When you think about peace, you probably imagine the absence of war, conflict resolution, or maybe people holding hands and singing. But this September 21, International Day of Peace challenges us to think bigger – and look closer to home.
Real peace isn’t just about stopping bombs and bullets. It’s about ending the violence that happens in silence, in shadows, and sometimes right in front of us. It’s about recognizing that millions of people wake up every day in situations that are anything but peaceful, forced to work against their will, trapped by fear and coercion.
This year’s International Day of Peace reminds us that creating peaceful communities means shining a light on one of the darkest crimes in the world: human trafficking.
The Hidden Violence in Your Daily Life
While you celebrated Labor Day weekend, millions of people around the globe were toiling in conditions that can only be called modern slavery. An estimated 27 million people worldwide are exploited for labor, services, and commercial sex through force, fraud, and coercion.
This isn’t happening in some far-off place you’ll never visit. The violence of human trafficking reaches into your daily life through the products you buy, the services you use, and the businesses in your community.
Your cheap clothes might be made with forced labor. That discount produce in your grocery cart could come from farms where workers are trapped in debt bondage. The restaurant that delivered your dinner might employ people who can’t leave, can’t speak up, and can’t escape.
Why Peace and Human Trafficking Are Connected
Traffickers thrive where peace is absent. They exploit people fleeing violence, economic desperation, and political chaos. They target the most vulnerable – those with the least protection and the fewest options.
But here’s what the International Day of Peace teaches us: More peaceful communities around the world are possible when we work together to shine a light on this crime and bring it out into the open.
When we fight trafficking, we’re not just helping individual victims. We’re building the kind of stable, just communities where peace can take root and flourish.
The American Reality We Can’t Ignore
Think trafficking only happens overseas? Think again. Forced labor still exists and persists right here in the United States.
According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, domestic work like cooking, cleaning, and caregiving is the most common type of forced labor in America, followed by farm work and construction. The U.S. Department of State estimates 14,500 to 17,500 people are trafficked into the United States annually for forced labor.
Texas Faces a Massive Problem
The numbers from Texas should alarm every peace-loving person in the state. While national data suggests labor trafficking affects about one-third as many victims as sex trafficking, Texas tells a different story. Recent surveys show 50% of trafficking cases in Texas involve forced labor, with almost 20% involving children under 18.
234,000 adults in Texas are victims of labor trafficking right now. Labor traffickers exploit about $600 million in lost wages from victims in Texas annually.
In Houston’s construction industry alone, 64% of workers reported being abused or exploited, with 22% experiencing actual labor trafficking.
This isn’t peace. This is violence – systemic, profitable, and hidden in plain sight.
Your Role in Building Peace Through Action
You don’t need a government position or special training to join the fight for peace through anti-trafficking efforts. The Center for Countering Human Trafficking and Blue Campaign work with communities exactly like yours to educate people about what trafficking looks like and how to report it.
Raise awareness in your circles:
- Share resources that help your community recognize trafficking indicators
- Educate your workplace about supply chain risks
- Use social media to spread knowledge about this hidden violence
Partner with existing efforts:
- Explore opportunities to work with Blue Campaign and their partners
- Attend trainings and community events about trafficking awareness
- Support organizations doing ground-level anti-trafficking work
Make your voice count for peace:
- Contact elected representatives about stronger anti-trafficking policies
- Support businesses committed to ethical labor practices
- Refuse to stay silent when you see suspicious working conditions
What Trafficking Actually Looks Like
Real trafficking often happens in plain sight. Watch for these warning signs of the violence that destroys peace:
In workplaces:
- Workers who can’t leave their job site
- People working excessively long hours for little pay
- Workers who seem fearful or submissive
- Living conditions that are overcrowded or unsanitary
- Workers who don’t control their own identification documents
In supply chains:
- Companies that won’t provide information about where products are made
- Prices that seem too good to be true
- Industries known for labor violations (agriculture, garments, electronics)
Building Peace Through Consumer Power
Every purchase you make is a vote for the kind of world you want to live in. U.S. Customs and Border Protection now denies entry to goods produced with forced labor, including work gloves, cotton, tomatoes, computer parts, apparel, and hair products.
Become a peace-building consumer:
- Research companies before you buy
- Use apps designed to help you avoid forced labor products
- Demand supply chain transparency from your favorite brands
- Support businesses committed to ethical labor practices
Take Action This International Day of Peace
Report suspicious activity that threatens peaceful communities:
- National Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-888-373-7888
- Text “HELP” or “INFO” to 233733
- For trade violations: eallegations.cbp.gov
- For criminal violations: [email protected]
- HSI tip line: 866-347-2423
The Peace We Can Build Together
This International Day of Peace, choose to see trafficking for what it really is: violence that destroys the peace and dignity that every human being deserves.
The Department of Justice has launched a forced labor initiative, providing $21.6 million to support anti-trafficking task forces nationwide. But the real power to build peace lies with people like you who refuse to be unknowing accomplices to modern slavery.
We all have a role to play in the fight against human trafficking. When we work together to expose this violence, we create the foundation for truly peaceful communities.
This September 21, don’t just wish for peace. Take action to create it by fighting the violence of human trafficking in your community and your daily choices.
Your next purchase, your next conversation, your next social media post – they’re all opportunities to build the peaceful world we all want to live in.
Resources for Peace-Building Action:
- Blue Campaign Labor Trafficking Videos: dhs.gov/blue-campaign/forced-labor
- Report violations: eallegations.cbp.gov or [email protected]
- National Hotline: 1-888-373-7888 or text “HELP” to 233733
- Texas Attorney General: texasattorneygeneral.gov/human-trafficking-section
Because real peace means freedom from violence for everyone – and that includes freedom from forced labor.
