Notes from McTeach

Humor Yesterday, Seriousness Today

Yesterday morning I felt the need for a little humor. Today, after reading through the posts on Twitter, I’m feeling a bit more serious. After reading a post by Alec Couros ( @courosa), I felt the need to pass along this information. It is hard to believe, but there are more slaves on our planet today than at any other time in human history according to author Benjamin Skinner in his book A Crime So Monstrous: Face-to-Face with Modern-Day Slavery. You can read an excerpt from the book on the NPR website,  http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=88102060.

The part of this article that sticks with me the most:

Something disturbing has changed however — the price of a human. After adjusting for inflation, Skinner found that, “In 1850, a slave would cost roughly $30,000 to $40,000 — in other words it was like investing in a Mercedes. Today you can go to Haiti and buy a 9-year-old girl to use as a sexual and domestic slave for $50. The devaluation of human life is incredibly pronounced.”

After reading the article, I reminded myself of my favorite Helen Keller quote:

 ”I am only one; but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something. I will not refuse to do the something I can do.” — Helen Keller

And then I signed up at the Free the Slaves website http://www.freetheslaves.net/ I will make a mental note to discuss this with my students after spring break. Surely there is something we can do together.