Africa’s World of Forced Labor, in a 6-Year-Old’s Eyes

Every year, trafficking of children produces $10 billion worth of trade. Forced child labor is endemic in desperately poor areas of the world, and the trade in child workers is the modern-day vision of slavery. Journalist Sharon LaFraniere spent time with a group of children, some as young as six, and details their fatigue, pain and hopelessness. In countries where parents cannot afford to feed their families, selling a child’s labor to someone who can teach a trade, and possibly send them to school, seems the better option than keeping them at home to starve. In most cases, however, the hoped-for education is merely a marketing tool. The girls and boys instead find themselves crushed by the monotony and danger of their tasks, far from home and often beaten into submission. Children are most vulnerable in Africa, Asia and Latin America, where population outstrips resources. In a world where economic realities allow human trafficking to flourish, millions of children will continue to find their hopes shattered by the uncaring laws of trade. – YaleGlobal