Slavery is a revolting, disturbing, horrendous idea. We look around at our own comfortable lives and congratulate ourselves that slavery is now illegal everywhere on Earth (Mauritania abolished it in 1981, the last country to do so) but the uncomfortable truth is that it still exists. Everywhere. And we reap the benefits every day.
From oil pipelines to chocolate to clothing to sex to toys, slave labor, child labor, convict labor, and the wonderfully euphemistic “forced labor” contribute to virtually every product and industry. Although people and companies could be forgiven for unknowingly participating, what justification is there for looking the other way? Even worse, what about companies that knowingly use slavery in their business? Or, the final step, what about companies that actively fight legislation to end forced labor?
Sadly, an article on slavery could go fill whole books but this installment of News To Make You Furious will only give you a bitter taste of the whole. You may not be able to stop slavery or even completely avoid products that rely on it, but you may have more knowledge to make informed buying or policy decisions.
Almost as sad as the fact of slavery is that it is being defended by lobbyists. Here’s the inside story from one of the inside journals of international trade: Business Groups Wary Of Labor Provisions In Finance Customs Bill, reprinted by International Labor Rights Forum.originally By Jamie Strawbridge published in Inside U.S. Trade, Nov 6, 2009. Click here for analysis at Open Left and here for Rachel Maddow’s take.
10 reasons companies won’t investigate supply-chain slavery, from by Amanda Kloer at Change.org.
Chevron, Total Linked to Forced Labor and Killings in Burma from by Amanda Kloer at Change.org.
Jack Abramoff’s Mariana Island utopia
Garment Workers on US Saipan, (from Witness.org, a website that documents human rights abuses on video)
Sweatshops in Mariana Islands, from ISH Child Slave Labor
Pipeline Project in Myanmar Puts Cheney in the Spotlight, Peter Waldman, Wall Street Journal, 27oct00
Dyncorp and Halliburton Sex Slave Scandal Won’t Go Away from Paul Joseph Watson & Alex Jones
Where are the jobs in America today? Watch Prison Labor- Made in the USA to find out.
Modern Slavery on YouTube
Modern-Day Slavery In Utah By Nkoyo Iyamba, September 28th, 2010, from KSL.com in Salt Lake.
Gap, Mattel, Speedo, Wal-Mart Products Linked to Child Labor- Video of interview on Democracy Now!
Nike uses forced labor in Malaysia
The Crimes of Chevron– Slavery, Vandalism, Murder by Proxy
Burma, Mayanmar, and the Oil Industry figured prominently in just about any search involving “slavery”. Here are some of the articles we found
The Yadana Pipeline– Very detailed, documented reports in PDF format from Earthrights International
Royal Dutch Shell’s Activities in Nigeria– Case history timeline from Earthrights International
UnoCal settles suit for complicity in forced labor, rape, and murder. from Earthrights International
