Understanding the Problem of Modern Slavery

The term ‘modern slavery’ refers to institutional slavery that is still being carried out despite global laws against this evil practice. This course is designed by Course Gate and is suitable for anyone concerned with protecting human rights. We begin with definitions of ‘modern slavery’ and an analysis of its various types. We outline the history of the fight against slavery and explain how the UK government has taken tough measures to end its modern form by enforcing anti-slavery legislation like the Modern Slavery Act of 2015.

The course then explores the concepts of forced labour (also known as ‘slave labour’) and human trafficking, one of the most important humanitarian challenges of the 21st century. No matter the social condition, historical period or political system, human trafficking occurs in every country because all human traffickers share the same objective: to profit from the exploitation of others. We investigate the systematic enslavement of a group of people for sexual purposes (known as ‘sexual slavery’) and discuss why its victims are more often women and children.

We then explain how to accurately identify victims of modern slavery to aid and support them. Fear and intimidation may leave victims of human trafficking feeling unable to flee or report the crime after being tricked or forced into working for no pay. The more knowledgeable you are about the issues, the more helpful you can be when it comes to identifying and even safeguarding victims so that they do not end up in a worse situation after an intervention. You may think of slavery as gone from the world but it still exists all around you, so sign up for this course to learn how to protect the human rights of modern slaves and prevent human trafficking.