The U.S. South has had a significant influence on the rest of the world especially Global South. As things have progressed in the U.S. South they have steadily made their way around the rest of the world and influenced both its industries and societies. One major thing that has occurred throughout history is slavery. Particularly the U.S. and U.S. South have been known for their enslavement of African Americans. However through an ongoing process of civil rights movements, equality laws, and formation of unions U.S. enslavement and unfair workers’ rights have legally been abolished. So this must mean that companies are treating employees fairly right? Or there is no more slavery? Well not quite….

With the laws in place, rather than companies complying with them, they have simply moved to other countries where they can have cheap labor and employees willing to do it. In these countries companies pay an unmanageable salary, put kids in the workplace, force them work in completely unhealthy conditions and excessive hours with no benefits. Thus reforming what was unethical in the U.S. South and expanding it into the Global South where they can get away with it. These companies then send the products and goods back to the U.S. where we, the consumers can then purchase them.

Majority of all the items we acquire as people from clothes and food to electronics at the end of the day come from somewhere else, from cheap labor, from a slave.  So essentially although we do not consciously support slavery and unfair rights in the U.S., with the products we purchase every day we are supporting slavery and the companies who own and taking advantage of people in other countries. But we sure do love the cheap prices right?

Is there a way to change this? Is it worth the cheap prices? Are consumers willing to pay a higher price for goods or does it not concern us because it is not in our country? I think this does need our attention and awareness. Often as consumers we do not pay attention to such things because it’s not something that is a concern in our everyday life. It’s not us or our children having to work in such conditions. We only reap the benefits without ever having to face the realities of situation.

Although the South (U.S. South) may not be rising again, the Global South is pushing on strong with its inequality and ethnicity. A major problem of this opposed to the U.S. South is that it is not something that we are forced to face in our everyday lives; meaning that concern and awareness of such actions is down and so nothing is being done to change it.

I found this website that can somewhat give us an idea of the way we are supporting slavery. It is a quick survey about your personal lifestyle (the items you use, the things you own, ect.) that will end by add all the variables of how many slaves you would own. My number was 63 slaves.

HOW MANY SLAVES DO YOU OWN? www.slaveryfootprint.org