World Without Exploitation

April 1, 2021

Extractive industries and trafficking of Native women

Extractive industries and sex trafficking of native women

It’s never acceptable to put profits over people. Yet the actions of extractive industries – businesses and corporations that remove non-renewable raw materials such as oil, gas, metals, and minerals from the earth – have been implicated in a range of human rights violations. Because these businesses operate in rural areas with minimal infrastructure and limited rule of law, the mining boom towns that spring up around them are vulnerable to a range of crimes - including exploitation and trafficking.

March 22, 2021

Addressing anti-Asian misogyny, racism and exploitation has never been more urgent. But how?

The brutal murders of eight people in Atlanta this past week – among them six Asian American women - highlight the deeply entrenched white supremacy and violence that permeates so much of American culture. But these tragic events also highlight the intersection of racism, misogyny and the extreme vulnerability of women of color - particularly Asian and Pacific Islander women – who are employed by massage businesses.

February 25, 2021

Prostitution is a public health issue.

Glamorized images of the sex trade abound in today’s media. As a result, many in the public, including far too many health care providers, have no conception of how inherently damaging it is to be bought, sold or exploited. The ugly truth about the sex trade is that the physical, mental and emotional harm done to prostituted persons can be long-lasting and severe. These are harms that cannot be regulated away: peer-reviewed research shows that a legal or decriminalized sex trade is still deeply damaging to those who are in it.

February 2, 2021

The wrongful prosecution of sex trafficking victims is a reality in America. How can we change that?

Sex traffickers frequently ensnare their victims in related criminal activity. In fact, it is an integral part of the sex trafficking victimization process that the victim is committing criminal acts at the behest of their trafficker. Throughout this country, there have now been decades of work done to decriminalize human trafficking victims. However, much of that progress only addresses the issue of charging trafficking victims with prostitution crimes. So often, survivors are caught up in serious criminal activity and end up without recourse in the criminal justice system.

January 5, 2021

What can these change creators teach us about meeting people where they are? Everything.

Changing minds and hearts on social justice issues is challenging, even during the best of times. And these are not the best of times. Today, Americans are more divided, and less willing to listen to one another, than at any point in the last half century. But there are effective strategies for meeting people where they are in order to move them closer to justice. And time-tested ways to break through barriers in order to make sure that your message is heard and acted on.

December 21, 2020

Everything changed in 2020. Our commitment to creating a world where no one is bought, sold, or exploited hasn't.

Much has changed for all of us over the last year. But one thing has remained the same: World Without Exploitation’s collective commitment to creating a world where no person is bought, sold or exploited. What made this possible? The survivor leaders who inspire and drive our work. The 190+ member groups at the heart of our national network. And generous partners like you. Here are just a few highlights from our year:

December 16, 2020

Inspiration. Recognition. Live Performances.

Join us on January 28th for “Celebrating a Better World”

November 25, 2020

Listening to survivors of commercial sexual exploitation

Listen, learn, and help us end commercial sexual exploitation.

Creating a world in which no person is bought, sold or exploited starts with listening to survivors of the sex trade. On December 10th, eleven extraordinary movement leaders will come together to share their perspectives on the harms caused by commercial sexual exploitation, discuss the ways that race, class and income inequality fuel the sex trade, and make an impassioned case for the Equality Model, which seeks to protect the rights of those who have been exploited while holding traffickers, exploiters and buyers accountable for the harms that they cause.

October 13, 2020

The truth about trafficking of Indigenous women and girls

If we want to end exploitation of Indigenous persons, we have to start listening.

Data about the sex trafficking of Indigenous women and girls in the United States had been woefully lacking. That changed over a decade ago, with the publication of two research reports: Garden of Truth: The Prostitution & Trafficking of Native Women in Minnesota (2011) and Shattered Hearts: The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of American Indian Women and Girls in Minnesota (2009). Those reports exposed, for the first time and in great detail, the extent of sex trafficking within the population of Indigenous women and girls, and how that trafficking impacts them.

October 9, 2020

Vote for a better world.

In the United States today, our politics are increasingly polarized. Yet at World Without Exploitation (WorldWE) our over 180 partner groups - and thousands of individual members from across the political spectrum – are united in our efforts to create a world where no one is bought, sold or exploited. We don’t agree on everything. But we do agree that the fight to end exploitation is a fight we should all be engaged in, regardless of political affiliation. Which is why we encourage all of our WorldWE members to use their voices and votes in the 2020 election. In practical terms, this means looking closely at where your local, state and national candidates for elective office stand on a range of issues that impact efforts to create an exploitation-free world. To help you do that, we partnered with The Voices and Faces Project, a WorldWE founding organization, to develop “How to Be An Anti-Exploitation Voter,” an eight point checklist for candidate consideration.

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