Modern-Day Slavery

Slavery is as old as civilization itself. It existed in the earliest societies in Mesopotamia in 6800 B.C., where slaves helped build the world’s first cities. In the Roman Empire, prisoners of war and people who couldn’t pay their debts were sold into slavery. Some of them were forced to fight to the death as gladiators in the Colosseum, starting in the year 80.

Beginning in 1525, more than 12 million Africans and their descendants were forced into slavery in the Americas. Many had been kidnapped, shipped across the Atlantic Ocean, and sold at public auctions to the highest bidder. Generations of slaves often worked on cotton plantations in the South, where many suffered regular beatings. 

In December 1865, passage of the 13th Amendment abolished slavery in the United States. At the time, about 4 million people were enslaved—13 percent of the country’s population.

Slavery is as old as civilization itself. It existed in the earliest societies in Mesopotamia in 6800 B.C. Slaves helped build the world’s first cities. In the Roman Empire, prisoners of war and people who could not pay their debts were sold into slavery. Some of them were forced to fight to the death as gladiators in the Colosseum. That started in the year 80.

Beginning in 1525, more than 12 million Africans and their descendants were forced into slavery in the Americas. Many had been kidnapped and shipped across the Atlantic Ocean. Then they were sold at public auctions to the highest bidder. Generations of slaves often worked on cotton plantations in the South, where many suffered regular beatings.

In December 1865, the 13th Amendment was passed. It made slavery illegal in the United States. At the time, about 4 million people were slaves. That was 13 percent of the country’s population.

Today, slavery is illegal in almost every country. Yet it continues to exist all over the world, including in the U.S. According to some estimates, 58,000 people are enslaved throughout the nation. Many of them are domestic workers, including housekeepers.  

The exact number of slaves in each country is unclear because human traffickers operate in the shadows. But the majority of the world’s slaves—nearly 60 percent—are thought to be in just five countries: India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan (see map, below). 

In those nations, hundreds of millions of people live in poor communities without economic opportunities or access to proper schooling. That makes them easy prey for human traffickers, who lure them into slavery with false promises of a good job and a better life. 

Sometimes, parents are tricked into selling their own kids. Traffickers often promise that the children will get an education and earn money to send back home. But once the kids have left their villages, they’re put to work in factories, mines, homes, fields, restaurants, and hotels. They aren’t allowed to go to school, see their families, or play outside. 

Like child laborers, child slaves work in hazardous conditions for hours on end. But one distinction, says Bryant, is that slaves are “owned” by their captors—and can’t return home.

In Southeast Asia, for example, kids as young as 7 are forced to weave rugs in dark rooms with no fresh air. In West Africa, they get up at 6 in the morning to harvest cocoa beans in the scorching heat. In Latin America, they work on farms where they’re exposed to toxic chemicals, picking crops until their fingers bleed. 

“We were confined in one room and made to work for a period of 12 hours,” says Ravi, a former child slave at a carpet factory in India. “I would think of running away. But the thought of running away would always be followed with the fear of getting caught.”

Today, slavery is illegal in almost every country. Yet it continues to exist all over the world, including in the U.S. According to some estimates, 58,000 people are enslaved throughout the nation. Many of them are domestic workers, including housekeepers.

The exact number of slaves in each country is unclear because human traffickers operate in the shadows. But the majority of the world’s slaves, nearly 60 percent, are thought to be in just five countries: India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan. (See the map, below.)

In those nations, hundreds of millions of people live in poor communities. They lack economic opportunities and access to proper schooling. That makes them easy prey for human traffickers. The traffickers draw them into slavery with false promises of a good job and a better life.

Sometimes, parents are tricked into selling their own kids. Traffickers often promise that the children will get an education and earn money to send back home. But once the kids have left their villages, they are put to work in factories, mines, homes, fields, restaurants, and hotels. They are not allowed to go to school, see their families, or play outside.

Like child laborers, child slaves work in dangerous conditions for hours on end. But one difference, says Bryant, is that slaves are “owned” by their captors. They cannot return home.

For example, in Southeast Asia kids as young as 7 are forced to weave rugs in dark rooms with no fresh air. In West Africa, they get up at 6 in the morning to harvest cocoa beans in the extreme heat. In Latin America, they work on farms with toxic chemicals. They pick crops until their fingers bleed.

“We were confined in one room and made to work for a period of 12 hours,” says Ravi. He was a child slave at a carpet factory in India. “I would think of running away. But the thought of running away would always be followed with the fear of getting caught.”