By: Priscila Néri, Posted: Dec 24 08

Regions: Global

Issues: Bonded labor, Child labor, Slavery & forced labor

Tags: Bound by Promises, Free the Slaves, slavery, udhr60

Slavery not only exists today - but the scope of the problem is staggering. Roughly 27 million people are believed to be held as modern day slaves.  Although slavery is not legal anywhere, it is still exists everywhere - from the United States to Brazil, India to Russia, and China to the Ivory Coast.

Modern slavery includes bonded labor (in which slaves are held under unpayable and never ending debts), child labor, forced sexual labor, migrant labor, and human trafficking.

"The most important thing to understand about modern slavery is that slaves are cheaper today than at any time in human history," says Kevin Bales, co-founder of Free the Slaves and author of Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy.  According to Bales, an average human slave costs $90 today, compared to $40,000 in 1860. 

This Free the Slaves video provides a good overview of slavery today - why the numbers are larger than ever before in human history, who's accountable, where it exists, and what you can do to end it. 

As we continue to spotlight the use of video to expose human rights abuses around the world, we invite you to join this conversation about modern slavery.  Help us understand how this takes place and what we can do to end it by adding videos, campaigns, and other resources in the comments section below.

In the meantime, here's a campaign we're working on right now to end slavery in rural Brazil.  Bound by Promises was co-produced by WITNESS and partners CEJIL (Center for Justice and International Law) and Comissão Pastoral da Terra to shed light on the situation of more than 25,000 workers that are lured into debt bondage every year in rural Brazil.  Watch these excerpts below (full version here) and then sign this petition that will be delivered to the Brazilian government next year.

Finally, here are more resources you may find interesting:

* Check out this interactive map from Free the Slaves about slavery around the world and also be sure to read the Top 10 Facts About Modern Slavery.

* Watch these testimonies and firsthand accounts about life as a modern slave.

* Support the campaign to end global slavery in 25 years and call on governments, the UN and other international bodies, businesses, and communities to take action.

* Watch more videos on slavery and forced labor on the Hub.