Social justice news
January 11, 2008

A busy day in Washington town
January 11 is both the International Day of Action to Shut Down Guantánamo and the National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. Organizers for the former event are recalling the arrival on January 11, 2002, of the first prisoners at the Guantánamo naval base in Cuba. Demonstrations against the continuing incarcerations at GITMO were held in Washington at the National Mall followed by an orange jumpsuit procession to the Supreme Court. There were also solidarity demonstrations in Chicago, Miami, London, Paris and other cities around the world.

Organizers include Witness Against Torture, Amnesty International, and the National Religious Campaign Against Torture .

January 11 also marks the first observation of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day in the United States. According to Human Trafficking Watch, human trafficking is modern day slavery.  “It is the use of force, fraud, or coercion to make people do things they don’t want to do.  Men, women, and children are all affected by this crime; they are enslaved throughout the world for labor or as sex slaves."

Human rights advocates say millions of people are affected by human trafficking and that no country is immune from it.  In the U.S., thousands of trafficked individuals live among us.  If you see, or know, anyone who is:

- Always accompanied by another person who seems controlling
- Showing signs of physical or psychological abuse
- Submissive or fearful
- Not able to communicate due to language barriers
- Does not have any identification

Please call the Department of Justice Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-428-7581.

On a systemic level, we see human trafficking becoming more prevalent due to migration and economic issues.  In countries with weak economies and/or extreme poverty, people must migrate to other countries.  These very people become victimized by others who want to employ them for nefarious reasons.  As advocates of peace and justice, it is our duty to become more informed of this scourge of humanity.

For more information:
Stop Trafficking or http://www.sdssisters.org/slavery/action.htm
Global initiatives to fight human trafficking
http://www.humantrafficking.org/

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