Child Slave Labor Revelations Sweeping China: New York Times Article

Su Jinduo and Su Jinpeng, brother and sister, were traveling home by bus from a vacation visit to Qingdao during the Chinese New Year when they disappeared. Cheated out of their money when they sought to buy a ticket for the final leg of their journey home, they were taken in by a woman who offered them warm shelter and a meal on a cold winter night, and then later a chance to earn enough money to pay their fare by helping her sell fruit. The next thing they knew they were being loaded onto a minibus with several other children and taken to a factory in the next province, where they were pressed into service making bricks. Several days later, the boy, who is 16, escaped along with another boy and managed to reach home, enabling his father to rescue his 18-year-old sister a few days later. This story is one of hundreds like it that have swept China in recent days in an unfolding labor abuse scandal that involves the kidnapping in central China of hundreds of children, and perhaps more, some reportedly as young as 8, who have been forced to work under brutal conditions. 

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Call + Response: Soundtrack

During class, I decided to purchase the soundtrack to the documentary. I thought it would be interesting to listen to these songs and decipher what they are about and what their message is. I enjoyed listening to many of the songs on the album. I especially enjoyed the songs recorded by the artist Matisyahu because I feel that his songs portrayed the message well. I also think that the songs sound very good and can be enjoyed by numerous people. At first, I was skeptical to listen to the soundtrack because I thought that all of the songs would be only about the campaign. The songs explore many different ideas and parts of life that are relevant to the Call + Response campaign. Throughout the album, there is commentary from Cornel West. During his commentary, he focuses on the importance of music and how ideas and messages can be spread through the power of music. I also purchased the album because I thought it would be a great aspect of my presentation by playing the music from the documentary at my station. I believe that this will make my station more appealing to other classmates.    

Call + Response Campaign

Vision: We believe the end of modern day slavery will come from individuals who gather together to push on businesses, media, and governments to support their existing values for human rights. We believe that this is a bottom-up movement that needs dynamic information, sustained inspiration, and most importantly, tactile activation.

Call + Response: a first of its kind feature documentary film that reveals the world's 27 million dirtiest secrets: there are more slaves today than ever before in human history. Call and Response goes deep undercover where slavery is thriving from the child brothels of Cambodia to the slave brick kilns of rural India to reveal that in 2009, Slave Traders made more money than Google, Nike and Starbucks combined.

People Involved: Cornel West, Madeleine Albright, Daryl Hannah, Julia Ormond, Ashley Judd, Nicholas Kristof, and many other prominent political and cultural figures. Performances from Grammy-winning and critically acclaimed artists including Moby, Natasha Bedingfield, Cold War Kids, Matisyahu, Imogen Heap, Talib Kweli, Five For Fighting, Switchfoot, members of Nickel Creek and Tom Petty's Heartbreakers, and Rocco Deluca.