Haitian children enslaved by poverty are forced into domestic labor

“Poverty is a reality but not an excuse” - Jean-Robert Cadet

It is hard to imagine slavery still exists today.

We've read about it; studied it in school. A time when man's inhumanity to man cast an ugly stain on the soul. We are relieved it happened so long ago - that it is all over now. Now, as we vacation in the Caribbean's sun-kissed waters - the same waters that lap at Haiti's shores - it is inconceivable to us that thousands of children are enslaved. That just an hour's plane ride from Miami, they scrub floors, empty bed pans, cook and serve their owners in hopes of a better life that never comes.

As we kiss our children good-night, we cannot dream of a place where children go through life without a single tender touch. We cannot imagine that cowhide whips, sold on street corners, are used by owners against the children who serve them, as these children shoulder work an adult would consider back-breaking.

It can't be true - but it is. These children are real and they are suffering. Today, as a result of extreme poverty, thousands of Haitian children are placed into domestic servitude. They are robbed of their childhood, their innocence and their hope. They are called restavecs.

The literal translation of this Creole word means "to stay with." For generations, it has been a last and desperate solution for poor families. Unable to feed or educate their children, parents send them to stay with and work for other families in exchange for the promise of a better life. Currently, there are an estimated 300,000 restavecs in Haiti, many of whom are enslaved in forced domestic service. They are unpaid, undocumented, and unprotected. These restavec children are often physically, emotionally, and sexually abused. They are denied education and suffer many physical illnesses due to neglect.

Jean-Robert Cadet, a former restavec, endured years of physical and emotional abuse as a domestic slave until he found access to an education, first in Haiti and later in the United States. Education ultimately led to his freedom but he has never forgotten. He founded the Jean R. Cadet Restavec Foundation, which directly intervenes in the lives of these children. The goal of the foundation is relief and advocacy for enslaved children while raising awareness on a global scale to end modern-day slavery in Haiti.

Now that we know the truth, together we can act to give hope and even freedom, to those who need it most.