Summary

Kristof and WuDunn were very effective in laying out, in the introduction, the need for an awakening that led to a book such as this. They illustrated through the example of a woman named Rath how oppression can happen and how the chains of oppression can be broken. The call for our recruitment in the transformation and emancipation of women and girls from the oppression that they currently face was issued. Many of the actors and organizations who are or have played a role in this transformation were introduced, the agenda set, and a glimpse into some of the successful solutions currently taking place was given.

The agenda they will address for the world’s women will be focused in 3 areas: sex trafficking and forced prostitution; gender-based violence; and maternal mortality. Some of the solutions they will share include girls’ education and microfinance.

Chapter 1: Emancipating Twenty-First-Century Slaves

“Women might just have something to contribute to civilization other than their vaginas.” - Christopher Buckley, Florence of Arabia

This chapter gives us our first in depth look at the life of a 21^st century slave by recalling the kidnapping, trafficking, subjugation to prostitution, escape, and return to a life free of prostitution of a 8 or 9 year Indian Muslim girl named Meena Hasina. Through Meena’s experience we learn the sex trafficking business model used worldwide: Break the spirit of girls, through humiliation, drugs, rape, threats, and violence. We also see through the lives of 2 of Meena’s children conceived through rape: Vivek and Naina the strategies used to keep women submissive and how brothel owners perpetuate slavery to a second generation.

Meena and other women in these circumstances are referred to as victims of “sex trafficking”. They have been misnamed. The authors share how the more accurate label would be “slavery.” Statistics by various reporters and organizations are offered. One such statistic calculated by, The Lancet, is “1 million children are forced into prostitution every year and the total number of prostituted children could be as high as 10 million.”

India is exposed as a country with the most modern slaves. Both India and China have prostitutes numbering into the millions, but it is difficult to calculate prostitutes into ”neat categories as voluntary or involuntary.” Girls are broken and terrified into submission, and “from a foreigner passing by it may appear that she is there voluntarily.” The authors estimate that there are 3 million women and girls who could be considered enslaved in the sex trade.

The 21^st century slave trade is compared to the 1780 transatlantic slave trade. Today “600k-800k (80% women and girls)are estimated” to be trafficked across international borders compared to “the 1780 peak decade of 80k African slaves shipped annually across the Atlantic to the New World.”

The issue of sex slavery has actually worsened over the last few decades. Three reasons are offered as to why: first the collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe, second, globalization, and third AIDS.

The second part of the chapter explored the complexities of change and how some have responded to the call for help. The health and education of women have an excellent record for helping to prevent girls from being trafficked in the first place. The story of two responders: The Overlake School in Redmond, Washington, and American Assistance for Cambodia are shared.

Chapter 2: Prohibition and Prostitution

A Hawaiian parable:

A man goes out on the beach and sees that it is covered with starfish that have washed up in the tide. A little boy is walking along, picking them up and throwing them back into the water.

“What are you doing, son?” the man asks. “You see how many starfish there are? You’ll never make a difference.”

The boy paused thoughtfully, and picked up another starfish and threw it into the ocean.

“It sure made a difference to that one,” he said.

The task of eradicating trafficking and prostitution of women and girls seems, and may be impossible, but the efforts to do so can and have been making a difference one girl at a time.

In chapter 2 the authors state that “the tools to crush modern slavery exist, but the political will is lacking. That must be the starting point of any abolitionist movement.” They share some of the efforts that have been made politically. Two policies to combat forced prostitution, and child prostitution are discussed.. One such policy is to legalize and regulate. This would allow for condoms to be distributed in the hopes to minimize the spread of AIDS, and it would allow access to brothels to check for underage girls. This hasn’t worked and reasons were given. One example is the DMSC. It has been exposed as a “cover for traffickers.” The other policy, “crackdowns” coupled with drug rehabilitation and “job retraining” seems to be showing success. Sweden has shown a considerable change since using it’s big stick approach. A 41% drop in prostitutes has made Sweden “a less attractive destination for traffickers.”

Gary Haugen, a strong proponent of the crackdown policy said, “You don’t have to arrest everybody. You just have to get enough that it sends a ripple effect and changes the calculations. That changes the pimps’ behavior. You can drive traffickers of virgin village girls to fence stolen radios instead.”

The authors tell of how the debate between policies becomes only a distraction in the developing world. They said that “In poor countries, the law is often irrelevant, particularly outside the capital. Our focus has to be on changing reality, not changing laws.” They share steps the U.S. Congress has taken to put pressure on trafficking throughout the world, namely the TIP report.

The second section of the chapter shows us through the lives of two sex slaves the difficulty of keeping rescued girls free. They conclude by offering 3 lessons from their stories.

- Lauralee Fegel