Only together can we defeat human trafficking

Over 50 million people worldwide are enslaved and exploited, as human traffickers become more sophisticated and lure more and more vulnerable people, including children and migrants, into the trappings of modern slavery. The Catholic Church is increasingly on the frontlines in the battle against this phenomenon, which Pope Francis describes as “an open wound in the side of humanity”. On 8 February all people of goodwill were invited to participate in the World Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking. The International observance, on the feast day of Saint Josephine Bakhita — a Sudanese nun who was enslaved as a girl and has become the symbol of the Church’s commitment against this scourge — aims to garner support and raise awareness in the fight against what is often an invisible trade, in which millions of vulnerable ...