AASG Freedom Festival

The American Anti-Slavery Group (AASG) held a rally in the Boston Common Saturday from 10 AM to 2 PM to promote awareness of slavery and human trafficking throughout the world.

Founded in 1994 in Boston MA, the non-profit organization set up their event around the Parkman Bandstand to attract passersby on Saturday. The event included live music, free food and drinks, face painting and balloon animals for children, and stands with information, books and merchandise, and featured special guest speakers.

Beatrice Fernando, a woman from Sri Lanka who escaped slavery, spoke to the audience, urging them to use their birth given freedom to help free those less fortunate.

"When you are trapped in slavery, you are not just trapped physically, you are trapped emotionally, mentally and spiritually," Fernando said.

She spoke of her enslavement in Lebanon as a housemaid, saying, "As a house maid I was beaten, stabbed and kept in the house against my own will."

Abdarahmane Wone from Mauratania in West Africa, who joined AASG in 2003, said, "Raising awareness about slavery outside the United States is difficult, but I think [today] the message was sent."

"In countries such as Sudan and Mauritania there are people who own other people," Wone said. "It still exists and I think that people who are interested by this topic will know about it."

Kate Donnelly, a junior at Emerson and the director for the days events, reflected positively on the demonstration. "I think the Freedom Festival was a success. Abda Wone kept reminding me that if we touch one person, we have been successful. I completely agree with him," Donnelly said.

"The bottom line is to spread awareness, educate people, and hope that they will become a part of the abolitionist movement," Donnelly said.

According to AASG, today approximately 27 million people all over the world are enslaved in one way or another, often in the form of chattel slavery, debt bondage, and sex slavery. As many as 17000 victims are trafficked into the US each year, the CIA estimates.

Chattel slavery resembles the type prevalent in America prior to the establishment of the Emancipation Proclamation.

Debt bondage constitutes slavery where one offers him or herself or a child into slavery as collateral for a loan. Oftentimes inflated interest makes paying the debt off nearly impossible. AASG claims this is the most common type of human slavery in the world.

Women and children are often the victims of sex slavery, where many of the victims are sold by male family members or are simply abducted and forced to work as personal slaves or in brothels.

AASG uses donations to support direct aid funds centrally in Sudan and Mauritania, its focus areas. Donations also go towards funds for advocacy and activism as well as awareness campaigns, rallies and demonstrations in public and private locations.

AASG states that it has helped free over 80000 slaves since its inception in 1994.

by Benjamin Buday
Student Journalist

1st AASG College Chapter Started at Emerson College

According to JSONS: The first campus chapter of the American Anti-Slavery Group (AASG) was recently formed at Emerson College, and held its initial meeting Wednesday night.

The AASG is a Boston based non-profit organization that works to eliminate slavery worldwide. Emerson's chapter will work to raise funds and support at Emerson and in the Boston community for the parent organization.

Emerson junior Kate Donnelly, founder and president of the Emerson chapter, has worked as an intern for the AASG for almost a year. Through her involvement there, she found that no campus chapters existed, and thought Emerson would be the perfect place to form the first one.

"Emerson seems to be pretty involved in social advocacy in many issues, and I thought this was an important issue to bring into Emerson," she said.

The chapter, which has about 10 members so far, is not recognized by the Student Government Association (SGA) as an official Emerson organization because the chapter is affiliated with a non-profit group outside of Emerson. Instead, the Emerson chapter will be incorporated into Imagine Students Reaching Out, an Emerson club dedicated to promoting community service among students. Funds for the Emerson chapter will also come from Imagine's budget.

Donnelly said the organization will aim to raise awareness that slavery did not simply vanish in the 1800s, even in the United States. The CIA estimates that as many as 17,000 slaves are trafficked into the U.S. every year, with many sold into sexual or debt slavery..."I think people will listen to what we have to say at Emerson," Donnelly said. "It's just a matter of having someone to say it."

To read the full article click here.

From Memory to Action

One of the ways to work towards ending slavery is to raise awareness of it! This blog, committed to the discussion of genocide and human rights abuses, includes the work of Jeanne Segil, a sophomore at Pomona College. Her article, titled, "Slavery Still Continues Today", highlights the struggles of former slave victims, such as Francis Bok. It also delves into the issue of genocide in Darfur. Read the article and other blog entries here.