Blog
I still have hope in my 50’s
Last year Free The Slaves joined HopeBox, an NGO based in Vietnam, to serve survivors of domestic abuse and slavery. While working in the city of Hanoi, Free The Slaves and Hope Box had the privilege of meeting Tina*. This is Tina’s story of overcoming fear and...
FTS Executive Director Expresses Support for Panagtapok 2022
There is power in the collaboration and action of dedicated leaders to address societal issues. This was clearly achieved when more than 200 leaders from the Philippines gathered together in the Panagtapok 2022 (which translates to 'a gathering' in English). The event...
The Dreams of Nina: Surviving Forced Marriage and Labour Trafficking
In Vietnam, it’s estimated that there are 421,000 people living in modern slavery. Nearly 70% of modern slavery victims in Vietnam are women and girls who work in forced prostitution or domestic servitude through fraudulent job opportunities or brokered marriage. To...
Get Involved
Haiti Government Pledges Financial Support to Fight Child Trafficking
Haiti’s National Committee to Combat Trafficking in Persons will have the financial capacity to carry out its ambitious agenda, thanks to a commitment by the government to provide 20 million Haitian gourdes (about $185,000 USD) in financial support. It’s the first...
Preventing Imports Tainted by Uyghur Forced Labor
The Alliance to End Slavery and Trafficking (ATEST), which is co-chaired by Free the Slaves, supports legislation that will prevent Chinese products tainted by Uyghur forced labor from being imported into the United States. See the letter to the U.S. Senate Foreign...
Opportunities in an Age of Adaptation
The 8th annual Freedom from Slavery Forum is happening in a unique and exceptional environment. Countries have taken measures to contain the COVID-19 global pandemic, but modern-day slavery including sexual slavery, forced labor and human trafficking has grown worse...
Our Work
Valuing Courage in Times of Crisis
There are few places on earth where it’s harder to stand up for human rights than Haiti. On this year’s Human Rights Day, we’d like to share an update about our courageous front-line activists there, who continue to fight child slavery even in times of national...
Bukeni Tete Waruzi Joins Free the Slaves as Executive Director
Free the Slaves is thrilled to announce that a courageous advocate for the rights of women and children has joined the organization as executive director. Bukeni Tete Waruzi has helped put a Congolese warlord behind bars, has helped women trafficked into domestic...
Double Child Education to Fight Slavery
Summer is over and kids are back to school. But not enslaved children. For them, each day brings a lesson in hardship and mistreatment. They have no school mates, no pep rallies, no recess. Just backbreaking work and beatings. That’s why Free the Slaves invests so...
News
India Sex Slavery Survivor Shelter Hits Milestone, But Needs Help
On this International Women’s Day, I’d like to share a remarkable success story. More than 200 women and girls have now restarted their lives at our Punarnawa Ashram for sex slavery survivors in India. The ashram’s residents have endured unspeakable brutality before...
Four Remarkable New FTS Board Members
An organization's personality and reputation start at the top. That's why Free the Slaves is thrilled to welcome four astounding new members this year to our board of directors. Their diverse backgrounds and skills will shape the direction and effectiveness of our...
Celebrating 200 Years of Frederick Douglass
February marks the 200th anniversary of the birth of Frederick Douglass, one of history’s great abolitionists. At Free the Slaves, we’re proud to follow his footsteps and finish the work he helped start generations ago. Douglass was born into slavery in Maryland – the...
Americas
Brazil: A Global Leader in Fighting Slavery
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...
FTS Strengthens Monitoring of Front-Line Projects
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...
FTS Staffers Chosen for Prestigious Thunderbird Management Academy
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...
Asia
Slavery Survivor Helps Others “Move toward the Light”
What happened to Soni Vanvasi has happened to millions of others in India. Her entire family was enslaved because a child fell ill. Now that she’s free, Soni is determined to prevent human trafficking from ever touching another person’s life. “I want to educate my...
Small Shop Ensures Lasting Freedom
It doesn’t look like much, just a small wooden grocery stall beside a busy road. But this microenterprise has kept Sunil Kumar free from slavery, now six years after his rescue. Staying free is just as important as breaking free. That’s why the Free the Slaves...
FTS Helps Courageous Victim Turn the Tables on his Traffickers
Like millions enslaved at India’s notorious brick kilns, Raju Vanvasi endured dehumanizing mistreatment. All because he had borrowed 7,000 rupees, about $100. The money lender said paying off the debt would be simple, just make bricks at a friend’s factory. It would...
Africa
From Fishing Nets to Safety Nets
Emmanuel endured years beneath the blistering sky of Ghana’s Lake Volta. As a child fishing slave, he faced the bare elements in a shoddy open boat. Sharp nets left deep cuts in his fingers. The blurry water left him fearful that he might not survive when forced to...
You Make World Day Against Trafficking in Persons a Success
On this World Day Against Trafficking In Persons, you might be wondering if there's anything you can do to end modern slavery. Turns out, as a Free the Slaves supporter you're already doing a lot! The Free the Slaves rescue boat in Ghana liberates 15 children from...
Grandmother Safeguards Five Children through FTS Savings Club
When we visit villages that are targeted by traffickers, we see that modern slavery is, at its core, an economic crime. That's why we were thrilled to hear from an inspiring grandmother named Stella Abrokwah in Arkrah, Ghana. She explained how our Village Savings and...