavery were greeted by Barney Freiberg-Dale, the president
of Unitarian Universalists Against Slavery. Freiberg-Dale
invited attendees to join the UUAS at its booth in the Exhibit
Hall, as well as to visit the tables in the back of Ballroom
B where the workshop was held. Freiberg-Dale then introduced
Dr. Kevin Bales, the author of Disposable
People: New Slavery in the Global Economy, which has been
nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and translated into 10 different
languages.
Bales worked with Brian Woods and Kate Blewitt to create
a 78-minute documentary film entitled Slavery: A Global Investigation.
This film has won two Emmys and a Peabody award. The workshop
began with the attendees watching a 10 minute condensed version
of this film, which was created by Peggy Callahan.
The short film contained many powerful images, including
several of humans with open wounds from being beaten, alternating
with a reenactment of such a beating. There were occasional
gasps from the audience, but the majority of the watchers
seemed shocked into silence. After the short film ended, Bales
explained that he felt that the severity of the images was
necessary in impressing upon the viewers a sense of urgency
about the problem of modern slavery.
Bales then began his speech by explaining a few basics. A
slave, he explained, is someone who is controlled through
violence or the threat of violence, coerced into work, and
not paid for her work. In the past, slaves were expensive,
and owners had both rights and responsibilities. Slaves in
the United States in the 1850s went for the equivalent of
40,000 present day dollars. Today slaves often cost under
$100. This decrease in cost makes them totally disposable,
as it is cheaper to replace slaves than it is to take care
of them. Since slavery is illegal in every nation, the owner
also has no legal obligations to take care of his slaves.
Bales said that some owners occasionally simply killed a slave
for no reason other than to create fear in the rest of their
slaves.
Bales said that he believes that there are 27 million slaves
worldwide. This represents the largest number of slaves alive
at any one time in history. Bales lists four causes for this
all time high:
- The population explosion has created excess workers.
- Globalization has encouraged finding the cheapest labor
possible in developing countries.
- Corruption of governments, especially police, allowing
owners to bribe police to look the other way.
- Loss of social safety nets and lack of education available
increases poverty.
Bales mentioned the extremely large profit margins available
from slave labor. He mentioned one woman he had met in a brothel
in Thailand, who was purchased for $2,000, and had made approximately
$80,000 for the brothel. In the question and answer period
Bales was asked whether they had been able to help the woman.
He explained that since they’d only been able to get
into the brothel with the help of a man who was connected
to the Mafia, if they’d been discovered, their connection
would have been killed, as might they themselves. As he related
the tale, he shed some tears and had to take a moment before
taking the next question.
Bales continued his speech by suggesting steps that each
person could take to fight modern slavery. He suggested that
the United Nations could have slavery inspectors similar to
the weapons inspectors they already have. He suggested that
each member of each nation on earth could make the governments
enforce their own laws. He mentioned that each of the nations
which he had mentioned as having large numbers of slaves also
have laws against slavery. At a grass roots level, Bales suggested
that we each protect and support those among us who are freeing
and liberating slaves by their own actions. He reminded attendees
of the scenes in the film that showed Indians surrounding
a building that contained slaves, confronting those inside,
and, ultimately, freeing the slaves. Simply by protecting
and supporting those among us who take such action, any person
can help end modern slavery.
Bales stated that an important thing to remember was that
liberation must be effective. In 1865, America failed the
slaves whom it freed, he said, and their descendents are still
feeling the repercussions of that today. Thus, when slaves
are freed, they must be taught to read and write, so that
they cannot be enslaved again. The UU Holdeen Foundation helps
with this in India.
At this point, Bales asked for questions from the floor.
He clarified that since most slave profits are taken by the
slaveholder, the end consumer will see no difference in price.
He also noted that due to the extreme poverty and difficulty
in tracking most slave labor, boycotts were overly blunt,
and a generally ineffective solution.
Bales pointed to the chocolate industry as an industry, which
has taken steps to prevent the use of slave labor. In 2001,
every chocolate company in North America and Europe signed
the Cocoa Protocol, which calls for companies to bankroll
research on the problem, groups to end abusive labor practices,
and random searches to ensure that no abusive practices are
being used. It also states that although they are responsible
for funding this research, the chocolate companies shall have
no control over this research.
References:
Reported for the web by Phil Morse-Fortier, edited by
Margy Levine Young
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