3 ms·

"A conservative estimate tells us there are more than 27 million people enslaved in the world today. That's double the amount of people taken from Africa during

by gedy 6y ago

"A conservative estimate tells us there are more than 27 million people enslaved in the world today. That's double the amount of people taken from Africa during the entire trans-Atlantic slave trade." That's boggling and so sad. I really wish more activist types helped around the world today vs shouting about the past.

wahern 6y ago
Note that the operative term here is "modern", which makes modern slavery a far more expansive phrase than chattel slavery as practiced in the Americas. Only a fraction of these 27 million "slaves" could be fairly characterized as chattel slaves.[1] Most of them are seasonal workers who end up laboring under extreme conditions due to extreme poverty, in turn often a consequence of domestic or regional ethnic group dynamics. I find it problematic to compare their experience to that of chattel slavery. It's an injustice to those who experienced chattel slavery, as well as an injustice to the experience of these so-called modern slaves today. There's nothing constructive that can be gained by such equivocations. If the modern reality isn't abhorrent enough (and I wouldn't even try to compare degrees of abhorrence), I don't see how it will move people to do anything but pontificate. Without any substantive relationships, the history of the former cannot be used to address the latter--which is actually a diverse array of situations. And if the history of "white slavery" is at all instructive, I can easily see people using such equivocations in a manner that further harms the abused and exploited.[2] [1] See J. O. Davidson, Modern Slavery, ch 3 (Slavery and Wage Labour: Freedom and Its Doubles), https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1057%2F9781137297297_3.pdf https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1057%2F978113729729... [2] A quick Google search suggests one tactic is using "slavery" as a pretense to detain and eject migrant laborers.
curryst 6y ago
> I really wish more activist types helped around the world today vs shouting about the past. I don't really even see the need for activists. This seems like something that could be fairly easily handled by the world's governments, either through economic leverage, supporting insurgents or direct military intervention. If we can drone strike terrorists, I don't see why we can't drone strike slave owners. Let them live in the fear they have fostered among others. Or if we don't want to get that involved, start leaving AKs laying around conspicuously. The South was terrified of slaves having guns, and it generally ended poorly for them when slaves did get guns. The countries will complain, but I don't see them getting much sympathy on the world stage with a "you can't kill our slave owners" tack.

by gedy 6y ago

wahern 6y ago

Note that the operative term here is "modern", which makes modern slavery a far more expansive phrase than chattel slavery as practiced in the Americas. Only a fraction of these 27 million "slaves" could be fairly characterized as chattel slaves.[1] Most of them are seasonal workers who end up laboring under extreme conditions due to extreme poverty, in turn often a consequence of domestic or regional ethnic group dynamics. I find it problematic to compare their experience to that of chattel slavery. It's an injustice to those who experienced chattel slavery, as well as an injustice to the experience of these so-called modern slaves today. There's nothing constructive that can be gained by such equivocations. If the modern reality isn't abhorrent enough (and I wouldn't even try to compare degrees of abhorrence), I don't see how it will move people to do anything but pontificate. Without any substantive relationships, the history of the former cannot be used to address the latter--which is actually a diverse array of situations. And if the history of "white slavery" is at all instructive, I can easily see people using such equivocations in a manner that further harms the abused and exploited.[2] [1] See J. O. Davidson, Modern Slavery, ch 3 (Slavery and Wage Labour: Freedom and Its Doubles), https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1057%2F9781137297297_3.pdf https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1057%2F978113729729... [2] A quick Google search suggests one tactic is using "slavery" as a pretense to detain and eject migrant laborers.

curryst 6y ago

> I really wish more activist types helped around the world today vs shouting about the past. I don't really even see the need for activists. This seems like something that could be fairly easily handled by the world's governments, either through economic leverage, supporting insurgents or direct military intervention. If we can drone strike terrorists, I don't see why we can't drone strike slave owners. Let them live in the fear they have fostered among others. Or if we don't want to get that involved, start leaving AKs laying around conspicuously. The South was terrified of slaves having guns, and it generally ended poorly for them when slaves did get guns. The countries will complain, but I don't see them getting much sympathy on the world stage with a "you can't kill our slave owners" tack.