Working Lives Research Institute
Campaigner and journalist, Rahila Gupta* spoke about her new book 'Enslaved', an important insight into modern day slavery, on Wednesday 6th February at the Working Lives Research Institute.
Download the seminar introduction here (32 minutes):
Rahila Gupta 6 February 2008
Britain is once again home to hundreds of slaves - they reach our shores via unimaginably perilous crossings, are locked into hideous, back-breaking working lives, and remain hidden to the rest of us. Very few escape to talk about their appalling incarceration. Meet five who did here in this compelling, revealing book. In her book, Rahila tells the horrifying stories of people who have been trafficked, smuggled or duped into the UK, to find themselves stripped of their passports and money, locked in cramped rooms, shackled involuntarily to work as domestic servants, brothel workers, or construction workers, beaten, raped and psychologically abused, and who, if they seek their freedom, are threatened with unending violence. Rahila places these testimonies within a well-argued call to abolish all immigration controls.
Some reviews of Enslaved:
Tony Benn:
Rahila
Gupta's book Enslaved which deals with modern slavery is very timely
since it is coming out in the year when we are celebrating the
bi-centenary of Wilberforce's Bill to abolish the slave trade. The
example she gives should remind us all that the struggle for human
rights has to be fought in every generation
Helena Kennedy:
This
is one of the most shocking books you will read about contemporary
Britain; that human beings should be treated with such degradation and
cruelty is a disgrace we should find unbearable. I hope the author's
passion ignites a new anti-slavery campaign. Sign me up
*About the speaker:
Rahila Gupta is a campaigner and journalist. She has written radio
drama and is the editor of From Homebreakers to Jailbreakers: Southall
Black Sisters and co-author of Circle of Light, now released as a film
called Provoked which she co-scripted. She is also a long-standing
member of the Black feminist organisation, Southall Black Sisters.
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