Worldview Wednesday | Slavery

Good evening Yardigans. This week I want to raise your awareness about an issue that most of us think is in the past. We have all learned about the slavery in the history of the U.S. We know that it was terrible, and we are relieved that it ended. However, I come to you today with some sobering news: there are more slaves in the world right now than there have ever been in the history of the world.

Slavery takes many forms. The kind we tend to be most familiar with is chattel slavery, which was what the slavery in the U.S. was. Two other types of slavery are child slavery and debt bondage; these are the types that are big today.

Debt bondage occurs when workers are paid too little to meet their basic needs in life and are literally trapped into their jobs. Sadly, this happens even in the U.S. For example, many prostitutes here are women who were recruited from other countries based on the promise of a better life in the U.S. They had no idea what kind of work they would be doing, and they were told that once they paid off their traveling expenses they were free to go wherever they wanted. Then, once they got here, they realized that the "traveling expenses" could never be paid, trapping them into one of the worst lives imaginable.

What can you do to help?

1) Pray, pray, and pray some more for those who are currently living life in bondage.
2) Help to make your family and friends aware of the magnitude of slavery in the world today.