This is a school project for a Social Responsibility class at Walden University. This project is the actial copy of a work in progress so any problems with sources should be directed to me. The finished project may be a XOmba first look exclusive.

The United States of America hasn't always been the home of the free. And for some people, even children, it still isn't. Slavery wasn't abolished until after President Lincoln's 1862 Emancipation Proclamation. While the 13th Amendment to the Constitution legally executed this barbaric practice, American society at large still treated other citizens as slaves. Booker T Washington himself admits he “[never] slept in a bed until after the ... Emancipation Proclamation...” (Washington, 1902 pg. 5). {*Maybe 1 or two other references like this*} We have come a long way to being more socially responsible as a nation, but there is still a lot of work to do. The lingering effects of Civil War reconstruction, Jim Crow mentality, and other social injustices are still visible in urban centers to this day.

Booker T Washington states he“ ...felt that the Reconstruction policy, so far as it related to my race, was in a large measure on a false foundation, was artificial and forced.” (Washington, 1902 pg. 84). The indifference some southern communities were subjected to is common knowledge. Even segregation was legal in our history. According to www.jimcrowhistory.org, Jim Crow can be defined as the “... process of segregation or setting the races apart--sometimes meaning customary or informal segregation and sometimes meaning legal or codified segregation [*we probably need to put this site in refreces and use appropriate citations since we use it a few times*](http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/scripts/jimcrow/glossary.cgi?searchtype=term&term=Jim%20Crow). These infamous practices were used to restrict the lives of African American citizens, but were made illegal with the 14th and 15th amendments. Even after segregationist policies were made illegal, the progress of African American citizens was stifled. Jimcrowhistory.org says at http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/history/overview.htm:

“In response to [their] achievements, southern whites launched a vicious, illegal war against southern blacks and their white Republican allies. In most places, whites carried out this war in the late 1860s and early 1870s under the cover of secret organizations such as the Klu Klux Klan Thousands of African Americans were killed, brutalized, and terrorized in these bloody years. The federal government attempted to stop the bloodshed by sending in troops and holding investigations, but its efforts were far too limited.” (Davis, ?date? Jimcrowhistory.org)

[considering the school in a hen house story to reflect modern day issues with education in urban areas. Especially low pay for teachers which can also be referenced around page 80].

The United States, to this day, allows various types of social injustice to operate legally. For example, the Knights Party is a registered political party of the United States. These people are the modern day Klu Klux Klan. A racially diverse high school, here in Jacksonville Florida, bears the name of their founder, William Bedford Forest. Even modern day Nazis have formed a political party here in the United States. Our freedom of speech is what allows people like this to still operate. But, we must take the thorns with the roses. Booker T Washington once wrote of his father:

“I have heard reports to the effect that he was a white man who lived on one of the near-by plantations. Whoever he was, I never heard of his taking the least interest in me or providing in any way for my rearing. But I do not find especial fault with him. He was simply another unfortunate victim of the institution which the Nation unhappily had engrafted upon it at that time.”(Washington, 1902)(pg. 2-3).

This statement is still true to day when we consider the aforementioned social issues. Not everyone is to blame. But, that doesn't mean we can forget about the atrocities committed by groups like the KKK and other extremists. How can we measure the losses society has felt? Society may have been exponentially better by now without the influence hate groups have had on the culture of the United States. How do we measure the loss of another person who could have contributed so much?

In an environment where some social injustice is legal, it's no surprise that slavery still exists today. We are bombarded with images and stories about horrors overseas. But the worst form of abuse, trafficking in children, happens in the United States as well. It exists in many ways, some of then so subtle, a victim could be right next door. [*relate following sentence to Washington's life experiences on page 5-6 about child labor *] Domestic servitude is a form of human trafficking where people are forced to serve as domestic slaves. Take the case of Shyima Hall, forced into domestic servitude at 10 years old. In an online article by the Huffington Post (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/28/child-maid-trafficking-sp_n_153814.html), her neighbor Tina Font was quoted as saying “ I'd look down and see her at … night, “ … ” She'd be doing the dishes. We didn't put two and two together. “ Many others types of child slavery exist as well, which we will expand on later in our study.

In this presentation, we will be exploring the effects of Child Slavery in the United States. The effects of this issue on society reach deep and wide. Many Countries traffic children into the United States. In some places, people sell or rent their children to make ends meet. Shyima Hall, mentioned earlier, was sold by her family to a maid agency where she lived in Egypt. This is illegal, but common in many African Countries. While ethics are extremely hard to find regarding the perpetrators of this this horror, some children may readily be sold into slavery to try and help their families. By creating this presentation, we hope to help shed some light onto this subject. Laws, groups, and individuals already do lot towards curbing child slavery. At the end of our study, we will suggest additional means to help advance this social issue of utmost importance. It is time for us, as Humans, to stop the trafficking of children. They are not prey.

*Idea for and ending quote “I pity the man, black or white, who has never experienced the joy and satisfaction that come to one by reason of an effort to assist in making some one else more useful and more happy.” -Booker T Washington