This mural in Buenos Aires was part of a series organised by Red Mundial Juvenil Argentina, Vínculos en Red and Art Emprende. Painted in a small square Plaza la Victoria, the murals depict different kinds of violence, abuse and exploitation that children and teenagers suffer. On 19th September 2015 an event was held to unveil the murals, with artistic and recreational workshops against child abuse and the maltreatment of children. This mural highlights child slavery and emphasises the fact that children should not be forced to work, where they are at risk of exploitation and abuse.
After learning about forced child labour and contemporary slavery, 20 students in their Transition Year at Bray College decided to create a mural to raise awareness of this phenomenon. The students were helped by the CSPE & Religion teacher Elaine Brennan and art teacher Clifton Rooney at Presentation College. This mural highlights the different types of slavery, including contract slavery, bondage labour, debt bondage and chattel slavery. On the far right, a hand holds a crumpled contract to symbolise a worker being deceived into slavery through the use of a false employment contract. To the left of this is the silhouette of a hooded figure holding a whip to emphasise the violence and coercion that is inherent in slavery. The mural toured Ireland's schools to teach others about contemporary slavery and raise awareness of this phenomenon. The students also wrote blog posts about their experience in creating this mural, which can be read here.The students also created 'Child Soldiersl', which raises awareness of the use of child soldiers around the world.
The Boston Community Leadership Academy (BCLA) aims to develop the capacity for leadership in all students, empowering them to make positive contributions to communities. Students worked with teachers, UNICEF representatives, Art and Resistance Through Education (ARTE) and local mural artists to design and create a mural in the school that focused on child slavery. The students placed emphasis on the idea that while all children should have the right to play, not all get that right. Children's toys are mixed together with work tools that symbolise the industries children are often forced to work in, such as a sewing machine, a factory and a hammer.
This mural was completed in conjunction with the 6th Annual Welling Court Mural Project to raise awareness of child slavery. It is located on 12th Street between Welling Court and 30th Road in Astoria, Queens, NYC. It tells the story of a 7-year old girl who is enslaved and works in a granite quarry near Katmandu, Nepal. Indira and the other children working at the quarry are forced to perform dangerous jobs with little or no safety gear. If they refuse, their employer withholds food from their family.The text that accompanies the mural on the artists website is as follows: Indira works in a granite quarry near Katmandu. She is 7 years old. The granite is sent to Britain to provide stone tiles for patios. Children are paid the equivalent of 25 cents a day to perform tiring and dangerous work with little or no safety gear.. Approximately 32,000 children in Nepal work in stone quarries. Some are as young as 5 years old. Many work besides their parents who are in debt bondage with little hope of escaping. Some live at the work site which is watched by guards who forbid them from leaving. The children are forced to perform hazardous jobs & if they refuse the employer withholds food from the family. Eradicating child labor from Nepal is difficult because it is fundamental to the economy.
This mural was completed as part of the Shoreditch Art Wall and supported the launch of the UK branch of the organisation Child Labour Free. It was revealed on the World Day Against Child Labour on 12th June 2016 alongside the sale of limited edition t-shirts with the designs of the mural. The proceeds of this went to the development of the Child Labour Free child care centre, which helps children in red light districts in Kolkata, India. Child Free Labour selected Victoria Villasana and Zabou to complete the mural. Zabou created the portraits of the two children, one of which can be seen above, and Victoria added the threads to the piece. For more images of the mural, please click here.Victoria is from Mexico and she was chosen because child labour is a strong issue in her country. She stated that 'What I like about Child Labor Free is that they work closely with the families to help them get out of poverty, rather than just stopping retailers from buying from these suppliers. This will help children enjoy better lives that are full of play, rather than just work.'
This piece by crochet artist Olek is on the walls of the Village Underground in Shoreditch, London and was completed in conjunction with the Street Artists Against Slavery for 'Follow Your Art - Street Art Against Slavery' in aid of the NGO Anti-Slavery International. The four panels of crocheted graffiti display a quote from Martin Luther King's Birmingham Jail Letter written in 1963 - it reads: 'injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere‘.
This mural was created by James Bullough with the Handle with Care Project, a Dallas-based organisation that is dedicated to fighting slavery through the arts. They argue that graffiti and slavery have something in common - they are both done covertly and are illegal, yet when a wall is defaced it can be painted over, whereas there is no "easy solution" for the slavery survivor.'Release' is the central piece in a city-wide mural project 'Deface a Wall, Not a Body', painted at the popular retail park Trinity Grove. The birds that are released in this mural are then painted all around Dallas. They symbolise survivors being released from captivity and rebuilding their lives over time. The murals of these free birds are titled 'Flycatcher'.
This mural was created by James Bullough with the Handle with Care Project, a Dallas-based organisation that is dedicated to fighting slavery through the arts. They argue that graffiti and slavery have something in common - they are both done covertly and are illegal, yet when a wall is defaced it can be painted over, whereas there is no "easy solution" for the slavery survivor.This piece 'Flycatcher 1' is one of four murals of individual birds that are dotted around the city and link back to the main mural of the project 'Release'. Unfortunately the building on which this mural was painted has now been destroyed.
This mural was created by James Bullough with the Handle with Care Project, a Dallas-based organisation that is dedicated to fighting slavery through the arts. They argue that graffiti and slavery have something in common - they are both done covertly and are illegal, yet when a wall is defaced it can be painted over, whereas there is no "easy solution" for the slavery survivor.This piece 'Flycatcher 2' is one of four murals of individual birds that are dotted around the city and link back to the main mural of the project 'Release'. The mural still survives today.
This mural was created by James Bullough with the Handle with Care Project, a Dallas-based organisation that is dedicated to fighting slavery through the arts. They argue that graffiti and slavery have something in common - they are both done covertly and are illegal, yet when a wall is defaced it can be painted over, whereas there is no "easy solution" for the slavery survivor.This piece 'Flycatcher 3' is one of four murals of individual birds that are dotted around the city and link back to the main mural of the project 'Release'. Although the building has been painted black, the mural survives in a patch of the red paint.
This mural was created by James Bullough with the Handle with Care Project, a Dallas-based organisation that is dedicated to fighting slavery through the arts. They argue that graffiti and slavery have something in common - they are both done covertly and are illegal, yet when a wall is defaced it can be painted over, whereas there is no "easy solution" for the slavery survivor.This piece 'Flycatcher 4' is one of four murals of individual birds that are dotted around the city and link back to the main mural of the project 'Release'. Unfortunately the building was demolished and the mural has been destroyed.
Art and Resistance Through Education (ARTE) worked with The Advocacy Lab, Project Futures Global, Somaly Mam Foundation (SMF), Subway Art History, students fom the Wings Academy and the South Bronx Community Association to create this mural, which is dedicated to the anti-trafficking activist Somaly Mam. The mural itself reads 'Somaly Mam' in graffiti style. It is in the South Bronx neighbourhood in New York.
This mural is part of the 'You Are Loved' mural project that works with schools, worship groups, artists, businesses and organisations to create community murals. It was created as a result of the sharp increase in human trafficking cases crossing the federal prosector's desk. Since 1997 Alex Cook as created over 150 murals internationally and the project focuses on spreading 5 messages;- You are loved- You are needed- You are important- You are beautiul- You can do itThis project brings together communities and people of all different ages and drives to bridge divides to spread these messages. This mural is in Church Street Marketplace, a business improvement district that has been named one of great public spaces in USA and declared a national historic district.
Art and Resistance Through Education (ARTE) is an organisation that use art, design and technology to encourage young people to develop creative solutions and bring awareness to local and global human rights challenges. They are dedicated to finding the next generation of social justice leaders and is committed to providing quality human rights education.In New York, ARTE worked with students from Pan American International High School to create this mural. They discussed several human rights issues, including human trafficking and child slavery.ARTE then worked with the students using different artistic mediums to help them express their ideas. While this mural focuses on immigrants' rights and racial discrimination, it links to contemporary slavery as many undocumented immigrants are survivors of trafficking.On June 10th the students unveiled their mural to fellow students, family members, school administrators, volunteers and community members.
This mural was part of an initiative funded by The Junior League of Tampa, who seek to end human trafficking by spreading awareness of the issue in the Tampa Bay area. The mural includes the telephone number of the Human Trafficking Hotline and is located at the busy Greyhound bus station to raise awareness of the trafficking that happens in Tampa. The project was led by Nicole DeLoach (Juniour League of Tampa), artist Leon Bedore, along with the support of the City of Tampa Arts Department, survivors of modern slavery, community activists and the Tampa Police Department. The reveal of the mural was attended by the Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is the Chair of Florida's Statewide Human Trafficking Council, and Becca Stevens, founder of Thistle Farms, a charity that supports female survivors of trafficking, prostitution and addiction. Subsequently the mural has been printed onto posters and flyers which have been placed onto the city's buses.
This graffiti of a child wearing a Walmart uniform was created amid claims that the company was selling timber products with wood supplied through slave labour. A three-month investigation by news outlet Reporter Brasil found that Walmart and Lowe were sourcing the product from companies whose supply chains are contaminated by the alleged use of forced labour. For a full report of the investigation, click here.The piece was placed onto a vacant Walmart store and quickly covered up by city officials.
Jessica is a survivor of sex trafficking - she was kidnapped at gun-point when she was 17 years old, raped and branded with a tattoo on her neck. Jessica was forced to prostitute herself and she suffered great physical, sexual and mental abuse at the hands of her pimp and countless other men. She escaped when she was 20 years old and now has a good relationship with her mother and her daughter. Jessica says she would not have made it without the help of the Mary Magdalene Project, now called Journey Out, an organisation that helps survivors of sex trafficking and/or commercial sexual exploitation. They kept her safe and ensured that no one could find her, alongside providing her with programs to help her establish a new life. The artist Lydia Emily Archibald wanted to create this mural to highlight the fact that sex trafficking is happening every day in America. She believes artwork 'can do more than hang, it can help,' and she hopes other survivors will look up at this mural and find inspiration in it. Archibald included two hummingbirds in the mural because when Jessica recounted her story, she mentioned that she loved these birds and they reminded her of her grandmother. The hummingbird at the top represents her grandmother and the one at the bottom represents her daughter, who Jessica had when she was 16 years old. The mural is situated in an area of LA where sex trafficking is prolific and the artist and her team faced abuse from locals. This corner was a popular place for drug-dealing and the painting of the mural temporarily shut down business for many dealers, leaving many unhappy at the muralists presence. Nevertheless they persisted and the mural is still there today. To watch Jessica's story and see her reaction to the unveiling of the mural, click here.
This mural was created by graffiti artists Danielle Mastrion and Lexi Bella as part of the 2014 Welling Court Mural Project. This project began after members of Welling Court community met at Ad Hoc's Bushwick gallery and invited Ad Hoc Art to come up with a vision to beautify their neughbourhood. With the community's support, the first mural was created in December 2009 by M-City. The rest of the winter was used to plan the launch of the first multi-block mual project that occured in May 2010 with over 40 murals. With a mix of artists and new talents, the Project hosts over 140 murals by artists from around the world and it is one of the best collections of contemporary street culture.This mural supports the Bring Back Our Girls campaign, which is fighting to save the 276 Chibok schoolgirls who were kidnapped by Boko Haram on 14th April 2014. #BringBackOurGirls calls for the Nigerian government to secure the release of the 113 girls who are still missing. To learn more about the campaign, click here.
This mural was part of the 2016 Welling Court Mural Project. The project began after members of Welling Court community met at Ad Hoc's Bushwick gallery and invited Ad Hoc Art to come up with a vision to beautify their neighbourhood. With the community's support, the first mural was created in December 2009 by M-City. The rest of the winter was used to plan the launch of the first multi-block mural project that occurred in May 2010 with over 40 murals. With a mix of artists and new talents, the Project hosts over 140 murals by artists from around the world and it is one of the most well-known collections of contemporary street art.This mural was created in response to the treatment of Yazidi women in Iraq. Thousands of Yazidi women have been kidnapped, raped and tortured by ISIS in Northern Iraq, with many forced to marry ISIS fighters and sexually exploited.
This mural supports the Bring Back Our Girls campaign, which is fighting to save the 276 Chibok schoolgirls who were kidnapped by Boko Haram on 14th April 2014. #BringBackOurGirls calls for the Nigerian government to secure the release of the 113 girls who are still missing. To learn more about the campaign, click here.