The first national remembrance of Juneteenth has come and gone in the United States. But, if you thought that slavery ended with the Emancipation Proclamation or with the condemnation of slavery by the United Nations, think again. Mauritania had legal slavery until 1981, and after its abolition, it imposed no penalties for it until 2007. Some antislavery groups have estimated that about 90,000 people in 2018, about 2% of Mauritania’s population remains enslaved despite i
Almost half the countries in the world have not made it a crime to enslave another human being. 94 countries still have no criminal penalties for slavery but may have other anti-human trafficking laws. 112 countries have no provisions for punishing forced labour, and a whopping 93% of countries (180) have not enacted laws to criminalize the imposition of forced servituted.
Even today, the legal definitions of slavery remains limited and extending it remains a subject of debate.
In the Westernized, Industrial, Educated, Rich, Democratic (WEIRD) societies around the world, it is easy to shake our fists at open slavery because our personal slavery footprint remains hidden. We have replaced our day-to-day abuse of slaves with our over-use of fossil fuels. We usually remain blissfully unaware of our own use of slavery because it is hidden from our site, happening elsewhere but benefiting us. Dare to know your personal slavery footprint? This link can help you estimate it.