Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Antidote to modern day slavery.... meet your maker

I recently watched the movie "the help" that nicely chronicled post slavery in the south as it morphed into paid underclass labor. This movie was an excellent depiction of this era but also offered a form of nostalgia that seemed to indicate we are past that. There is a sense that now in this new era of a black American president, we as a nation and a world no longer have to deal with such realities. This strikes me as a fallacy that deserves shining sunlight on. I live in a "developing nation" although it is frequently disguised to visitors as a tropical paradise. What this means in real terms is a country that was previously going about its business of life and its simple forms of happiness. Time with family, growing enough food to feed them and practicing worship of whatever god they imagined for themselves were all that was needed here. On the other side of the world people who spent their time collecting things (cars, houses, wall to wall carpeting) discovered that these people could be told they needed more than this simple happiness and in doing so could be nicely convinced to labor for what was known by early socialist as the eating class (those of us in the western world). Now if all this seems like a strange story to you, than you may not realize that you in fact are on a global scale part of the class of people who has the luxury of slaves. Slaves you say? yes, I am not mincing words. Modern day slavery mostly is not the sort that chains people with metal and forces them to work with out pay. Modern day slavery usually means invisible handcuffs that will starving people to a life that does not belong to them. If you think the people making your i-phone in that factory in china want that life than you should consider trading with them.
As I sit and type this I have the pleasure of looking out of fields of green that flow all the way down to the sea. A rice farmer is working the land in front of me. It is his land. he works hard for that rice. He does so on his time and still sees his family grow. This is hard work but it is dignified work and it is his work. He is fit, spends his days outside and always greets you with a smile. Put that man in a factory and he may see more actual dollars every month but he will surely loose much of the freedom he has now. Much of the worlds farmland is no longer run by farmers like him who own their land and work it with pride but are forced to work someone else land for a very small amount of money. I do not wish to make you or me feel guilty for our i-phones or to feel the need to become a farmer, but as we sip our tea, eat our rice or check our email on it is worth acknowledging the system of slavery we are participating in. Is there a way out? I think so. Meet the maker. This may not help your technology fix but it does work for most things. Shake hands with the person who makes your goods. If you can do this you are supporting a life worth living. This person is their own boss, they work hard at what they do and you can reward this quality and their ability to live a life they choose. this is freedom. This is what should be fought for. War is not needed, only you can do this every day in everything you do. Every dollar is a vote. don't vote for slavery. Here is one example of some people who are making it happen. http://modernartisanal.com/about/  Do you know some others? Tell me about them in the comments.

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