The American Law Association reports on efforts by legal professionals like Professor Chip Pitts to help businesses address widespread human trafficking.

The general view of human trafficking is that it is something only occurring “over there,” in places such as Africa and India. However, this perception is wrong. Trafficking is a problem not just “over there,” but right here, right now. Indeed, trafficking and child labor abuses are part of our lives right here, right now.

For example, slavery may taint the computer, smartphone, or tablet that you are using right now. A recent NGO study by Verité shows that one in three Malaysian electronics workers toil at forced labor. Slavery may have tainted the shrimp that you enjoyed last week. A recent investigation by The Guardian cited evidence that threats of extreme violence may have forced slaves to toil without pay for years harvesting shrimp in Thailand for sale abroad. The bad news is that these and other similar situations exist. The good news is that as businesspeople, there is something that we can do about it. As an example, The Guardian reports on efforts by businesses to form a task force to address the shrimp issue.

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Corporations address social issues under the banner of corporate social responsibility (CSR), also known as corporate citizenship, corporate responsibility, sustainability, social enterprise, triple bottom line, or corporate ethics. A member of the Business Law Section’s CSR Task Force, Stanford Law School Professor Chip Pitts, coauthored the premier law school text on the subject, Corporate Social Responsibility: A Legal Analysis, urging that we view CSR as a set of assessment, strategic-development, and commitment practices.

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