Apr 15 2008
North American slavery
“Slavery” is kind of like “fascism.”
They’re powerful terms we can throw back in the face of clear and unapologetic oppression. But scholars like Kevin Bales (whose definition of slavery is below) have noted that it’s important to distinguish between actual slavery and those who are poor, oppressed, and toil for unfair, slave-like wages.
Those who work in sweat-shops and free trade zones are not necessarily slaves.
But the Senate is meeting right now to determine whether the working conditions of tomato pickers in Florida constitute a serious violation of human rights.
The Nation reported that The Coalition of Immokalee Workers testified about the experience of migrant wage-laborers in Florida: “seven-day workweeks, debt bondage, and armed crew bosses that beat workers who attempt to leave.”
The case, if proved, also implicates giants like Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, McDonald’s and KFC.
Anxiety over growing slave markets is increasing elsewhere on the continent, too.
The Canadian Press said Canadian officials are re-evaluating the number of sex slaves in the country because of skyrocketing estimates by activists– some of them peaking at 15,000 people.
But the government, although it is looking into the matter, is understandably leery of such guesses.
While Canada, like most developed countries, undoubtedly wrestles an influx of trafficked women due to organized crime, the claims of activists aren’t always easy to prove.
One activist described a growing demand for Canadian women– particularly those from Quebec– that can be traced back to “a reputation for being good in bed.”
Hmmm…
