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JOHN CABOT UNIVERSITY

COURSE CODE: "PL 325-1"
COURSE NAME: "Human Trafficking and Contemporary Slavery"
SEMESTER & YEAR: Spring 2014
SYLLABUS

INSTRUCTOR: Silvia Scarpa
EMAIL: [email protected]
HOURS: MW 1:30 PM 2:45 PM
TOTAL NO. OF CONTACT HOURS: 45
CREDITS: 3
PREREQUISITES: Prerequisite: Junior Standing
OFFICE HOURS: by appointment

COURSE DESCRIPTION:
While slavery and the slave trade were abolished long ago, new and more subtle forms of slavery-like practices are alarmingly on the rise in many parts of the world and they seem to be more widespread today than slavery has been in any other period of human history. This course aims at analyzing contemporary forms of slavery and trafficking in human beings as complex phenomena requiring an interdisciplinary approach and it is designed to foster students’ critical examination on the political, economic and social factors that lie behind these practices providing an enhanced understanding of the various issues related to them.
SUMMARY OF COURSE CONTENT:
Starting with a brief overview on slavery and a comparison between slavery of the past centuries and the contemporary subtle forms of slavery-like practices, this course will analyze various forms of exploitation, focusing in particular on chattel slavery, religious slavery, servitude, the bonded labor/debt bondage practice, forced prostitution and sexual slavery including their link with sex tourism, early and forced marriages, the exploitation of child soldiers and forced labor. A definition for every form of exploitation will be given to clearly emphasize differences and overlaps existing among them. The course will subsequently deal with trafficking in human beings, assessing its spreading in the world, emphasizing the lack of data, commenting on the available estimates and analyzing its causes and consequences and the most common forms of exploitation related to it, including sexual and labor exploitation, the involvement of children in armed conflicts, illegal adoptions and trafficking for the removal of human organs. The lack of an internationally agreed definition of human trafficking until the adoption in 2000 of the United Nations Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children will be discussed and the differences between this phenomenon and the smuggling of migrants will be studied. Specific attention will be dedicated to understanding what can be done to fight against the spreading of these contemporary forms of slavery and of human trafficking.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
Upon completion of the course, students will be able to define the various contemporary slavery-like practices and processes, being aware of their spreading in the world, of their main causes and consequences, of the international action aimed at abolishing them and of short and long-term strategies that need to be adopted to eradicate them. They also will be able to assess the major successes and failures in establishing a framework in which these phenomena could be eradicated and they will have conducted research on a specific issue of their interest and have conducted a group work on a selected topic.
TEXTBOOK:
Book TitleAuthorPublisherISBN numberLibrary Call NumberCommentsFormatLocal BookstoreOnline Purchase
Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global EconomyKevin BalesUniversity of California Press978-0520272910     
From Human Trafficking to Human RightsAlyson Brysk and Austin Choi-Fitzpatrick (eds)University of Pennsylvania Press9780812243826     
REQUIRED RESERVED READING:
NONE

RECOMMENDED RESERVED READING:
NONE
GRADING POLICY
-ASSESSMENT METHODS:
AssignmentGuidelinesWeight
Mid-Term ExamEssay questions25%
Advocacy Plan Group work + essay (2,000 words minimum) 25%
Final ExamEssay questions25%
Attendance & Class ParticipationAttendance is compulsory & students shall contribute to class discussions10%
Oral presentationIn-class oral presentation of group work15%

-ASSESSMENT CRITERIA:
AWork of this quality directly addresses the question or problem raised and provides a coherent argument displaying an extensive knowledge of relevant information or content. This type of work demonstrates the ability to critically evaluate concepts and theory and has an element of novelty and originality. There is clear evidence of a significant amount of reading beyond that required for the course.
BThis is highly competent level of performance and directly addresses the question or problem raised.There is a demonstration of some ability to critically evaluatetheory and concepts and relate them to practice. Discussions reflect the student’s own arguments and are not simply a repetition of standard lecture andreference material. The work does not suffer from any major errors or omissions and provides evidence of reading beyond the required assignments.
CThis is an acceptable level of performance and provides answers that are clear but limited, reflecting the information offered in the lectures and reference readings.
DThis level of performances demonstrates that the student lacks a coherent grasp of the material.Important information is omitted and irrelevant points included.In effect, the student has barely done enough to persuade the instructor that s/he should not fail.
FThis work fails to show any knowledge or understanding of the issues raised in the question. Most of the material in the answer is irrelevant.

-ATTENDANCE REQUIREMENTS:

Attendance is compulsory!

Students shall read assigned materials before coming to class and shall participate to class discussions.
ACADEMIC HONESTY
As stated in the university catalog, any student who commits an act of academic dishonesty will receive a failing grade on the work in which the dishonesty occurred. In addition, acts of academic dishonesty, irrespective of the weight of the assignment, may result in the student receiving a failing grade in the course. Instances of academic dishonesty will be reported to the Dean of Academic Affairs. A student who is reported twice for academic dishonesty is subject to summary dismissal from the University. In such a case, the Academic Council will then make a recommendation to the President, who will make the final decision.
STUDENTS WITH LEARNING OR OTHER DISABILITIES
John Cabot University does not discriminate on the basis of disability or handicap. Students with approved accommodations must inform their professors at the beginning of the term. Please see the website for the complete policy.

SCHEDULE

WEEK

TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED

READING ASSIGNMENTS

Week 1 (January 13 and 15)


What is contemporary slavery? What is human trafficking?

Quirk, Ch. 1 – p. 23-33; Scarpa, Ch. 1 – p. 3-8; Brysk and Choi-Fitzpatrick, Ch. 1

Week 2 (January 20 and 22)

January 20: last day to add/drop a class

Is slavery of the past different from the one of today?

Bales, Ch. 1; Quirk, Ch. 3 Brysk and Choi-Fitzpatrick, Ch. 2.

Week 3 (January 27 and 29)

Vestiges of past slavery: chattel slavery and religious slavery.

Bales, Ch. 3; Black, p. 1-26; 35-38.

Week 4 (February 3 and 5)

Forced labor and child labor.

Forced labor: ILO Handbook, p. 8-16; Kang Muico, p. 1-19 and 27;

Child labor: Lieten; Hindman; AI_Cocoa Report, p. 3-18 and 40-69.

Week 5 (February 10 and 12)

Debt bondage.

Bales, Ch. 4, 5 and 6.

Week 6 (February 17 and 19)

The commercial sexual exploitation of children and child sex tourism.


Bales, Ch. 2 and Ecpat Report.

Week 7 (February 24 and 26)

February 24: Mid-term exam.

· Trafficking in persons: lack of data, estimates, causes & consequences and distribution in the world.

· Scarpa, Ch. 1 – p. 8-21.

 

Week 8 (March 3 and 5)

· The forms of exploitation related to human trafficking.

· Scarpa, Ch. 1 – p. 22-34 and 40; Choi-Fitzpatrick, Ch. 4.

Week 9 (March 10 and 12)

· Peacekeeping and human trafficking.

·  Choi-Fitzpatrick, Ch. 7; Mendelson, p. 1-38.

Week 10 (March 17 and 19)

Spring Break

Week 11 (March 24 and 26)

 

March 28: last day to withdraw from a class

· Trafficking in persons for the removal of organs.

· Pearson; Scheper-Hughes; Scarpa, Ch. 1 - p. 34 - 39.

Week 12 (March 31, April 2 and 4)

April 4: make-up day for April 21

The smuggling of migrants: definition. Trafficking in persons v. the smuggling of migrants. Trafficking in persons in the wider context of international migrations.

APRIL 4: DEADLINE FOR THE SUBMISSION OF THE ADVOCACY PLANS.

Bhabha and Zard; Gallagher; Anti-Slavery International Report on Migration-Trafficking Nexus, p. 1-15; Choi-Fitzpatrick, Ch. 9.

Week 13 (April 7 and 9)

What can be done to fight against contemporary slavery and human trafficking?

Bales, Ch. 7; Choi-Fitzpatrick, Ch. 11.

Week 14 (April 14 and 16)

Students’ presentations.

 

Week 15 (April 23)

April 21: holiday

Students’ presentations.

Week 16 (April 26 – May 3)

Final Exam

Date TBA



List of Reading Materials

Anti-Slavery International, The Cocoa Industry in West Africa: a History of Exploitation (Anti-Slavery International, 2004).
Anti-Slavery International, The Migration-Trafficking Nexus (Anti-Slavery International, 2003).
Bales K., Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy (University of California Press, 2004).
Bhabha J. and Zard M., “Smuggled or Trafficked?” 25 Forced Migration Review (May 2006) p. 6-8.
Black M., Women in Ritual Slavery (Anti-Slavery International, 2007).
Brysk A. and Choi-Fitzpatrick A., From Human Trafficking to Human Rights (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2012).
ECPAT, Combating Child Sex Tourism (ECPAT, 2008).
Gallagher A., “Trafficking, Smuggling and Human Rights: Tricks and Treaties” 25 Forced Migration Review (May 2006) p. 25-28.
Hindman H. D., "Worst Forms of Child Labor" in The World of Child Labor: An Historical and Regional Survey (M.E. Sharpe, 2009).
Kang Muico N., Forced Labour in North Korean Prison Camps (Anti-Slavery International, 2007).
Lieten J. K., “Toward an Integrative Theory of Child Labor” in The World of Child Labor: An Historical and Regional Survey (M.E. Sharpe, 2009).
Mendelson S., Barracks and Brothels: Peacekeeping and Human Trafficking in the Balkans (CSIS Report, 2005).
Pearson, Coercion in the Kidney Trade? (GTZ, 2004).
Quirk J., Unfinished Business: A Comparative Study on Historical and Contemporary Slavery (UNESCO, 2008).
Scarpa, Trafficking in Persons: Modern Slavery (Oxford University Press, 2008).
Scheper-Hughes N., “Keeping an Eye on the Global Traffic in Human Organs” 361 The Lancet (2003) p. 1645-48.