Group wins award for work against modern slavery in Florida

Edited by Paul Carter

	Modern slavery in Florida. U.S. Big Business interest exploit migrant farm workers for mercenary commercial profit.

Anti-Slavery International has awarded its 2007 Anti-Slavery Award to the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) “for their exceptional contribution towards tackling modern-day slavery in the United States agricultural industry.”

The CIW is a worker-led community organisation based in Florida, which works with farm workers trafficked into forced labour, the majority of whom are from Mexico and Central America. They uncover and investigate cases of slavery whilst raising awareness of forced labour practises amongst the farm worker community. The CIW’s determined efforts have resulted in the prosecution of six slavery cases in the past decade and the liberation of over a thousand workers held in debt bondage.

Civil rights protest in Florida against reported modern slavery practices of Burger King.

The CIW also seeks to prevent forced labour within the industry and has successfully campaigned for corporate buyers to take responsibility for the conditions in their supply chain, leading to historic agreements with the largest fast-food corporations in the world."

Others who have won the award in the past include the Bonded Liberation Front of India, Harry Wu for his fight against Chinese prison camps, and Pureza Lopes Loiola for her work campaigning against the use of slave labor on Brazil's rural estates. The award is particularly significant this year, as is comes on the 200th anniversary of Britain's abolition of the transatlantic slave trade.

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