Tuesday, August 20, 2013

Human Trafficking - Just Plain Slavery

::sigh::

Back to the real world.

Tonight I am going to introduce you to a subject that get very poor reception in the United States:  slavery.  Most people when they hear that word, think of black slaves bending under the lash of white slave masters, being sold on a slave block, families being separated, etc.

Welcome to the 21st century!  Slavery, modern style, is quite a bit different.  Often, it is sex slavery.  There was a post on Facebook tonight that highlighted a story in which the various States of the US have been ranked according to their efforts to stop what is today euphemistically known as Human Trafficking.  (I guess the term slavery is a bit ... uncouth ... for American tastes.)  The site is Take Part, and the story is entitled, "The 7 Worst States in the Fight Against Human Trafficking - 2013 Edition".
The number of people trafficked in the United States is difficult to estimate, but the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children says that there are approximately 100,000 children in the U.S. forced into sex trafficking every year. And many more thousands of adults are enslaved, as well.
I urge all of you to get educated about this horrible crime.  It is unconscionable that any human being should be enslaved and forced to work against their will.

I mean, come on, this is the 21st century.  This kind of thing is insane, and to think that AMERICANS are responsible for some of this is even worse.

Go check out that web site and find out how YOUR State ranks in the fight against slavery.



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