Free the Slaves is thrilled to welcome Rajneesh Kumar Yadav to the staff as our new India country manager, based in Allahabad.Rajneesh is no stranger, he’s run anti-trafficking teams for years as a key staffer at our partner organization MSEMVS.Many of the remarkable...
The world’s largest consulting firm has teamed up with Free the Slaves to tackle one of history’s greatest challenges: the eradication of slavery.Deloitte has been volunteering its staffers this year to take stock of the anti-slavery movement and recommend ways for it...
We’re delighted to announce that two remarkable people have recently joined the Free the Slaves board.Robert Gould is the founder and President/CEO of One Degree Strategies, a consultancy dedicated to encouraging decision makers to adopt policies and create programs...
Beyond Borders and Free the Slaves are proud to announce a new programmatic alliance designed to strengthen the effort to protect Haitian children from enslavement as domestic servants. The two organizations are combining their Haiti field operations into a joint...
It started as a one-year project for a Free the Slaves Freedom Award fellowship winner. But it has turned into a must-read platform for Free the Slaves supporters and our colleagues in the abolition movement. Today, it is 5 years old.The FTS blog is our platform for...
A heartfelt thank you today from the staff and board of Free the Slaves to longtime friend, director and volunteer Helen Armstrong. She retired from the board over the weekend after six years of service.Helen has been a highly valued member of the FTS team for many...
It was completely unplanned. A spontaneous and poignant moment. A fuzzy photo that speaks volumes.Several members of the National Survivor Network were in Washington recently for meetings at the White House and several federal agencies. The network, formed by the...
Free the Slaves is happy to introduce a remarkable new staffer who has recently joined us as the director of monitoring, learning and evaluation. Karen Snyder, Ph.D. has more than 20 years of experience in program planning, implementation and evaluation. She earned...
It’s been two weeks since a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal, and we are learning more details about the severity of the impact on our staff and partners.Free the Slaves Nepal Director Neelam Sharma and members of our front-line partner organizations have been...
Imagine this scene in remote town in the Congo. A van pulls up and workers jump out to erect a giant screen. At sunset, a movie starts to play in the village square. In a community without electricity, people gather to watch the spectacle, transfixed by a story on the...
Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Nepal, as they recover from the devastating earthquake that struck on Saturday. We are relieved to report that staffers for Free the Slaves and our front-line partner organizations are safe with their families at this...
Two remarkable volunteer filmmakers are on the front lines with Free the Slaves this year to document what freedom looks like. Cassie and Jordan Timpy, a couple from Washington, have decided to donate their skills “for a greater purpose.” They have included Free the...
The first part of our mission statement is crystal clear: liberate slaves. And with your continuing support, Free the Slaves is achieving that goal. Together, we have just crossed a historic milestone: freeing more than 10,000 people from slavery worldwide since Free...
Before I read John Bowe’s book Nobodies: and the Dark Side of the New Global Economy (2007), I had been kicking around the idea that I would someday write a novel that explored the legacy of slavery and its connections to discrimination and racism in the United...
Why climb Africa’s highest peak? Well, first, because it’s there, as climbers say. But most importantly: climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro can help end slavery. Three FTS supporters have just launched a fundraising campaign to help support Free the Slaves. Emma Norton, Neeraj...
If you’re reading this, you’ve probably noticed that the FTS blog has moved! It’s now part of the newly-designed Free the Slaves website, which we’ve launched over the past few days. Our new online look and structure is designed to provide you with quicker, more...
The Free the Slaves founders will tell you that people thought they were nuts. Most Americans learned in school that slavery ended with the Civil War. Sure, there are exploited workers in the world today, the founders would hear, but surely it wasn’t slavery. The...
A slave who became a saint will be remembered by Catholics around the globe on February 8th as the Vatican launches its first “international day of prayer and awareness against human trafficking.” On Sunday, dioceses and parishes around the world will celebrate the...
Free the Slaves Executive Director Maurice Middleberg loves his job. But he says feeling good is not good enough. For true satisfaction, Maurice says he must know that his work has impact. “I can’t get up in the morning without knowing if we’re making a difference,”...
Freeing slaves is about community. It’s about strengthening community resistance in slavery hot spots so that traffickers cannot prey on vulnerable children, women and men. And it’s about building a community of supporters among those of us who live with the blessing...
Free the Slaves is pleased to announce that Crispin Baderha is our new country director in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He’s already at work in Goma, leading our program to confront labor and sex slavery in mining communities, as well as forced marriage...
As the Thanksgiving holiday draws near, I would like to share a very special video message from the Free the Slaves staffers across the globe whose work you support. They risk their safety every day to help vulnerable and exploited communities break free from the...
Most students learn in school that slavery ended more than a century ago. Of course, that isn’t true. Slavery was outlawed, not ended. Current estimates Most students learn in school that slavery ended more than a century ago. Of course, that isn’t true. Slavery was...
Most students learn in school that slavery ended more than a century ago. Of course, that isn’t true. Slavery was outlawed, not ended. Current estimates are that 21-30 million people are enslaved today, more slaves than at any time in human history. To provide...
The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) is working to integrate anti-trafficking efforts into America’s development projects around the globe. That’s because modern-day slavery can reduce the success of international development efforts. USAID officials...
It’s heartbreaking to learn that rural Haitian families often feel they have no choice but to send some of their children away because they can’t afford to care for them. The restavek system is a longstanding tradition in Haiti, where rural kids are sent to live with...
Have you ever wondered just how Free the Slaves helps thousands of people escape bondage each year? Well, now you can read the step-by-step procedures we follow for leading communities from slavery to freedom. Our “Community Based Model for Fighting Slavery” is...
“Forging freedom demands the courage to renew and transform.”That’s how the Free the Slaves 2013 Annual Report begins. The report demonstrates that Free the Slaves is thriving as an organization, while embracing the need for change.The report showcases remarkable...
The director of Manav Sansadhan Evam Mahila Vikas Sansthan (MSEMVS) in India, Bhanuja Sharan Lal, Ph.D., has been honored this morning by the U.S. State Department as a global anti-slavery hero in the 2014 Trafficking in Persons report. His team of more than 75 front...
The world’s attention shifts to Brazil today, where Jennifer Lopez and Pitbull will open the FIFA World Cup tournament with the song Ole Ola (We are One), and soccer teams will begin competition to determine who is the world’s best. But far from the soccer stadiums, a...
What do you call a room full of international development professionals? A golden opportunity! And that opportunity unfolds this week as InterAction hosts its 30th Annual Forum in Washington. For the first time, Free the Slaves will be on hand as an InterAction member...
The anti-slavery movement is at an historic crossroads. We must do more than awaken the world to the fact that slavery still exists. We must convince the world that slavery can be overcome. And to do that, we must prove that our work on the front lines is breaking...
Free the Slaves is pleased to announce that philanthropist, business strategist and biotech executive Daniel Elkes has joined the FTS board of directors. Dan currently works in the biotechnology industry as the director of the pipeline and portfolio planning group at...
Wherever Free the Slaves works, there are poignant and inspiring stories of women who would give anything to protect their children from slavery. In Nepal, Lucky was forced to leave her daughter behind when she escaped enslavement in an Indian circus. She set in...
There are thousands of NGO’s working toward a better future. Whether it is environmental issues, poverty reduction, anti-human trafficking, disaster relief or veteran services, the world’s civil society is on the rise. To honor these organizations and the people who...
You might feel disconnected from events at remote mining sites in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). But American consumers are linked to the armed violence and slavery that grip eastern portions of the country. Many everyday products in our homes, offices...
It takes more that a bold vision and deep commitment to conquer slavery. It takes exceptional strategic planning and programmatic execution skills to actually eradicate trafficking in global hot spots. That’s why FTS is thrilled that three key staffers have been...
If the battle against slavery hasn't reached your faith community yet, it may be coming soon. A major global faith initiative to end modern-day slavery is taking root. Leading religious representatives and the Walk Free Foundation signed a groundbreaking agreement...
We've just completed our 2013 year-end review, and the results are both impressive and inspiring. In partnership with local organizations around the globe, we helped free more people from slavery last year than ever before. Here are the numbers from our frontline work...
Education and slavery are interconnected. There are 57 million children worldwide who should be in school, but aren't. About 5.5 million of them are slaves. This is why Free the Slaves has been asked to join a global partnership of leading organizations that is...
April is an important month for many faith communities, with Passover and Easter coming soon. So I'd like to encourage you to join us at Free the Slaves in reflecting on the important connection between faith and freedom. If you belong to a church, synagogue, mosque...
Free the Slaves is excited to announce our new partnership with two e-commerce giants! Now you can support the work of FTS when you buy or sell products through Amazon and eBay. The AmazonSmile Foundation will donate 0.5 percent of the purchase price from your...
Free the Slaves is excited to announce the opening of an exclusive auction that benefits FTS frontline work! Gillian Anderson, who appeared most notably in X-Files and Last King of Scotland, is generously auctioning off the chance to meet her on the set of THE FALL in...
The people who know slavery best are the people who have lived it. Now you can read about their experiences in their own words. Laura Murphy has just released a book that will deepen your perspective on modern-day slavery. Survivors of Slavery: Modern Day Slave...
Women are at the core of the modern abolitionist movement, and can help end slavery by working together. That's the key takeaway from the Women Ending Slavery Spreecast, which is now available online. The hour-long discussion unfolded last Friday to celebrate...
It takes a special kind of person to fight for freedom and justice in dangerous hot spots where slavery still thrives. It takes a resilient and resourceful spirit to assist impoverished and marginalized people in their struggle to break free. But that's the job...
In you live in South Florida, this event next Thursday is for you! In recognition of National Anti-Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness Month, Broward College, in partnership with Free the Slaves, will host a day-long conference titled “Human Trafficking: Exposing...
Last Saturday, I was standing on hallowed ground. As I rose to speak to hundreds of people gathered for a benefit concert at Plymouth Church in Brooklyn, I had to take a deep breath. That’s because on that very spot, 150 years ago, anti-slavery activists were...
It’s an ancient abuse. But it persists throughout the world today. Slavery remains one of the greatest human rights challenges of history. Modern-day slavery looks different than the sailing ships and shackles we learned about in high school history class. Today, it’s...
Brooklyn hosts two important anti-slavery events next weekend that will shine a light on trafficking and the innovative methods FTS has developed to fight it. SATURDAY, JANUARY 11: Plymouth Church will be hosting a benefit concert for Free the Slaves. Join an...