The "Time's Up" movement has gained momentum and attention in the past couple months.
But, as I was thinking about the whole movement, I began to think of many, many, issues that Time should be Up on. Thus, the idea of a #Time'sUp series on my blog formed. (see note at the bottom)
Slavery and human trafficking is the second largest illegal industry in the world.
There are 45,800,000 slaves in the world today.
Every ten minutes a child or woman is trafficked into the United Sates. This problem is so prevalent in our society, yet so hidden.Most child slaves work seven days a week, are not paid, and every hour two children die while working.
Slavery is present on every continent in the world. But several countries have mores slavery than others. India is the country with the most slaves in it, but North Korea is the world's largest single slave holder. In China over 70,000 children become slaves or fall into begging every year.
Many industries use slavery, such as the coffee industry, the chocolate industry, the diamond industry, the fishing industry, the clothing industry, and the electronics industry. Factories and sweat shops in Indonesia, Japan, China, Pakistan, India, use slavery as well. Conditions are horrible.
“It was like a prison, we were locked inside. We worked from 5 a.m. until midnight making carpets, and we slept among the machines” (Kumar, child labourer).
Walmart, Starbucks, Victoria's Secret, Apple, Nestle, Gap, Disney, H&M, Forever 21, Toys R' Us, and many other companies are well known to use slavery. Despite promises to change things, none of them have made much difference.
With more slaves worldwide than ever before, today is the time to say "Time's Up" on slavery. Such injustice and cruelty should not be allowed.
What can we do to end it? Sign petitions, donate to organizations that fight to end slavery, raise awareness, and most importantly, boycott, limit, and be aware of what you are purchasing. If companies start losing dollars over their use of slaves, they will stop using them. Yes, you are only one person, but if everyone who doesn't do anything because they are "one person" did something, we would have a movement who can change things.
Read where products are made, do research, try to buy locally, boycott companies in favour of fair-trade ones, and be aware. Here are some simple ideas to get you started.
- Tell a friend about the prevalence of modern slavery.
- Don't throw out/replace your old one just because it is "old", and a new one has come out.
- Sign a petition at freedomunited.org
- Share a post about slavery.
- Boycott Walmart, or another company who uses slavery.
It might seem drastic to boycott a company, or stop buying products that are made by slaves. But, it is more drastic to do nothing. If your child, sibling, parent, or friend was enslaved, made to work for no pay, exposed to dangerous chemicals and work practices, and abused, would you do nothing? The slaves are people, with families, and lives. Compared to what they go through, doing something simple to end slavery seems like a tiny sacrifice, don't you think?
Note: * It is important that sexual harassment ends, and everyone is treated with respect. I have witnessed the way workplace harassment affects people, and how it is excused, ignored, and not taken seriously even in the 'Christian' community. This article doesn't mean to diminish that, just raise light on other issues that we need to say time is up on. *
