"Slaves in a land not our own"

The new Jewish Journal has a cover story on modern-day enslavement right here in Los Angeles. Pegged to Passover, which begins Monday night, the article opens with an anecdote about Flor, a Mexican woman smuggled into the U.S. for what she and a former teacher believed would be well-paying work as seamstresses.

For the next 40 days, Flor and her former teacher worked 16-hour days and were beaten, terrorized, threatened and humiliated by the woman. They were given two 10-minute breaks per day to eat meals of just rice and beans; they had to wash themselves in the bathroom sink, and they were kept under watch at all times, forbidden to talk to anyone.

Flor and her sewing teacher were victims of human trafficking. They had become slaves.

When we hear the word "slave" it generally conjures images of pre-Civil War America, of the mid-16th century African slave trade that formed the basis of the sugar economy. As Jews, particularly at Passover time, we remember our history in ancient Egypt, Avadim hayinu le'Paroah b'Mitzrayim -- "We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt" -- and of our emancipation, that we celebrate each year.

But for thousands of people like Flor, slavery is not a thing of the past. Slavery is, in fact, very much alive in the world today. Twenty-seven million people are working as indentured slaves in the world today, according to Kevin Bales, author of Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy.

Look in the Daily News on Monday for another story drawing comparisons between the Jews Exodus from Egypt and a contemporary people's wandering through the desert in search of safety.