Leadership and the Fight To Abolish Modern Day Slavery

In contrast, leaders that speak with moral authority on the issues of the day are invaluable. Abraham Lincoln is widely acclaimed for his leadership and wisdom during the dark days of the Civil War, when brother fought brother, and father fought son. In the midst of this monumental struggle, Lincoln appealed to the "better angels of our nature." So too, Martin Luther King, Jr. standing in the shadow both figuratively and literally of Lincoln challenged Americans, on a sweltering DC summer day in 1963, to judge their fellow citizens not by the "color of their skin but by the content of their character." These men led with moral clarity, even in the face of strong opposition.

These are giants of the past, whose names grace your high school history books. But they didn’t start out as leaders of their nations, or voices in a movement. Oftentimes leadership is not exhibited on a grandiose scale, but rather in our own spheres of influence, whatever they may be.

Polaris has grown rapidly over the past 6 years. They now have more than 15 full-time staff, a grassroots volunteer network of over 6,000 supporters. Their staff members have testified before Congress, provided valuable input to states seeking to draft anti-trafficking legislation and regularly brief State Department foreign service officers preparing for tours overseas. They looked at human trafficking and seized on the moral imperative to take action and speak for those who have no voice. They courageously started an organization with little money and no guarantee of success. They boldly inserted themselves into the national debate to shine a bright light on the plight of domestic victims of this crime. They led.

In my own career in public service, after teaching in the university setting and working in the think-tank world, I have served in two of the branches of government: the legislative and the executive. Before coming to the State Department, I worked on Capitol Hill as a staffer on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. During my time there, I played my small part in Congress enacting the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, the legislation which ultimately created the office at the State Department that I now head.

The Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking and Persons was created because leaders and activists in various fields--the faith community, feminists, non-governmental organization, Members of Congress, the media and many others--recognized that there was a human tragedy of massive proportions and that the U.S. needed to take action.

We estimate that approximately 800,000 people are trafficked internationally each year; millions more are enslaved in their own countries. Every day, all over the world, people are coerced into bonded labor, exploited in domestic servitude, and enslaved in agricultural work and in factories. Human trafficking is a gross human rights crime that steals peoples’ freedom and dignity. It’s also a threat to global health (with the violence and HIV/AIDS it spreads) and a phenomenon that undermines the peace and security of nations, since organized crime networks are behind the buying and selling of people.

While the nature of the work we do, which deals directly with the exploitation of innocents, is very difficult, I am buoyed by the leadership of those I serve under: both Secretary Rice and President Bush.

They have shown me through their trust that loyalty must be aimed down the chain as well as up the chain. To be an effective leader, you owe it to others and to yourself to cultivate the futures of talented people motivated by a vision of the just. In small ways, I try to do that with my staff and colleagues.

They have each been passionate advocates for this cause using both the bully pulpit and policy to make progress on the issue.

In his 2005 inauguration, President Bush said, "No one is fit to be a master, and no one deserves to be a slave." As we’ve learned more about this form of modern-day slavery, the U.S. has quickly moved into global leadership. All over the world, we advocate for tougher prosecution of criminals, greater support for victims, and stronger warning messages to prevent innocent men, women and children from being lured into exploitation schemes. In the last 5 years, over 100 countries have passed new laws or amended existing law to toughen penalties for human trafficking. Thousands of criminals around the world are now prosecuted when, just 5 years ago, only a handful wound up in jail.

I meet and collaborate regularly with representatives of the NGO community; I brief Members of Congress on issues related to trafficking; and I work with colleagues in the State Department who ensure that sex trafficking and slave labor are given proper consideration in our larger foreign policy calculations. In my role as Director of the office, I engage diplomatically with representatives of foreign governments. In dealing with other countries I believe in challenging them to live by universal standards but not just deliver a sermon, to appeal to them as their partner. I show what the U.S. is trying to do at home, in the effort of globally and domestically-focused U.S. agencies I chair; I offer our helping hand to fund efforts to train law enforcement as well as find and rehabilitate victims. That is the sort of leadership which I find works best.

I have already told you of two young people who because of their leadership have greatly influenced the fight to abolish modern day slavery. In closing, allow me to introduce you to another young person whose life experience I would venture to guess is thankfully far different from your own:

17-year-old Maryam dreamed of a better future. A man paid her parents $300 and forged a passport so that she could leave her home in Kazakhstan and supposedly work in Russia as a shop assistant. When she arrived in Russia, the shop turned out to be a locked cell with barred windows and a metal door. She was told by armed guards she would be used as a prostitute, rather than a shop assistant. When she refused, she was beaten, raped and starved until 5 days later she gave up.

While there are successes and defeats in any worthy endeavor, I need only think of Maryam and countless other exploited, abused and brutalized individuals I have met in my travels around the globe, whenever the work we are engaged in seems daunting.

Allow me to close with a quote from another American leader, President Teddy Roosevelt. He said, "It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled…The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena…who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumphs of high achievement; and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat."

As young leaders you are preparing to be in the arena. There are risks involved, but change does not come from the sidelines. I’d be happy to take your questions.