According to the Global Slavery Index (2023), over 50 million people are forced to live in conditions of modern slavery.
India, China, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Indonesia have high numbers of people forced into modern slavery, mainly due to the large populations and economic disparities in these countries.
Much of the modern slavery there occurs in industries such as textiles, agriculture, manufacturing, and construction. For example, garment factories and brick kilns are known to exploit workers, forcing them to work long hours for low pay.
“modern prohibitions of human trafficking in the United States have their roots in the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which barred slavery and involuntary servitude in 1865.”
Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.
Nope. Still looks to me like slavery is as perfectly legal and perfectly institutionalized in the US as ever.
But I guess I shouldn't be surprised that a tankie-loving rag such as Counterpunch will be perfectly fine with slave labor as long as Big Brother says it's okay.
I just discovered today that the Soviet army's boots were made by prison labor throughout the Cold War, and that never changed afterward. Just like the US army's kevlar helmets!