The UK’s National Referral Mechanism traps migrant workers like Cynthia—who escaped abusive employers—in limbo without the right to work, leaving them vulnerable to re-exploitation. Advocates demand real protections beyond this ineffective “band-aid” system. www.freedomunited.org/news/uk-surv...

Harvard publisher cancels entire journal issue on Palestine shortly before publication www.theguardian.com/education/20...

Translation from the French of an unprecedented and shocking statement from the AFP news agency, saying that its journalists in Gaza are almost too weak to work anymore and are starving to death.

“Seeing the evidence of the roundups in front of us doesn’t necessarily lead people to do anything differently. But seeing other people push back sometimes does.”

Important ‪@hannahjlewis.bsky.social critique of the damage caused by the victim narrative in anti trafficking discourse, especially in the context of @helenbamber.bsky.social @ecpatuk.bsky.social & ATLEU finding in 2024 only 4% of non British nationals confirmed as trafficked were granted leave

"Sometimes rescue comes with public identification, which can lead to terrible outcomes...as when there is no firewall between the immigration authorities and support, employment, health or education environments." @hannahjlewis.bsky.social highlights the need for secure reporting.

On Aug 7th we are launching our Migrant Sex Workers and Housing in Ireland research in collaboration with CATU Ireland, in Connolly Books. At 7pm, Aug 7th a panel will discuss the barriers migrant sex workers face to accessing accommodation and what solutions sex workers want.

Such a sharp and insightful piece on the politics of how victimhood is (mis)used in anti-trafficking. By @hannahjlewis.bsky.social for @beyondslavery.bsky.social

'She rejected the view that humanities and social sciences were less useful...than some other subjects, such as maths and science, describing them as “absolutely essential . . . both to living a full and prosperous life but also to addressing many of the challenges we face”.'

Important study on children going missing and harms they suffer. Particular implications for improving safeguarding in relation to boys, child criminal exploitation & children with special educational needs.

#Newsnight I heard figures who appear capable of reading research claim no #IDcards & 'liberal' UK economy with a grey labour market pulls ppl to claim asylum. As someone who has focused for 20 years on evidencing labour market exploitation of asylum seekers, I must categorically refute these claims

"In the two decades since the ICC was established, the court has not once prosecuted someone for trafficking." We can't keep ignoring human trafficking in war. Read the piece by legal expert Julia Muraszkiewicz ⬇️ www.opendemocracy.net/en/beyond-tr...

Are grooming gangs the far right’s golden goose? Continuing our 10 year anniversary series – read the interview with Louise Raw ⤵️ www.opendemocracy.net/en/beyond-tr...

Sam Altman currently texting Musk begging him to turn the Grok nazi slider down before people start questioning AIs benefits to society

In case you're think Grok isn't being blatantly antisemitic, here's a few more posts from Grok on this topic.

This was sent to my client who will never have $1.8 million to pay this absurd fine. She's never been arrested & is the mother of 2 US citizen children (one with serious health issues). She is also eligible for a visa based on severe human trafficking. This is who DHS is prioritizing right now.

Racism, misinformation and self-serving agendas are a terrible basis for child protection, victim support and justice for survivors. Important interview with @louiseraw.bsky.social for @beyondslavery.bsky.social

[New blog 🖋️] Belgian's legal framework for migrant solidarity has long been viewed as more protective than elsewhere. But civil society are increasingly being criminalised there. blogs.law.ox.ac.uk/border-crimi...

Forced labour bans: protecting rights or markets? 🍅 Read the next piece in our 10 year anniversary series ⤵️ www.opendemocracy.net/en/beyond-tr...

Super interesting, though very depressing, study with workers in immigration detention and removals. A lot to think on here, from a precarious work perspective as much as a border violence one.

Are grooming gangs the far right’s golden goose?

The only thing delivery bikes outside hotels prove is that the ban on work for asylum seekers must end, says charity Asylum Matters.

After Exploitation continuing to play a key role in holding #antitrafficking responses to account. The focus on CSE must focus on effective intervention & support and challenge inaccurate & divisive stereotypes of perpetrators. This is why I am a signatory to this joint letter to Yvette Cooper.

Both awful and foreseeable: I remember back in March 2022 immigration lawyers & NGOs were already raising concerns that there were no routes to settlement on the Ukraine visa schemes.

🙏 for the opp @drellac.bsky.social Too much harming victims+fams is clapped+celebrated in name of #progress/ #toughoncrime', benefitting endless parties whilst further shafting the trapped . '..arresting trafficked CH..then congrat o/selves for..tough on crime.We’re nt getting even the basics right'

Vital warnings here on the harms of the government’s narrow focus on certain child sexual exploitation, to the neglect of so much else “This ignores the lived experiences of countless victims & survivors, whilst risking a repeat of the very systemic failures the government claims to be addressing”

The pipeline from child trafficking to prison or death that SPACE describes is utterly chilling. Exploited children & young people deserve so much better. Thank you @countylinescce.bsky.social for speaking to us @beyondslavery.bsky.social

I am thankful to have worked alongside these amazing individuals on this reflective piece. Please read and let us know what you think.👇🏾

This interview’s so sharp on precarious funding, systemic injustice in anti-trafficking & disconnects with community realities. Real privilege to speak with @christianashnc.bsky.social @kiconco.bsky.social & Sophie Otiende & hear their critiques & alternative visions. @beyondslavery.bsky.social

"We stopped doing things our own way and started doing it their way. That’s now making us feel the impact of these changes even more." How US funding built a brittle economy in anti-trafficking ⤵️ www.opendemocracy.net/en/beyond-tr...

Our new IMR paper on the great replacement theory is now open-access. We find that about 20% (!) of German adults believe that white majorities are being deliberately replaced by non-white immigrants in a secretive attempt by malevolent elites to undermine their own country. doi.org/10.1177/0197...

Super interesting interview on the role of philanthropy in anti-trafficking and its relations to critique. Great addition to our ten year anniversary series @beyondslavery.bsky.social

This past semester was the most stressful of my academic career. I had 180 students and about half cheated at some point in the semester They submit weekly reflections where the questions are opinion-based, graded only on effort, don't care about grammar SO MANY students submitted ChatGPT essays

When Meta’s AI inadvertently gets at a driving force behind a lot of meth use (not all): Having to stay awake when overworked and exhausted, because losing your job means ruination in a country without safety nets. (And what safety nets do exist often demand urine tests.)

"This field is chewing people up and spitting them out. It also doesn’t reflect nearly enough about what does and does not work to make sustained progress, and as a result it’s constantly reinventing the wheel." Dina Haynes is on fire for @beyondslavery.bsky.social

Twenty years of slow progress: Is anti-trafficking changing?

The journal's Editor Borislav Gerasimov spoke with @joelquirk.bsky.social about what has changed in anti-trafficking work over the past 20 years, whether the anti-trafficking "movement" is learning, and what might lie ahead... www.opendemocracy.net/en/beyond-tr... #humantrafficking

🎉 Only one week left until the celebration of the century! With actions all over Europe and Central Asia, we wish we could be everywhere at once. And we can! All the events will be live streamed on ESWA channels.

"labour rights are a poor solution for work that shouldn’t exist in the first place". Marika McAdam reflects on the limits of @beyondslavery.bsky.social approaches to labour rights for our tenth anniversary feature.

A decade on from the Modern Slavery Act, the UK government is still focused on identification. This isn't enough. We need to start preventing exploitation too. ✍️ @focusonlabour.bsky.social's Kate Roberts bit.ly/4ktFJPX

"Workers must have practical options to leave exploitative work, raise complaints, and support themselves through alternative legal work." @k8roberts.bsky.social from @focusonlabour.bsky.social reflects on the evolution of the UK's "Modern Slavery" Act. www.opendemocracy.net/en/beyond-tr...

I'm on the latest episode of @riskpodcast.bsky.social - out today: Episode 233: What Can Sociology Say about Right-Wing Extremism and the Mainstreaming of Racism and the Far-Right with Aaron Winter www.buzzsprout.com/1544431/epis...

Nick Grono, CEO of @freedomfund.bsky.social says it’s ‘ridiculous’ to criticise anti-trafficking as a whole. To be heard, critics must be more precise ⤵️ bit.ly/4dui9jN

Really important piece about trafficking 👇

Organisations have written about the successes and shortcomings in the 10 yrs since the Modern Slavery Act and what the UK government should do in the future but missed self-reflection about their own successes and shortcomings in the events of that decade. I would buy a ticket for a BTS party.

A look at how the anti-trafficking field has evolved in the last decade from our favourite "anti-trafficking killjoys" at Beyond Trafficking and Slavery 👇

Let's not pretend there's an even, two-sided debate here. The vast bulk of women's and SW's groups in Scotland and across Europe, not to mention UN agencies etc, oppose the Nordic Model - which, where it's been implemented, is associated with greater VAW and more women being prosecuted than clients.

At its core, feminism advocates for the right of individuals to make informed choices about their own bodies and livelihoods. Yet, the inclusion of sex work within this framework remains a subject of intense debate. www.swopbehindbars.org/post/is-sex-...