The aim of this essay is to present you with a portrait of a book published in 2004 on an issue which has been increasing people’s concern on its worldwide effect as far as humans’ rights are concerned and respect towards human nature is ensured. The title of the book is ‘Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy’ and was written by Kevin Bales. Its title causes unpleasant surprise at first sight since it is not nice neither ethical or right for any kind of people to be characterized ‘Disposable’. So the title prepares its readers that what they are about to find themselves face to face with, is a weird, unaccepted situation which obviously according to the title stating the content of the book takes place in the nowadays globalized world and is probably one of the outcomes of the global Economy and the way it proceeds and evolutes on a worldwide scale.
It had been said by Marcus Tullius Cicero that ‘a room without books is like a body without a soul’. Paraphrasing his words it could be said that a society not aware of problems of great importance taking place within its borders, is a society without a social soul.
It is this social soul which is the thematic core and center around which people are expected to grow, be educated, learn to collaborate and cooperate, exchange ideas and live in harmony aiming at working towards the achievement of their common goals. If a society lacks in creating people the belief that they are all treated as equals and are all under the same set environment which they are asked to improve, then this is not a society.
Aristotle, one of the greatest Ancient Greek philosophers had emphasized on the need of people living together as active members of well and healthily organized societies by saying that ‘the man who lives all alone is either a monster or God himself’. Therefore any kind of book which depicts social concerns, analyses issues of great social concern and informs people on issues which they ought to know since they appear to affect their societies, are by all means useful pieces of writing which can contribute to organizing healthier societies and they can help people deal with any arising problems in an effective, efficient way.
Kevin Bales wrote a book on an issue of great importance and social concern. He wrote a book on Slavery. But anyone could really wonder what kind of Slavery exists nowadays in the era of democracy. Nowadays era is characterized by a boost in the protection and support of human rights, in people having finally realized the importance and necessity of working towards the maintenance of democratic, cooperative environments, and the improvement in people’s quality of life worldwide. So, what kind of Slavery does Kevin Bales refer to?
Kevin Bales uses a sarcastic combination of words in his title to prepare his readers that he talks about nowadays’ slavery which unfortunately does indeed exist. There is Slavery nowadays and unfortunately it seems to be such a kind of slavery and so well organized and hidden that societies are either ignorant of its existence or feel too weak to fight against it.
The Slavery towards which Kevin Bales refers is the new form of Slavery which has been developing in the developed and developing countries. It is trafficking, it is the exploitation of people of Third world countries which still takes place nowadays and in such a way that it is really difficult to fight against it.
Kevin Bales emphasizes on all the traits necessary for the reader to become familiarized with the definition of this modern phenomenon of Slavery and the way it operates in the Global community. He highlights the basic characteristics of what consists Slavery in the modern society. Slavery does not have the traits it used to have. When slavery was used it referred to all those people who worked under their empowered bosses without any rights or any respect towards their personality and existence.
This was the definition of slavery in ancient periods of time in ancient civilizations but nowadays slavery is a definition used mostly metaphorically. The way nowadays’ societies are working gives the opportunity for another underlying form of slavery to be born and spread within societies. The portrait of nowadays’ societies is such that puts people under the burden of constantly working to gaining more and more material wealth as a means of finding their place in society and be able to enjoy luxuries.
Materialism has conquered nowadays’ societies along with high antagonism, the law of the jungle which leads powerful people and organizations to exploit to their best interest the weakest ones or the uneducated masses. Nowadays balance worldwide with economic power being the ticket to supposed success and entitlement to rights seems to have turned things upside down.
Human societies seem to have lost their orientation and although there have been constantly organized efforts to work towards the different direction aiming at establishing a healthy environment where all people are treated equally and are entitled to equality, a new kind of torture seems to have risen.
According to the author the problem of uneducated, poor masses of people living in countries which seem to have been victimized by the worldwide economic powers is constantly increasing. Humanistic organizations, non-governmental organizations and individual effort have been taking place a part of this effort performed on behalf of the developed ones to help those who are still under development or who are still fighting against the odds and try to find their own place in this tempest of economic nature of nowadays’ societies.
Still, the problem according to the author remains more vivid than ever. Poverty keeps increasing on one side of this double edged modern knife which is supposed to be called progress. Progress is proven to be achieved at the expense of human lives who are treated like slaves either within their highly antagonistic environment which treats them as disposable materials or even worse within the environment of their poor, underdeveloped countries which seem to lead them to open their desperate wings in their effort to find a better fortune somewhere else.
This is the point on which Kevin Bales puts more emphasis on. People who are uneducated and brought up in underdeveloped countries tortured by poverty, diseases, internal conflicts, violence and crime are victimized by worldwide organizations who try to find cheap working hands for any kind of a job, even organized prostitution which by no means could ever be considered to be a well - established profession.
Where do these organizations exist? They exist and they spread worldwide and they exploit people. So nowadays on the threshold of rapid technological and scientific advances, when people are able to beat time and difficulties at no time, people are treated like disposable materials. And this kind of slavery which is not visible at first sight has been going on under its well organized system which functions according to money earnings and wealth profits.
This is what the point the author wants to make. Kevin Bales puts across a message on what has been going on under the blind folded eyes of nowadays societies. And the question unfortunately still remains unanswered. How much can really be done? And whose fault is it if nothing has changed?
These above mentioned questions are the ones which really attracted my interest in reading this book. Kevin Bales using true facts and existing research findings seems to raise this question talking to the hearts of his readers. It is not that this kind of feeling that something ought to be done conquers the reader upon finishing the last page of his book. It is every page which is read that cause this similar alarming question.
Who is to blame for this unhappy and unpleasant event? Is it the economic growth? Is it the lack of ethical values? Is it the educational systems which fail to bring up and raise people who think, criticize and are not afraid to fight against the existing status quo which seems to be harming all the world?
All these are nor rhetorical questions. All these questions are real based questions addressed to the reader by the writing style of Kevin Bales who is not afraid to criticize all those directly or indirectly involved in the exploitation of people worldwide.
Kevin Bales depicts a reality. He draws the portrait of nowadays economic tempest which seems to be carrying in the deep ocean of individuals’ humiliation anyone who is to be found without a lifejacket. And the lifejacket does not exist and cannot be easily found because these people who are victimized and treated as disposable materials are people who were cheated into being provided with a real chance of finding their opportunity to become happy, to earn their living and to find their position in a well advanced society.
Kevin Bales sheds light on the way these people who are treated like disposable materials are cheated and driven to being exploited in the worst humiliating way. It is not that there are not lots of them who are suspicious of what they may meet in their way upon their decision to travel incognito or under false identity to another country which is presented to them as their earthy paradise. There are lots of people who may have heard of stories of other people before them who were victimized.
But Kevin Bales emphasizes on an aspect of human nature which ought not to be neglected. People are by virtue ambitious and optimistic. So most people whether suspicious or not on what is going to happen to them or on what they are possible to meet after their emigrating, tend to believe in themselves and trust themselves to be able to deal with what they are to find in the place they are going elsewhere.
Kevin Bales highlights a matter of social interest which seems to have been greatly neglected. People seem to have not been able to understand that it not only personal will, courage or dream which is to empower them to find their equality in a society. It takes much more than that. And this is where Kevin Bales addresses to Sociology to take its role and part in this ongoing misery and misfortune of nowadays world.
Sociology is a scientific filed which is born upon the need to study societies, their nature and their possibility of working towards the best outcome of harmonic co-existence and prosperity. So, Sociology is actually invited by Kevin Bales’ world to take action. Societies ought to bring up and raise humans with a high sense of responsibility as far as the respect towards everyone is ensured. Societies ought to develop in such a way that equal opportunites and respect and maintenance of human rights is ensured.
What Kevin bales seems to ask for is united action and adoption of a united attitude so that economic cartels and individual interest which harm people’s lives are eliminated or at least better controlled.
But Kevin Bales also seems to be aware of something equally important. It is not important to take measures. It is foremost important to work and exist and live in such a way that precaution is to take all these measures necessary in order to achieve prevention of phenomena of socio pathogenic nature. Controlling or fighting against problematic situations is the last measure a society ought to take. The first, foremost measure is prevention. Only though prevention can social pathogenesis be dealt with efficiently.
Works cited
Bales, Kevin. (2004). Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy. Berkeley: University of California Press
