‘Slavery Footprint’ asks, ‘How many slaves work for you?’

‘Slavery Footprint’ asks, ‘How many slaves work for you?’
In New Delhi, India, kids - some of them freed bonded laborers - march to protest the plight of other children in forced labor. AP/Saurabh Das
‘Slavery Footprint’ asks, ‘How many slaves work for you?’
In New Delhi, India, kids - some of them freed bonded laborers - march to protest the plight of other children in forced labor. AP/Saurabh Das

‘Slavery Footprint’ asks, ‘How many slaves work for you?’

WBEZ brings you fact-based news and information. Sign up for our newsletters to stay up to date on the stories that matter.

If you’re reading these words on a computer, smart phone or laptop, it’s likely that you have at least three slaves working for you somewhere down the global supply chain. That’s according to Slavery Footprint, a new web campaign that’s working in collaboration with the U.S. State Department to bring attention to forced labor around the world.

With a sleekly designed, interactive survey, Slavery Footprint aims to personalize the issue of modern slavery by telling you how much your individual lifestyle depends on forced labor — and giving you steps to take to help end it.

Visit the website and you’ll be asked a series of surprising questions, ranging from how many bathrooms are in your home to what kind of nuts you eat and what kind of cooking oil you use.

The survey then gives you detailed analysis of how many slaves are on the production end of your lifestyle.

According to Slavery Footprint, there are 27 million slaves in the world today - that is, economically exploited people who are forced to work without pay and cannot walk away from their jobs.

Justin Dillon, the creator and president of Slavery Footprint, told Jerome McDonnell, host of WBEZ’s Worldview, that his ultimate goal is to spark a consumer-driven movement to create a more free world.