Escaping to Slavery

Slaves are not seen as humans but as price tags

It is very common, in the United States, for people to get part-time jobs to help support their family, but what if your job sold you into slavery where you had little to no chance to escape? This is a common problem that people face that come to the United States in hopes make money so they can send it home to support their family. 

In many cases immigrants come to the United States hoping to find a low paying job in order to support their family but in reality they are unknowingly leaving their country to become a slave. According to Kevin Bales, a slave is someone who is forced to work without pay, under threat of violence, and they’re unable to walk away. These victims have no means to escape and are forced to work even though that is not what they were promised. 


Victims that come to America to work are constantly being exploited by traffickers and forced to do jobs that put their lives at risk. Before they come to America they are under the impression that they are going to experience the 'American Dream' and still be able to help support their family. They tend to give their traffickers all of their personal documents because they believe they are needed to find a job, but with doing this they are giving away their whole identity. Their traffickers never return their identification cards which makes it hard for them to return to their country if they were to escape. There are several instances where they are forced to work in prostitution, forced labor and jobs where they work to pay off their debts. 
It is easy for immigrants to get taken advantage of when they come over here for work because they have hopes for better living. Many do not know how to escape their slavery because they fear their life will be taken by their owner or they could go to prison. In other cases they fear escape because they believe they will be sent back to their country or their family could be harmed.

While anyone can become a victim of trafficking, illegal aliens are highly vulnerable to being trafficked due to a combination of factors, including lack of legal status and protections, limited language skills and employment options, poverty and immigration-related debts, and social isolation. The government needs to make it easier for immigrants to gain the proper legal documentation, that allows them to live in the United States, so they can continue to help their family. There also needs to be a process, if these victims were to go to jail, that makes them not responsible for their actions. The judicial system should work with these victims to help take their traffickers down, which would put less victims in the place of being coerced and being a victim of slavery.