human trafficking

An old woman stands in front of a table in a home.

'A classic tale of human greed': California caregivers earn as little as $2 an hour

Throughout California, many of the workers in elderly care facilities face inhumane conditions, wage theft, and abuse form their employers. Despite efforts from the state, many of these crimes go unpunished and workers are left with few options.

'A classic tale of human greed': California caregivers earn as little as $2 an hour
Palm oil workers load palm fruits into a truck at Asia World palm oil plantation in Bank Mae Village, Myanmar, Nov. 11, 2016.

These Burmese palm oil workers say they're trapped on plantations

These Burmese palm oil workers say they're trapped on plantations
A prostitute from Eastern Europe waits for customers along the Promenade des Anglais in Nice

How tech companies are trying to combat trafficking

How tech companies are trying to combat trafficking
Man standing in front of ranch sign and American flag

This rancher in Arizona doesn’t necessarily want a wall — but he does want more done along the border

This rancher in Arizona doesn’t necessarily want a wall — but he does want more done along the border
Damayan Cleaning Cooperative

Filipina trafficking survivors launch a co-op — and they own their own jobs

Filipina trafficking survivors launch a co-op — and they own their own jobs
The World

What does human trafficking look like today? How do we stop it?

I've traveled from New England to New York to Thailand to Vietnam to China’s southeast border to expose human trafficking routes and venues, and to bring attention to sex and labor exploitation. The Forum at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health Tuesday took a closer look at this modern slave trade and its impact on public health worldwide, including in cities and rural communities across the USA.

What does human trafficking look like today? How do we stop it?
Sundarban1

After the floods come the human traffickers, but these girls are fighting back

India's low-lying Sundarbans are rife with human trafficking as the effects of climate change leave families poor and vulnerable. But a new program from Save the Children India is helping kids band together to ward off traffickers, while also getting them to stay in school. Even if it means they also learn to roll cigarettes to support their families.

After the floods come the human traffickers, but these girls are fighting back
John Kerry state department human trafficking report 2015 malaysia upgrade

US human trafficking report is called 'toilet paper' after it upgrades Malaysia’s ranking

Critics believed the upgrade from tier three to tier two was a political decision to facilitate Malaysia’s participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a massive free trade deal being aggressively pushed by President Barack Obama.

US human trafficking report is called 'toilet paper' after it upgrades Malaysia’s ranking
One of the ‘boat people.’ A Bangladeshi migrant allowed into Indonesia after weeks at sea.

Under heavy pressure, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia grant temporary shelter to thousands of refugees trapped at sea

Several thousand migrants and refugees stranded at sea in the Indian Ocean have been granted temporary shelter by the governments of Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia. The people have endured horrendous conditions.

Under heavy pressure, Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia grant temporary shelter to thousands of refugees trapped at sea
Italian coastguard personnel in protective clothing carry the body of a dead immigrant off their ship, Bruno Gregoretti, in the Grand Harbor of Valletta, Malta, on April 20, 2015.

'I am saving up to take the death boat to Europe'

Despite the clear and growing dangers of crossing the Mediterranean Sea in search of refuge in Europe, the stream of migrants is only getting bigger. The people making the journey say it's better to take a deadly chance than die slowly in civil wars or along the dangerous routes away from home.

'I am saving up to take the death boat to Europe'
Thae Chaung IDP camp

Human traffickers find easy prey among Myanmar's minorities

Myanmar's Rohingya Muslim population is one of the most persecuted minorities in the world. They can’t vote. They have no rights. And they aren’t recognized as citizens in their own country. Their desperate situation has attracted the attention of human traffickers, who prey on the vulnerability of people like “Abdul” whose 14-year-old daughter is now being held captive.

Human traffickers find easy prey among Myanmar's minorities
Shukri Alassouli's wife and two children were among some 450 people who drowned in a fishing boat rammed by people smugglers last month in the Mediterranean Ocean.

A 'mass murder in the Mediterranean' leaves nearly 450 lost at sea, including this man's family

Shukri Alassouli, a 33-year-old man from Gaza, was trying to find a better life for his young family in Europe. But their journey across the Mediterranean in smugglers' boats turned into what the UN called the deadliest accident of its kind, killing hundreds and losing Shukri's wife, daughter and young son at sea.

A 'mass murder in the Mediterranean' leaves nearly 450 lost at sea, including this man's family
"Mint", 24, is a former sex worker, now working at NightLight, an organization that hires former prostitutes.

Groups 'rescue' Thai sex workers, whether they want it or not

Under pressure by the US government and American evangelicals, the Thai government has stepped up raids to rescue sex trafficking victims. The trouble is, many of the "rescued" sex workers may not have been trafficked in the first place.

Groups 'rescue' Thai sex workers, whether they want it or not

For Counter-Trafficking Expert Matt Friedman, Sex-Trafficking is Slavery

After encountering first-hand trafficked victims on the streets of Nepal as a public health officer, Matt Friedman dedicated the next 20 years to anti-trafficking activism and fundraising.

For Counter-Trafficking Expert Matt Friedman, Sex-Trafficking is Slavery

The Trafficking of Girls in India

Every year tens of thousands of girls in India are sold into a life of violence and abuse. Many are sold to be brides. That has a lot to do with gender imbalances and the widespread practice of aborting female fetuses in northern India.

The Trafficking of Girls in India