Written by Grace Wong, IJM Australia's Chief Advocacy Officer

In a recent interview with British Vogue, Amal Clooney, the famous human rights lawyer, was asked by a reporter what is the greatest challenge she faces in the pursuit of justice. She answered:  

“Apathy. There will always be injustice, cruelty and abuses of power,” she continues. “But if the good people – those who don’t agree with what is happening – stay quiet, it becomes very difficult to effect change. If there is more cowardice than courage in the corridors of power – in governments, companies – it is very difficult to improve the system. Yet I believe that justice must be waged, it is not something that simply happens on its own” 

Did you think she was going to say something more shocking? I did. Dictators, corruption, political instability. But no – she said apathy.  

In an age when bad news is at your fingertips (prompting you to wonder, do I need to watch another cat video to counteract the sadness and frustration in the world?), there can be a tendency to shut everything off and concentrate on the minute – the day to day – what you think you can control in your immediate sphere.

What starts as a genuine attempt to preserve mental health and rest, can easily move into a place of apathy when we are faced with seemingly insurmountable injustices. They seem too big to be fixed by one person who cares, especially someone who is not in the ‘corridors of power’.

What Amal’s reflection doesn’t fully capture is that apathy in the corridors of power often mirrors apathy among the people who put them there. When citizens disengage, leaders are less compelled to act.

Lasting change requires pressure from the ground up – when ordinary people care deeply, speak out, and demand change, those in power are far more likely to respond.

What is powerful about the anti-slavery movement now and in the 1800s when the transatlantic slave trade was legally abolished in the British colonies is how change was driven by ordinary people, like you and me, who chose as individuals to stand together. The move towards abolishing slavery was a long, slow fight that spanned decades and united people from all walks of life – different backgrounds, trades, professions and genders. 

They pioneered many of the same tools we use today to advocate for change: 

• They signed petitions for the abolition or the reform of the slave trade. In 1788, prior to parliamentary committee hearings on the slave trade, there were 103 petitions submitted to parliament, each signed by 60-100,000 people - petitions left for signing at town halls, printing shops, hotels, banks, coffeehouses and pubs.

• Spurred on by pamphlets (precursors to TikTok videos), approximately 400,000 stopped using sugar – particularly women who primarily managed household affairs at the time–in an early form of consumer boycotts (sugar produced by slave labour in the West Indies) because:

“Then, as now, the full workings of a globalized economy were invisible, and the boycott caught people’s imagination because it brought these hidden ties to light, laying bare the dramatic, direct connection between British daily life and that of slaves.¹”

Back then, everyday people in the UK were able to draw an invisible line between their existence and that of the welfare and dignity of Africans; born halfway across the world, taken from their home and traded like objects for their labour to produce food, harvest materials, or provide household help. Every day people opened their eyes, they saw the connection, they felt and they acted. They were not apathetic.    

The Commonwealth Modern Slavery Act 2018 was originally introduced to provide the Australian public with information on whether modern slavery was in the products they bought. But the Act has no penalties, and many companies are not held accountable for their failure to report or address risks of modern slavery in their supply chains.  

A core component of International Justice Mission’s work is advocacy. It is spurring the individual, who then forms the collective, to care, to act, and to not remain apathetic in the face of wrongs.

Through advocacy we have achieved:

• The re-introduction of the NSW Modern Slavery Act 2018 through our Get it Don! Campaign
• A promise from the Albanese Government to introduce a digital duty of care
• The passing of the Take It Down Act in the US

Join us and rise above apathy.  
 

Act Now

Your Voice Has Power

Having heard or seen the risk of abuse, exploitation or slavery for those workers, I cannot remain apathetic. Join us in urging change – sign the petition for a stronger Modern Slavery Act today. 

Sign Petition

2.Pg 194 Bury the Chains Adam Hochschild