Contextualising slavery : a framework for understanding the relationship between the enslaver and the enslaved

Current anti-slavery policies and interventions are overwhelmingly focused on slavery as a financial endeavour strictly for economic ease or gain; however, cases in which enslavers invest time, money and other resources into obtaining and maintaining a slave without receiving a financial return on this investment provides that a more nuanced understanding of the phenomenon of slavery is necessary.How do we understand the contextualised logic and philosophical political economy of slavery? By surveying statements, confessions, testimonies and other documentation that relates the experiences of both traffickers and survivors, I investigate whether or not the following framework for categorising slavery relationships by motivational context is accurate, as well as to discover trends and tendencies between each type and influencing factors, such as culture, gender, nationality, socio-economic status, ethnicity, age, religion and creed.What perceived benefits, besides financial gain, motivate a human being to not only desire complete control and/or commoditisation of another human being, but to act upon this desire? In researching this, I investigate sociological theories by Georg Hegel and Pierre Bourdieu. My question comes from an interest in the motivation for both the enslaver and the enslaved to enter into a relationship with each other, how the two perceive the other and the self during the relationship, and how those perceptions might shift once the contact is severed

The Rise of Mobile and the Diffusion of Technology-Facilitated Trafficking

In this report, researchers at the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy (CCLP) reveal how those involved in human trafficking have been quick to adapt to the 21st-century global landscape. While the rapid diffusion of digital technologies such as mobile phones, social networking sites, and the Internet has provided significant benefits to society, new channels and opportunities for exploitation have also emerged. Increasingly, the business of human trafficking is taking place online and over mobile phones. But the same technologies that are being used for trafficking can become a powerful tool to combat trafficking. The precise role that digital technologies play in human trafficking still remains unclear, however, and a closer examination of the phenomenon is vital to identify and respond to new threats and opportunities.This investigation indicates that mobile devices and networks have risen in prominence and are now of central importance to the sex trafficking of minors in the United States. While online platforms such as online classifieds and social networking sites remain a potential venue for exploitation, this research suggests that technology facilitated trafficking is more diffuse and adaptive than initially thought. This report presents a review of current literature, trends, and policies; primary research based on mobile phone data collected from online classified sites; a series of firsthand interviews with law enforcement; and key recommendations to policymakers and stakeholders moving forward

St. John\u27s Wort inhibits adipocyte differentiation and induces insulin resistance in adipocytes

Adipocytes are insulin sensitive cells that play a major role in energy homeostasis. Obesity is the primary disease of fat cells and a major risk factor for the development of Type II diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and metabolic syndrome. Obesity and its related disorders result in dysregulation of the mechanisms that control adipocyte gene expression and function. To identify potential novel therapeutic modulators of adipocytes, we screened 425 botanical extracts for their ability to modulate adipogenesis and insulin sensitivity. We observed that less than 2% of the extracts had substantial effects on adipocyte differentiation of 3T3-L1 cells. Two of the botanical extracts that inhibited adipogenesis were extracts from St. John\u27s Wort (SJW). Our studies revealed that leaf and flower, but not root, extracts isolated from SJW inhibited adipogenesis as judged by examining PPARγ and adiponectin levels. We also examined the effects of these SJW extracts on insulin sensitivity in mature 3T3-L1 adipocytes. Both leaf and flower extracts isolated from SJW substantially inhibited insulin sensitive glucose uptake. The specificity of the observed effects was demonstrated by showing that treatment with SJW flower extract resulted in a time and dose dependent inhibition of insulin stimulated glucose uptake. SJW is commonly used in the treatment of depression. However, our studies have revealed that SJW may have a negative impact on adipocyte related diseases by limiting differentiation of preadipocytes and significantly inducing insulin resistance in mature fat cells. © 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved