环球英语 — 344：Stopping Modern Slavery

　　Voice 1
Thank you for joining us for today’s Spotlight¹ program. I’m Marina Santee. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Cam-Suze lives in Haiti. At the age of six, she became a child slave. A family bought her. They forced her to work for them. Children in this position in Haiti are called restaveks.
Cam-Suze began her day at four o’clock in the morning. It ended at one o’clock in the morning. Difficult work filled her day.
Voice 2
“I did a lot of work. I would carry water, I would sweep. I would take the children to school and they would beat me, they hit me.”
Voice 1
Cam-Suze survived like this for years. Sadly, her story is common. Many thousands of children in Haiti live through similar experiences. But Cam-Suze’s story does have a happy ending. A group called Limye Lavi helped free Cam-Suze from slavery. Today she is a happy fifteen [15] year old girl. She now describes her life this way:
Voice 2
“Oh my life was in danger! But now my life is beautiful.”
Voice 1
Today’s Spotlight is on groups like Limye Lavi. These groups help to stop modern slavery. You may have heard Spotlight programs on modern slavery before. Slavery is illegal. But many people still suffer as slaves. They may work as child slaves like Cam-Suze. They may be sex workers. They may work as slaves to pay off an old debt. And slavery exists in almost every country - from Haiti to Sweden to the Sudan to the United States. But there are people and groups working to stop modern slavery. Today we would like to tell you about two of these groups.
The first group is the group that freed Cam-Suze - Fondasyon Limye Lavi. In English, this is the Light of Life Foundation². Limye Lavi is devoted³ to ending the child slavery system in Haiti. Here is Liz Waid to tell about the work of Limye Lavi.
Liz Waid
Slavery is illegal in Haiti. In fact, Limye Lavi says slavery has been illegal in Haiti longer than any other nation. But the restavek child slavery system is still very common. Many of the child slaves do not have equal rights. They do not receive education. And many are sexually⁴ abused⁵ by adults.
Limye Lavi works⁶ in different ways to break the restavek system. They work with community leaders like church leaders, health workers, teachers and activists⁷. They show people the bad effects of the system.
Then Limye Lavi asks communities to become involved in solving the problem. They ask each community to look at the causes and solutions for these problems. They work with the community to care for these children.
Limye Lavi also leads a radio program on Haiti’s most popular radio station. Here, former restavek children share their experiences. People can call the station to discuss the problem. The community can explore the problem and solutions together.
Finally, Limye Lavi joins with other groups in Haiti. Together they help former restavek children communicate with the government. They look for ways to reduce child slavery and protect the victims. Limye Lavi has worked in Haiti since 1993. Since that time they have helped to free thousands of child slaves.
Voice 1
Limye Lavi works in a particular area. But there are slaves of all ages and sexes all over the world. Other groups work more widely to help slaves. One of these groups is Free The Slaves. Free the Slaves, or FTS, estimates⁸ that there are over twenty seven million [27,000,000] slaves in the world. Joshua Leo tells about the work of FTS
Joshua Leo
The goal of FTS is simple. Their goal is to end slavery worldwide. They know it will be difficult work. But they believe they can achieve this goal. However, the key is that every person must work toward⁹ this goal. FTS calls on governments, businesses, international aid groups, and people like you.
Slavery comes in many forms. And there are many solutions for stopping these different forms of slavery. FTS says “there is no single path to freedom - the paths are many.” They work to find any path to freedom for every slave.
To achieve their goal, FTS works directly with people helping¹⁰ to free slaves. They provide basic needs to slaves who are freed - like food, shelter, and safety from former slave owners. They teach former slaves how to live on their own. FTS also researches the problem of slavery. In this way they can know the problems and find solutions. Slavery can be a hidden problem - often people in a community do not see or even know about slaves. So, FTS also shares stories of slavery with people around the world.
Today, thousands of people work with FTS in many different ways. Some work directly with slaves. Some work to spread information about slavery. And some earn money for FTS to do its work. One of those people is Hannah Frank¹¹. Hannah is from Ohio, in the United States. Can one person change the world?
Voice 3
“Of course one person can change the world, seriously!”
Joshua Leo
One summer Hannah Frank wanted to do something during her break from school. She was only sixteen [16] years old. But she asked herself this important question:
Voice 3
“What can I do this summer to end slavery?”
Joshua Leo
And she had an answer. Hannah decided¹² to organize a music concert. Hannah asked three bands to perform. She spread the news about the concert through her community. At the concert, one man told about his experiences as a former child slave. And Hannah asked for people to donate money to help free other slaves.
FTS will use this money to help free slaves everywhere in the world. Hannah believes that people can change the world. She says:
Voice 3
“It really just takes heart and hope for the world and that will change the world.”
 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 foundation   

n.[pl.]地基；基础；基金会；建立，创办

参考例句：

• The foundation of the university took place 600 years ago.这所大学是600年前创办的。
• The Foundation gives money to help artists.那家基金会捐款帮助艺术家。

3 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

4 sexually   

adv.性别上地；按性别地；性欲地；两性之间地

参考例句：

• to be sexually promiscuous 性生活淫乱
• I was depressed,withdrawn and sexually frigid. 我郁郁寡欢，离群索居，没有什么性要求。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 abused   

v.妄用( abuse的过去式和过去分词 )；虐待；辱骂

参考例句：

• All the children had been physically and emotionally abused. 所有这些儿童的身心都受到了摧残。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• This rule was brought into being because the old law was abused. 由于旧的法律遭到滥用，这条规则便应运而生。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 works   

n.作品，著作；工厂，活动部件，机件

参考例句：

• We expect writers to produce more and better works.我们期望作家们写出更多更好的作品。
• The novel is regarded as one of the classic works.这篇小说被公认为是最优秀的作品之一。

7 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 estimates   

估计

参考例句：

• Unofficial estimates put the figure at over two million. 非官方的估计数字为200万以上。
• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 toward   

prep.对于，关于，接近，将近，向，朝

参考例句：

• Suddenly I saw a tall figure approaching toward the policeman.突然间我看到一个高大的身影朝警察靠近。
• Upon seeing her,I smiled and ran toward her. 看到她我笑了，并跑了过去。

10 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

11 frank   

adj.坦白的，直率的，真诚的

参考例句：

• A frank discussion can help to clear the air.坦率的谈论有助于消除隔阂。
• She is frank and outgoing.她很爽朗。

12 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。