September 1, 2003

MODERN DAY SLAVERY IN NEW YORK CITY
AFRICAN CHILD TRAFFICKING IS DISGRACEFUL AND MUST BE STOPPED

New York, September 1, 2003—Africans In America is reaching out to the public especially to immigrant Africans to stop this disgraceful practice within our community. Young African boys, girl children, and a small group of adult victims of human trafficking, are being tortured by their captors on daily base in New York City and they need your help.

This horrific practice taking place in various parts of Africa have unfortunately found its way into the United States and our community is keeping mute about it. This conspiracy of silence needs to be broken. These young teenagers and few adults toiling and moiling in bondage in homes and businesses without pay need our help. It is no longer a secret and reaching out to the victims is critical.

What is Human Trafficking?

Human trafficking takes many forms.

The recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services exploitation, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion, for the purpose of subjecting that person to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.

Sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion.

Some African trafficking victims are:

Unpaid servants in homes and businesses
Forced to work in the sex trade, escort service
Forced to handover paychecks (seizure) to the captors, deprived access to money
Held against their will to pay off a debt
Physically, emotionally, sexually and educationally abused and, or neglected
Restricted freedom, documents seized
Isolated from anyone who might help them escape
Not allowed unmonitored communication with their family back home
Working unreasonable hours for little or no pay with no time off
Restricted from finding other employment
Facing incredible hurdles escaping horrendous conditions and accessing help due to immigration issues
Threatened with deportation, and harm to their family in Africa
Victims of convoluted manipulation of culture, and “open-ended” promises

African Cases and How They Generally Work

Traffickers take advantage of the common centuries-old practice (practice, not culture) of desperately poor rural families placing their children with more affluent city residents with hopes that the new caretaker will provide their children with opportunities, which will enable them to escape crushing poverty. Victims are often lured with false promises of good-paying jobs, skill training, education and better lives in the United States.

The traffickers do invent falsified documents claiming the victims as their children or family members in order to procure U. S. entry visas. Upon arrival in the U. S. their documents would be confiscated and 'riot acts' would be read to them, and then forced into slavery-like working situation. They become effectively trapped from then on and at this point they become survivors of horrific mental, physical, financial and sexual abuse.

In situation whereby the traffickers are 'fair' to their “prey” by either enrolling them in public high schools, or paying them a meager wage, or giving them never fulfilled promises, the survivors would be uncooperative with any outside inquiry and authority figures. As per instruction, they will not trust strangers or tell anyone their story. Only on very few instances when the traffickers become extremely greedy and brutally oppressive that survivors do want to get away in desperation. Even then, survivors are generally still unwilling to come forward to seek help from social service providers for fear of deportation.

The U. S. Law

Human trafficking is against the United States Federal law. Some victims have legal protection and other services including the establishment of a special T visa which allows them to legalize their stay in the U.S. regardless of fictitious documents, no document due to seizure, expired visa and other immigration issues.

Fellow Africans and Americans believe us when we tell you that this modern day slavery exists next door, at church and in our Embassy officials’ residence.

Africans In America, Inc. (AIA) is a not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to providing social services, self-empowerment and community awareness to the underserved and economically disadvantaged African communities in the New York metropolitan area.

Our primary purpose is to end the abuse of survivors of trafficking, especially women and girl children from Africa living in the United States.

For information regarding our organization, visit our website: www.africanslavery.org, or contact us at,

Africans In America, Inc.
343 West 145th Street
New York, New York 10031

If you are a victim of trafficking, or know someone who may be a victim, please call us at: (212) 694-8080 * fax: (212) 694-8686