Understanding slavery as an enduring form of economic and social control

The United States has just imposed new tariffs on Australia and other countries for supposedly not doing enough to combat forced labour in international supply chains. Analysts say the move is political, but regardless it does once again highlight the ongoing issue of slavery. Slavery has been a constant of human history from ancient to modern times. The human rights group Walk Free estimates that almost 50 million people world-wide live in a modern form of enslavement. So how has our understanding of slavery changed over time? And why is it often still portrayed as a thing of the past? 

Guests:

Dr Catherine Armstrong – Reader in Modern History, Loughborough University

Susan Hutchinson – PHD Candidate, Australian National University. Architect of the Prosecute Don’t Perpetrate campaign

Dr Paige Gleeson – Adjunct Fellow, History & Classics, School of Humanities, University of Tasmania

Dr Justine Nolan – Professor of Law and Justice, UNSW Sydney. Director of the Australian Human Rights Institute