Nearly 2 million children are exploited each year in the global sex industry.
Statistics like this are “staggering” says Dr. Randy Spivey, academic director of Lipscomb’s Institute for Law, Justice and Society.
Jan. 11 is Human Trafficking Awareness Day, and people across the United States are recognizing those innocent men, women and children who are bought and sold into slavery worldwide. Studies show that 27 million people are enslaved today.
Spivey, who taught a course last semester about human trafficking, said the U.S. is one of the greatest consumers of the “product” of modern slavery. Spivey noted that a police officer that took his class used the information he gained during the semester to recognize a human trafficking incident, rescuing a woman who had been held captive for a year and who had been transported across several states.
Dr. Cayce Watson, assistant professor of social work, also teaches students about human trafficking so they are prepared if they encounter it in their careers.
“Part of social work’s core values is to fight for social justice,” Watson said. “Human trafficking happens everywhere and nowhere. Everywhere because it’s happening and nowhere because people don’t talk about it.”
“Some folks have a notion that it happens far away, that it doesn’t happen here,” Watson said. “But we’re kind of a hotbed for that because of our interstates and being close to Atlanta.”
According to a 2011 report by the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, 85% of counties in Tennessee reported at least one case of human trafficking within the past 2 years.
“You have to be able to recognize the signs of it,” Watson said, explaining why social work students need to know about trafficking.
Watson said it’s important to train people so that they know how to respond, noting the TBI research, which found that 79% of people feel unprepared to deal with issues of human trafficking.
According to The Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking, “slavery is more affordable, more wide-spread and more entrenched in 2011 than it was in ancient Rome or the antebellum South of America.”
Watson said students can fight modern slavery by volunteering, contacting government officials and educating themselves by signing up for emails from organizations like End Slavery Tennessee.
“You can write advocacy letters to your government officials, asking them to support policies,” Watson suggested, mentioning one such plan to create a policy expunging the records of women who were arrested for prostitution when they were actually in slavery.
Spivey added that students should research the places where they frequently shop because they might be surprised to learn of the companies’ ties to slavery.
“Be aware of where you spend your money,” he said, “and of how ethically that company has come about producing those goods. That’s something that too often we’re not thinking about.”
Spivey said the course was beneficial for many students, though it was a difficult topic.
“People were shocked by the breadth and the locality of the problem,” Spivey said. “For all involved, it was a difficult eight weeks to delve into something so dark. That was a difficult task to do, but for a lot of different reasons, I think all of the students were really glad they went through it.”
“I think we should care about other people,” Watson said, addressing why students should pay attention to the issue of modern slavery. “The things that are being done to people—injustices—are not ok, and you can either take action and try to do something about it, or you can sit around and look the other way. When we don’t do anything about it, we really participate in the problem.”
Spivey said students should care about human trafficking “because it’s so close.”
“But even beyond that,” Spivey continued, “because these are the people Jesus cared about—the people that have no voice and no power and are completely trapped by their circumstances—and those circumstances are that of being abused.”
Watson said Yvonne Williams, executive director of the Trafficking in America Task Force, will speak during Watson’s 9 a.m. class next Friday, Jan. 20, in Swang. Williams has worked with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and End Slavery Tennessee. Guests are welcome to attend Watson’s class to hear Williams speak, but please email Watson to let her know you will be coming.
The first chapel sponsored by International Justice Mission, an organization that fights against exploitation and oppression, will be Wednesday, Jan. 18 in Ward Hall at 3 p.m. and will occur once every two weeks after that.
To learn more about modern day slavery, visit these additional websites:
I love the story, but wish “Latino” wasn’t used so redundantly. Throw in some “Hispanic” from time to time, and it’ll be an awesome piece.