BACKGROUND

The Face of Freedom is a piece that was written to draw attention to the real-life stories behind the slavery statistics that we regularly see. So often we hear of how there are 40 million people in modern slavery that it is easy to become desensitised to its scale. However, it is less easy to become desensitised to the personal stories of abuse that each person may go through. I wanted the piece to highlight the different scenarios of exploitation people experience, the realities of slavery that are forgotten when we focus on statistics. It reminds us that behind the large numbers are individuals with unique stories and desires for freedom – it gives a face to the numbers. It highlights the lack of control over one’s life, suffering in silence and the world we have created that thrives on a system of exploitation, cheap labour and abuse. It talks us through what freedom might look like to different people. But it also highlights how each of us have a duty

to speak up for the atrocities that we see. It reminds us that every person in slavery has a voice, and where we can amplify their voice, we should. It hopefully challenges us to have those difficult and uncomfortable conversations about modern slavery, so that this world becomes a place where it struggles to thrive.

THE FACE OF FREEDOM

Many of us don’t have to think about being free 

We just are 

But this isn’t the truth that everyone lives 

No, this isn’t the truth that everyone knows 

There is a truth outside these walls 

That we surround ourselves in 

To hide away from the reality 

That there are people still in slavery 

That millions exist like you and me 

Who simply long to be free 

The desire for freedom has many faces 

It is the face of a girl trafficked and sold into sexual slavery in Italy She has unwillingly had more men know her than her age And there is a rage that wells in her heart 

Every time she realises that she is a pawn 

In the game of cheap labour, sex and goods 

And she doesn’t get to keep the check 

It is the face of a young man in forced labour 

Moving brick after brick in India 

Because he was sold lies of a better tomorrow 

When all he wanted to do was feed his wife and kids

It is the little boys fishing in Lake Volta in Ghana 

For 17 hours a day with no safety gear or equipment And one by one, they swap places with the fish 

The fish, they come up 

And the boys, they go down 

They drown 

It is the woman, trafficked from Nigeria to London Promised education 

But instead lives each day slaving 

Under the roof of her aunt 

This is the reality 

Of 40 million people 

And each one that makes that number 

Is one person 

Like you 

Like me 

And all they want is freedom 

All in all 

All everyone wants is to be free 

In one way or another

The Face of Freedom 

From pain 

From struggling 

From fear 

My freedom looks different from yours 

And yours different from the next person 

And theirs different from ours 

It is this longing for freedom 

That makes us do things we otherwise would not 

Because freedom is a defining point in life 

The moment where you are in control of your next step Where you can look over your shoulder and smile 

Instead of being afraid of what blow might come next 

Instead some suffer in silence 

But it is hard to stomach a blow and give birth to a smile at the same time It is hard to live your best life, tied to the strings of misfortune A puppet to the system that we have built 

When your cards just don’t add up 

So sometimes you fold 

When you’ve had enough 

When freedom seems unattainable 

Apparently slavery was done and over 

But we love sex, control and cheap labour 

More than we love our brothers and sisters 

We love it too much to squash it 

So instead we amplified it 

Spread it across the globe 

And made a fortune out of it 

Human trafficking is soon to pass drug trafficking 

We made a pandemic out of it 

But we have a duty 

To fight for and set free 

Every single being in captivity 

We can’t live life quiet by choice 

When there are millions whose voices are unheard 

Those who are free, fight for those in chains 

For we are one and the same 

At the very root of it all 

Humans. 

Brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers 

People. 

Who just long to be free.

Mide is an international spoken word poet and an aspiring Barrister from London. She uses her poetry to share stories inspired from her own experiences and that of others. In her spare time, Mide enjoys writing and performing poetry, working with children and young people and working on creative projects.