Published
4 years agoon
Some years ago, I was flying from Orange County to Sacramento and happened to sit next to a woman who was headed to a meeting in the capital on human trafficking.
The National Human Trafficking Resource Center says it received nearly 4,000 complaints about human trafficking from California in 2015.
The Associated Press gave us a peek into the underground world of California slavery a few years ago with an article about one Egyptian girl, Shylma Hall, whose parents sold her into slavery at age 10 and, when her Egyptian owners moved to Orange County, was brought along as an unpaid servant and treated like chattel.
Hall was removed from the family when authorities finally intervened, but she is just one of many California slaves, women mostly, who continue to labor in sweatshops, in brothels, and in the homes of wealthy expatriates, particularly those from the Middle East, where slavery is often tolerated.
Related Story: Just Like Cockroaches, Human Traffickers Find a Way to Survive
Exactly how many is unknown, which is why a state task force on human trafficking, in a report issued a decade ago that got scant media attention, recommends that authorities cooperate on identifying victims and prosecuting their owners.Still another: In 2013, police arrested Meshael Alayban, described as one of six wives of a Saudi Arabian prince, for keeping five women as slaves in a three-story Irvine condominium. One of the women, a Kenyan, escaped and told police of the other four women, all Filipinas, still in captivity.
Dan Walters has been a journalist for nearly 60 years, spending all but a few of those years working for California newspapers. He has written more than 9,000 columns about the state and its politics and is the founding editor of the “California Political Almanac.” Dan has also been a frequent guest on national television news shows, commenting on California issues and policies.
Hill Hoppers Conquer Dusy-Ershim Trail, Help Maintain the Sierra
California Lawmakers OK Potential Fines for High Gas Prices
Who Buys Electric Cars in California—and Who Doesn’t?
Much of Drought-Plagued West Coast Faces Salmon Fishing Ban
A Boom for Concealed Carry Classes, but Long Waits for Permits
It’s Raining Now, but How Can California Boost Its Water Supply Later?