Many around the country remembered Martin Luther King, Jr. Monday, just days after what would have been his 81st birthday. Many honored the strides King made for the Civil Rights Movement.
But some want to use this holiday to spread the word about today's abolitionist movements.
Almost 47 years have passed since Martin Luther King, Jr. made his famous "I have a dream" speech. The United states and the world have made major strides since that time, but human trafficking still has millions enslaved today.
Chair of the Flathead Valley Martin Luther King Day Community Celebration Reverend Darryl Kistler says, "27 million is almost a number that is beyond anything we can think about. That would be taking every person in Montana and multiplying us by 27 and that's how many people are involved or enslaved by human trafficking."
According to the U.S. State Department, trafficking exists in every single U.S. state and around the globe. Between 14,500 and 17,500 people are brought to the U.S. every single year under false pretences. Many are forced into prostitution, manual labor, and other services.
Rev. Kistler says, "There are still people around the world and even here in the United States that live under such adverse conditions."
Even with millions forced into the modern slave trade, it isn't always in the spot light. We talked to people who are shocked by how many it impacts.
Kyle Engler, who is on vacation in the Flathead, says, "It is just amazing because everyone would have said we have gone so far, and to see that we are still tied down by such a ferocious thing... It is just amazing that that actually happens still."
Some say we should use King's words as motivation to get involved and make a difference in the slavery that still exists.
Kistler says, "Doctor King teaches us that even those circumstances that may not be our circumstances... That we really are our brother's keeper, our sister's keeper... We need to care for them and help them whenever we can."
Students from the Flathead Valley Abolitionist Movement will talk about human trafficking Monday night at a Martin Luther King Community Celebration. It will be at Flathead High School at 7:30.
E-Mail Story
Print Story
