John Cabot University Takes a Stand Against Slavery

The STAND club

The STAND club

Between the 17th and 20th of October 2011, JCU hosted its first “Anti-Trafficking & Contemporary Slavery Week”, moderated by Professor of Political Science Silvia Scarpa.

During the week, various events were held, raising awareness about issues from the point of view of the Italian and U.S. models for protecting victims and fighting against human trafficking and contemporary slavery. Activities included panel discussions and conferences with key experts, movie and documentary screenings, and a week-long exhibition of posters portraying different forms of exploitation. The posters were developed by students of the Human Trafficking & Contemporary Slavery course, currently taught at JCU by Professor Scarpa.

JCU President Franco Pavoncello, Vice President and Dean, Prof. Mary Merva, Chair of the Department of Political Science, Prof. Pamela B. Harris and Professor Scarpa, who acted as moderator, all attended the opening day discussion that kicked off the week. Subsequent events saw the participation of representatives from the U.S. Mission in Rome, the Italian Department of Equal Opportunities, the Italian Carabinieri, the Urban Institute of Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

John Cabot University students and faculty are taking a stand to end slavery and hope to be an example for other Universities all over the world!
See the video testimonials of JCU students Marcel, Thomas and Renesa, or watch Professor Scarpa introduce the activities and explaining more about the week here.

To find out more about modern-day slavery and what is being done about it all over the world, visit the CNN Freedom Project blog, and visit John Cabot University’s page.
Want to get involved? Find out how!