Article Respond: Was Your Food Made By Slaves By Kevin Clarke

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Article Response
The article, “Was your food made by slaves” by Kevin Clarke shows very clearly that the foods that most people consume today have been made by slaves. It is sad to note that the food marketplace in today’s world is utilizing mostly on slavery and forced labor to make billions of dollars. “Food companies earn almost $9 billion per year” (Clarke 2017). Clarke further argues that the cocoa that produces the chocolate distributed in many parts of the world is harvested by children from West Africa. He also asserts that most of the produce in the U.S is associated with forced labor. Clarke claims, “Undocumented workers in the U.S are used as prisoners” (Clarke 2017). The article also points out that there is forced labor in Asia, especially in Thailand and Indonesia. As a result of this, international organizations have come out very strongly to oppose the use of forced labor and slavery in food production. As the author puts it, a notable international organization that has sought to fight the problem is the International Labor Organization. The ILO has pointed out that forced labor in the food marketplace is a worldwide problem that should be addressed with immediate action. In order to address the issue, the global community has been under pressure to deal with slavery and human trafficking.
From the article, it is true that forced labor and slavery have tainted the food marketplace. I agree that the huge demand for foods and the high level of competition has played a major role in encouraging the use of forced labor in the production of food products. This is an indication that this problem cannot go away very easily. The author highlights that “Forced labor is a big problem in the African continent” (Clarke 2017). I concur with this statement, considering that many African countries are politically and economically weak. As a result of the prevailing conditions, I believe that people from poor families are vulnerable to forced labor and human trafficking. In light of the problems caused by forced labor in the food marketplace, I strongly support the move by the international community to address the issues discussed above. Without the support of the international community, it will, certainly, be difficult to deal with the problems.
There are Jesus-values that connect very well with this article. One of the values connected to this article is Love Has No Boundaries. According to the teachings of Jesus, everyone is supposed to love their neighbors just like they love themselves. This means that they are entitled to extend their love beyond their own environments. In light of the article by Kevin Clarke, it is evident that most food industries have not practiced the love that Jesus talks about. The use of forced labor to produce foods for the marketplace shows that there is a very big gap between the rich and the less fortunate. A follower of Jesus can connect to the issue above by choosing to treat every person right irrespective of their social background. Another value that Jesus talks about is that the Love of God and Others Is Inseparable. The teac...