Global Slavery Index:
Over 400,000 Live in Modern Slavery in U.S.
WASHINGTON (Dispatches) -- More than 400,000 people could be living in "modern slavery” in the U.S., a condition of servitude broadly defined in a new study as forced and state-imposed labor, sexual servitude and forced marriage.
The Global Slavery Index, published on Thursday by Walk Free Foundation, describes modern slavery as a complex and often hidden crime that crosses borders, sectors and jurisdictions. The U.S. number, the study estimates, is almost one hundredth of the estimated 40.3 million global total number of people it defines as being enslaved.
"The United States is one of the most advanced countries in the world yet has more than 400,000 modern slaves working under forced labor conditions,” said the group’s founder, Andrew Forrest, in a news release.
"This is a truly staggering statistic and demonstrates just how substantial this issue is globally. This is only possible through a tolerance of exploitation,” Forrest added.
The report also argues the U.S. figures are in themselves deceptive because the U.S. exacerbates the global slavery problem by importing products, including laptops, computers, mobile phones, garments, fish, cocoa and timber, at risk of being produced through forced labor.
It estimates China is by far the largest source of at-risk goods, with the United States importing $122 billion of electronics and clothing from the country. Vietnam was the second largest source with $11.2bn, and India third with $3.8 billion.
Smaller values of goods were also sourced from Malaysia, Thailand, Brazil, Argentina, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Russia, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Peru.
Britain is home to about 136,000 modern slaves, a figure 10 times higher than government estimates that points to emerging forms of slavery.
About one in 500 people in Britain were trapped in modern-day slavery in Britain on any given day in 2016, according to the report.
The government estimated in 2013 that only about 13,000 people in Britain were modern-day slaves — trapped in forced labor, sexual exploitation and domestic servitude.
"This report reinforces that we are dealing with an evolving threat," said Tom Dowdall of the National Crime Agency (NCA), which received 5,145 reports of suspected slavery victims in 2017 in Britain, up more than a third from 3,804 in 2016.
"For example, we know that criminals involved in these types of exploitation are going into online spaces to enable their criminality," the NCA's deputy director added in a statement.
Forced labor is believed to be rife across Britain's building sites, nail bars, car washes, factories and farms, while a rising number of children are being used by gangs to carry drugs between cities and rural areas, according to police.
"The (GSI) number is much bigger than previous estimates because the discussion is evolving and new forms of slavery are emerging," Jakub Sobik, spokesman for London-based Anti-Slavery International, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
The Global Slavery Index, published on Thursday by Walk Free Foundation, describes modern slavery as a complex and often hidden crime that crosses borders, sectors and jurisdictions. The U.S. number, the study estimates, is almost one hundredth of the estimated 40.3 million global total number of people it defines as being enslaved.
"The United States is one of the most advanced countries in the world yet has more than 400,000 modern slaves working under forced labor conditions,” said the group’s founder, Andrew Forrest, in a news release.
"This is a truly staggering statistic and demonstrates just how substantial this issue is globally. This is only possible through a tolerance of exploitation,” Forrest added.
The report also argues the U.S. figures are in themselves deceptive because the U.S. exacerbates the global slavery problem by importing products, including laptops, computers, mobile phones, garments, fish, cocoa and timber, at risk of being produced through forced labor.
It estimates China is by far the largest source of at-risk goods, with the United States importing $122 billion of electronics and clothing from the country. Vietnam was the second largest source with $11.2bn, and India third with $3.8 billion.
Smaller values of goods were also sourced from Malaysia, Thailand, Brazil, Argentina, Japan, Taiwan, South Korea, Russia, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Peru.
Britain is home to about 136,000 modern slaves, a figure 10 times higher than government estimates that points to emerging forms of slavery.
About one in 500 people in Britain were trapped in modern-day slavery in Britain on any given day in 2016, according to the report.
The government estimated in 2013 that only about 13,000 people in Britain were modern-day slaves — trapped in forced labor, sexual exploitation and domestic servitude.
"This report reinforces that we are dealing with an evolving threat," said Tom Dowdall of the National Crime Agency (NCA), which received 5,145 reports of suspected slavery victims in 2017 in Britain, up more than a third from 3,804 in 2016.
"For example, we know that criminals involved in these types of exploitation are going into online spaces to enable their criminality," the NCA's deputy director added in a statement.
Forced labor is believed to be rife across Britain's building sites, nail bars, car washes, factories and farms, while a rising number of children are being used by gangs to carry drugs between cities and rural areas, according to police.
"The (GSI) number is much bigger than previous estimates because the discussion is evolving and new forms of slavery are emerging," Jakub Sobik, spokesman for London-based Anti-Slavery International, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.