The internet is one of the fastest-growing things ever, with communities connecting billions of people worldwide every day. It’s used for business, communication, leisure, and everything in between. However, there are also potential dark sides to the web. Minors in particular can be exploited on the internet to be pressured into self-harm, be targeted by manipulative advertising, or even have their images exploited by AI. In response to these concerns, Brazil has passed a new landmark law defining new rules and regulations for companies handling the information of and providing services to underage people.
Online Dangers to Minors
People can connect with each other across the globe using the internet. That contact can be immediate and difficult to monitor, and it can also result in potentially dangerous data leaks. In the past, there have been issues with information and images that minors post being harmfully misused. For example, photos posted by Brazilian children were gathered into databases and fed to generative AI, which was then used to create harmful images of other children. Even if the information posted and shared by children is not inherently harmful or risky, it can still be misused with potentially harmful consequences.
Brazil, in particular, faces greater online risks due to its citizens’ strong online presence– Brazil ranked second in the world in average screen time for its citizens. When analyzing the digital habits of children in Brazil in 2025, the Brazilian Internet Steering Community found that a reported 92% of minors aged 9-17 were using the internet. Furthermore, 85% of children surveyed reported having an account on popular social media sites, highlighting an increased vulnerability for many of them with these connections to the online world.
A young native Brazilian girl Source: Pedro França/MinC (upload on Flickr by Ministério da Cultura), CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Any information put online, as well as user behaviors, can also be tracked and exploited. While this is a common tactic for companies to create profiles of people to target ads and services at them, there were examples highlighted in Brazil of surveillance and tracking through platforms used for online schooling. In 2022 and 2023, Human Rights Watch released its findings that multiple different sites used for online schooling, some of them official government sites, had surveilled their students. Not only were they tracking their behaviors during the use of the site and school hours, but they also gathered information across the web and during all hours of the day.
To combat these violations and provide more protection for its underage populations, Brazil has just recently passed a new law. On September 17 of this year, the Digital ECA bill was officially signed by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and will come into effect next year. Within this new legislation, there are numerous significant enhancements and additions to children’s privacy and protection.
Official Portrait of Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva Source: Palácio do Planalto from Brasilia, Brasil, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
Apply for all service providers on the internet where their platform is likely to be accessed by, and is easily accessible for, anyone under 18.
Federally prohibit surveillance and profiling techniques in attempts to target and market to minors.
Require service providers to provide protections that prevent children from accessing inappropriate material, with extreme material, such as pornography and alcohol, specifically requiring more than just self-declaration as proof of age.
Mandate parental supervision tools on platforms that allow for protected privacy settings and proper handling of associated data.
The Digital ECA bill is broad in its scope of protections, as well as the tech services it will impact. It addresses numerous concerns across various industries and practices with these points. There can be difficulties with enforcing new laws such as this, but, as discussed in the next section, Brazil has implemented new authoritative institutions to help tackle this issue.
New Governing Bodies
To enforce the new policies outlined in the Digital ECA bill and provide further guidance and regulations, the creation of a specialized authority was necessary. The Brazilian National Data Protection Agency (ANPD) was established by Brazilian President Luiz as the regulatory body tasked with enforcing compliance with the new bill.
The ANPD issues official advice for companies on how to comply with the Digital ECA bill, makes legal regulations enforceable with fines, can temporarily revoke companies’ ability to continue their activities, and can enact permanent suspension on companies that fail to uphold this new law. By utilizing these powers, the ANPD can ensure that companies are properly penalized for using unlawful tactics against minors online.
A picture of the headquarters for the ANPD in Brazil Source: Senado Federal, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
While these federal powers are new for the ANPD, they show that real power has been vested in this initiative for online protections. Time will tell how effective these strategies are, especially as the new bill comes into practice next year, but they show that government attention is being brought to these issues.
Conclusion
Brazil has made bold new strides in order to address online dangers for its underage population. By providing clear legal regulations and laws, as well as by establishing a governing body with the authority to enforce these rules, Brazil has significantly expanded its protections for children. Not only does this increase the privacy and safety of Brazil’s population, but it also serves as a strong example to the rest of the world on how to create a human rights-oriented change. Brazil is one example in a growing trend of countries strengthening protections for their citizens’ online content, privacy, and human rights.
image 1: Refugee camp for internally displace persons (IDPs). Source: Adobe Stock. By Miros. Asset ID: 541706476.
From far away, the tiny objects littering the grounds of El-Fasher, Sudan might not look like anything, slightly discolored; their white and red spots show a stark contrast to the once empty space captured by Satellite images a couple of days prior. Other images show burnt vehicles and dark spots outside of buildings. To the untrained eye, they might not look like much, but the images, collected on October 28, 2025, verify the ongoing massacre of the city, and the white and red discoloration, the bodies of those killed.
Yale University’s Humanitarian Crisis research team has been collecting satellite images of Sudan throughout the civil war. Recent results found that 31 of the clusters from the satellite images were consistent with human remains. Communication within El Fasher has been extremely restricted since the invasion and mass killings by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Those who escaped report people being beaten, robbed, and killed in their pursuit to escape, with children witnessing their parents being gunned down. One of the most concerning factors, reported by Yale University, is the absence of movement within the city.
The ongoing civil war in Sudan, which began in April 2023, has resulted in the destruction of cities, the death of thousands, and the starvation and displacement of millions. In my previous blog, Chlorine Warfare in Sudan’s Ongoing Humanitarian Crisis, the SAF’s use of chlorine gas was evaluated in relation to International Humanitarian Law, along with the humanitarian crisis in Sudan. With the recent massacre of El-Fasher, satellite images have further highlighted the devastation of the war.
International Humanitarian Law outlines the protections of civilians, medical workers, civilian infrastructure, and hospitals. Violations of these are considered war crimes. Throughout the war, both the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Force (RSF) have violated International Humanitarian Law and committed war crimes. This blog will discuss the recent satellite images and the end to the 500-day siege of El-Fasher, which highlights the human rights and international humanitarian law violations that are occurring there.
The End of the 500 Day Siege and the Massacre of El-Fasher
Image 2: Map of Sudan: Main Conflict Forces. Source: Adobe Stock. By Serhii. Asset ID: 817218906
Darfur, a region located in west Sudan, holds El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. This region borders Chad, which has seen an influx in refugees since the start of the civil war. El-Fasher was the last major stronghold controlled by the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) in Darfur. On October 23, 2025, after the 500-day siege of El Fasher, RSF fighters targeted civilian homes; large scale execution, starvation, and sexual violence have ensued.
Targeting civilians, civilian infrastructure, hospitals, medical workers, and humanitarian workers are all violations of International Humanitarian Law and constitute war crimes. There have also been reports of summary executions that specifically target certain ethnic groups. Summary killing means the execution of a person or people who are accused of a crime but have not been given a trial.
In Tawila, a town close to El-Fasher, 652,000 displaced people are taking shelter. Since the RSF took control of El Fasher, hospitals, their patients and medical workers have been targeted. Reports state that in the Saudi Maternity Hospital, which is located in El-Fasher, patients were massacred, medics were attacked, and humanitarian workers were targeted. In this hospital, which had survived multiple bombings and continued to offer medical aid, close to 500 people were executed.
While the RSF have consistently committed atrocities against civilians and humanitarian aid workers, the SAF have also recklessly bombed areas, which has caused the death of civilians and reduced civilian infrastructure to rubble. The SAF has also contributed to the increase in sexual violence throughout the war, tortured people, desecrated bodies, and killed people without first giving them a trial.
In Human Rights Watch’s report on Sudan, they stated that both the RSF and the SAF are complicit in blocking aid. Both sides have also knowingly targeted local first responders. Throughout the war, one thing has been apparent; both sides are willing to target civilians and commit war crimes in order to get what they want. This brutality has been dramatically apparent in El-Fasher, where there is disturbing evidence that a massacre is likely to have occurred there in recent weeks.
Satellite Imaging Evidence
Image 3: Peaceful protester holds sign representing Sudanese flag in front of his face. Source: Adobe Stock. By: Gérard Bottino. Assert ID#: 273049844.
There are many difficulties in gathering accurate information about ongoing atrocities, given the dangers of reporting from such areas and the challenges of communicating information from the affected areas to the outside world. Because of this, satellite imagery can be highly useful for producing real-time assessments of severe human rights abuses such as those being committed in El-Fasher. Throughout the end of October, 2025, Yale University observed and collected satellite imaging of El-Fasher, Sudan. In a side by side of two images, there are clusters of objects and ground discoloration. On October 27th, the viewer can see a group of objects with red and white discoloration around it. Just four days later, on October 31st, you can see the cluster on the ground, but the red and white discoloration have faded. This can be seen in Yale University’s Humanitarian Crisis Research Lab’s report on satellite imaging in El-Fasher, Sudan, on page 28. The report interprets this information as follows:
On page 29 of the report, you can see clusters of objects near and around the Al-Saudi Hospital, taken on October 28, 2025. In the images, white objects surround the outside walls of the hospital. These objects are not seen in satellite images that were taken of the area prior to October 28th, and they are not seen again in images taken on October 31st, see page 30.
Yale HRL reports that its recent satellite images have not picked up any mass movement heading out of El-Fasher, even though the city was said to have an estimated 250,000 people living there. The lack of movement is suspicious, and Yale HRL interprets it as indicating “that the majority of civilians are dead, captured, or in hiding” (see page 3 of the report). In the absence of reliable communications from El-Fasher, this satellite imagery provides essential documentation of likely human rights abuses that can be used to inform the human rights community and spur people to action.
Conclusion
In the weeks since RSF ransacked El-Fasher, around 100,00 people have escaped to nearby villages. The situation in Sudan continues to be critical, and the situation in El-Fasher, dire. There are still people trapped within the city, and little information has come out in regards to how many were killed by the RSF.
The estimated number of people residing in El-Fasher before the conflict was 250,000, not including those taking refuge there. With only 100,000 people having been reported to have escaped, this leaves over half the population of El-Fasher unaccounted for. According to the reports, there has been little movement within the city, with the images of clusters and discolorations a testament to that. These indications that grave human rights abuses have recently been committed in El-Fasher should concern human rights defenders everywhere.
At the second African Climate Summit, leaders discussed the role of Africa’s critical minerals in climate change and sustainable development. The African Union’s joint statement at the global COP30 climate summit highlighted the continent’s potential to be a climate leader, with its “abundant natural resources, […] young and dynamic workforce, and vast renewable energy potential.” This article examines Africa’s mineral industry, which could be key to the fight against the climate crisis.
Africa’s Minerals and Renewable Energy
The world is moving away from fossil fuels and towards clean energy, as renewables become the world’s dominant energy source. This is necessary to limit emissions and strive toward climate goals such as the Paris Agreement’s commitment to keeping the global temperature increase under 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, but non-fossil fuel renewable energy alternatives also require the extraction of Earth’s natural resources.
As countries across the world push forward with the latest energy transition—the shift from traditional energy sources like coal and oil to renewable energy like wind and solar—Africa’s mineral deposits are increasingly critical to supplying the world’s energy. They store much of the world’s “transition minerals,” natural resources used in renewable technologies like lithium-ion batteries and solar panels. At the Africa Climate Summit 2025, the UN Economic Commissioner for Africa warned that there was the potential to “repeat the exploitative patterns of the past,” as the demand for the minerals used in renewable technologies increases.
The transition mineral industry is fraught with human rights abuses, notably labor rights violations and environmental injustices. Violations of the 23rd article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which protects workers’ rights to favorable working conditions and living wages, are commonplace. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has been at the center of conversations regarding Africa’s mining industry, where conflict, illegal mining operations, and smuggling endanger the people who provide the minerals for the world’s technology.
Exploitation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)
The Business and Human Rights Resource Centre tracked 178 cases of abuse from 2010-2024 in the transition mineral industry; mines in the DRC accounted for over half of these abuses. In a 2023 report, Amnesty International found that “multinational mining companies are forcibly evicting communities from their homes and farmlands in the name of energy transition mining” in the DRC. The exploitation present in the DRC is exacerbated by violent conflict, corporate irresponsibility, and the prevalence of illegal, dangerous operations.
Miners carry supplies in a mine. Rubaya, DRC. By: Erberto Zani. Source: Adobe Stock. Asset ID#: 1047185175
Conflict Minerals in the DRC
Key to the conflict between the DRC government and the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel group has been control of valuable mines, like Rubaya’s coltan mine. Coltan is an ore that contains tantalum, which is used in the electric car batteries that are key to reducing fossil fuel reliance in transportation. In Rubaya, armed militants patrol impoverished workers, including children, who earn a meager wage to mine and transport coltan. A UN report revealed that a Rwandan exporter purchased coltan that was smuggled by militant groups in the DRC, funding the M23’s deadly offensive in the Eastern DRC. When minerals are used to finance and compound human rights abuses, they are called “conflict minerals.”
Conflict Minerals in the Corporate Supply Chain
Tesla, which uses tantalum in their products, outlines a “responsible materials policy” and explicitly states that it has made efforts to “eliminate from [their] value chain any benefits [their] sourcing of these materials may give to armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its adjoining countries.” However, a Global Witness report details how smuggled minerals, like coltan from Rubaya, are sourced from unvalidated mines and “laundered,” ending up in the global supply chain. The report names Tesla as one of the companies potentially profiting from this system. The use of conflict minerals in consumer products is just one facet of the human rights implications of transition minerals. Another important aspect to consider is how these natural resources are obtained.
Electric cars charging at charging station. By: logoboom. Source: Adobe Stock. Asset ID#: 484699085
Unregulated Mining: Ramifications of Informal Operations
Illegal and informal mining operations also put people at risk. Artisanal and small-scale mining sites can expose miners to toxic chemicals like arsenic and cyanide, and the overcrowded conditions produce a high risk of infectious disease, among other dangers. Transition minerals like cobalt are among the resources obtained through artisanal and small-scale mining in the DRC. Harvard researcher Siddarth Kara, in a conversation with NPR, outlines the hazardous conditions, child labor, and corruption embedded in cobalt mining in the DRC. He calls the conditions “modern-day slavery.”
An Overview of Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining
The transition mineral industry is driving the use of illegal artisanal and small-scale mining operations in Africa. 10 million sub-Saharan Africans are artisanal and small-scale miners. Artisanal and small-scale mining is a diverse practice, mostly carried out by subsistence miners or small-scale industry, andsome believe that artisanal and small-scale mining has the potential to provide critical minerals and drive economic development in Africa. However, it is a complex and controversial practice with consequences for labor and environmental rights.
Artisanal and small-scale mining can be driven by poverty and scarce employment opportunities. Other actors, like Chinese nationals, also participate in the practice, benefiting from what is often an illegal and unregulated system.
Unregulated artisanal and small-scale mining can threaten environmental health, which has downstream effects on human health. Artisanal and small-scale mining has been linked to water pollution, mercury contamination, and reduced water flow to nearby agriculture. Artisanal mining was responsible for high levels of mercury in crops, water, and the miners themselves in Ghana. Others criticize the practice for driving up the cost of living by displacing local activities like food production, thereby trapping workers in a cycle of poverty.
Artisanal miner in Mauritania using mercury, a highly toxic chemical, to agglomerate gold. By: Christophe. Source: Adobe Stock. Asset ID#: 524805503
An Economically Sustainable and Human-Oriented Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining Sector
Despite challenges, the artisanal and small-scale mining sector has the potential to drive economic growth and provide a livelihood for millions of Africans. One proposed step toward a more equitable and community-focused artisanal and small-scale mining sector is formalizing the mining process in a way that does not simply issue more licenses but also considers environmental and social responsibility. A “livelihood-oriented formalization” can mean miners have a secure income rather than working for shelter, food, or a small share of profits; implementing worker safety principles can reduce accidents and limit the spread of communicable disease. Formalizing artisanal and small-scale mining should include a comprehensive reconsideration of the current processes, with the well-being of miners at the forefront.
Corporate and Government Responsibility
Transition mining involves small-scale operations, but large multinational corporations also play a significant role in determining how minerals are obtained. The role of corporate social responsibility in mitigating human rights abuses is controversial. Companies like Tesla, as mentioned before, have come under fire for being complicit in the sale of conflict minerals, and mining companies expel people from their homes. In recent years, multinational corporations have begun to consider themselves as part of the solution to human rights issues in Africa. Corporations that adopt rigorous due diligence standards can offset some of the failures of fragile governments, such as the DRC, in enforcing industry-wide rules.
Hope for an Equitable Transition Mineral Industry
Africa’s critical transition minerals will be vital to replacing fossil fuels that pollute the atmosphere and accelerate climate change. With an equitable structure, the mining industry has the potential to bring jobs and capital to Africa; however, the current prevailing model of unregulated and dangerous mines, conflict-sourced minerals, entrenched poverty, and chronic environmental damage is not sustainable or fair to the people who supply some of the world’s most valuable and necessary resources. In recent years, some legal progress has been made; Congolese miners have won cases against cobalt mining companies for wrongful termination, injury compensation, and union representation. Continuing these efforts could bring about a world powered by renewable energy that doesn’t sacrifice miners’ human rights.
Green Sedan parked in front of building. Source: Pexels; Photo by Yuting Gao: https://www.pexels.com/photo/green-sedan-parked-on-front-of-building-1637112/
Cuba has an extensive colonial history; it was colonized by the Spanish. Until 1810, Cuba was officially part of the vast Spanish Empire that spread out across the Americas. It was also one of the key ports in the Atlantic world of plantation economies and slavery. According to Alexander von Humboldt, the Spanish Empire represented the true wealth of America, because the competing colonies were small islands and coastal settlements. Spain lost its mainland colonies during the Spanish American wars of independence, which lasted until about 1830, but the majority of the Cuban elite remained loyal to Spain for economic reasons. The Cuban colony had previously built a crucial sugar industry that relied on an extensive amount of slave labor. Havana and Matanzas had become the wealthiest agricultural region in the Atlantic/ American world. It was home to a highly industrialized form of export agriculture known as “Cuba A” or “Big Cuba,” characterized by large-scale slavery, modern sugar mills and advanced infrastructure like railroads. From 1820 to 1870, Cuba also depended heavily on the illegal slave trade, which provided the financial and human foundation for its expanding sugar-based economy.
Racism in Cuba was based on supposed biological differences. The first efforts to develop a legal understanding of the Cuban Black class were undertaken by Spain’s imperial elite through the introduction of new slave codes in 1785 and 1789. In the “Código Negro Carolino” for the island of Santo Domingo, the Crown and its colonial power structures aimed to codify a rigid hierarchy of social classes organized according to skin color and geographic ancestry which was based on Africa. At the bottom of this system was the “negro class” made up of enslaved people. Right above the enslaved people were the free people of color, classified as Blacks, Mulattos, and Pardos.
Marriage across these color lines allowed for limited movement within the hierarchy. When a darker woman ranging in classification from Black to light mulatta married a lighter-skinned man, their children could occupy one of several intermediary ranks of Tercerones and Cuarterones. By the sixth generation, if the paternal line had consistently remained white, the descendants could legally be recognized as white. As these codes established and reinforced the boundaries of the Black class, separating it sharply from other colonial castes, the Spanish Crown opened paths for social mobility. Wealthy Morenos, Pardos, and mulattos were permitted to purchase the privileges of whiteness such as title “don,” membership in elite professional guilds, and higher education. As a result, these reforms both institutionalized races as a legal category and reinforced Cuba’s racial order. However, limited upward socioeconomic mobility was available for those who could afford it.
Bringing it Back to the Present
Man wearing straw hat, smoking a cigar. Source: Pexels; Photo by Anton: https://www.pexels.com/photo/man-wearing-straw-hat-while-smoking-47296/
Castroism, though it claims to be egalitarian and did result in material gains for the Afro-Cuban population, did not eradicate racism. Behind all of the government’s efforts to promote equality hid the continual traces of colorism and racism in Cuba. Although Cuba projected itself internationally as a champion of racial justice, this image hid continuous forms of inequalities at home. After the Cuban revolution, official claims that racism had been eliminated made public discussions of race taboo. The Castro government even dissolved Afro-Cuban clubs and associations that had long served as spaces for advocacy and mutual support. This is in direct violation of Article 1 of the UDHR which states that all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and that they are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood. The silencing of Afro-Cuban Clubs that served as a place for advocacy shows that the government and others within Cuban society did not want Blacks to have much of a say-so, perhaps because they did not feel as if the Afro-Cubans had the same status and dignity as the rest of the population.
This illusion of racial unity began to unravel following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1989. Subsequent reforms reshaped Cuba’s economy and exposed the racial disparities that revolutionary rhetoric had long denied. Today, racial hierarchies remain deeply embedded in everyday life. In fact, speaking openly about racial inequality can result in social backlash. This was the case as Afro-Cuban clubs face backlash as they tried to talk about disparities in the Afro-Cuban community and provide advocacy. This is also a direct violation of the UDHR’s preamble as it describes that freedom of speech should be enjoyed by all. It is also a violation of Article 20, which says that “everyone has the right to freedom of peaceful assembly and association.”
Colorism
Colorful Cuban street vendor with basket of flowers. Source: Pexels; Photo by Fernando Sánchez Aranguren: https://www.pexels.com/photo/colorful-cuban-street-vendor-with-basket-of-flowers-32512015/
One way that colorism and anti-Blackness manifest in Cuba occurs in the tourism industry. Tourism is one of the country’s main industries, and job postings in this field often use coded phrases such as searching for “buena presencia,” which translates to “good appearance”. “Good appearance” implicitly refers to physical features that are less common among Cuba’s Black population. Such practices continuously push the social and economic dominance of whiteness and scream the remnant voices of colonialism.
Colorism is also prevalent in homes, which is where racial learning begins. Cuban families are often racially diverse, and siblings can be categorized differently depending on their appearances. Within households, casual comparisons between pelo malo, which means “bad hair” and is used to refer to kinkier and darker hair, and pelo bueno, which translates to “good hair,” reflect and reproduce racial hierarchies. This shows that many Black Cubans encounter prejudice first not from the government or from other citizens, but from relatives who believe the same biases and prejudices that marginalize them.
Afro-Cubans are aware of this prejudice, as is made clear in an interview conducted by Lulu Garcia Navarro, a journalist who went to Cuba during a 2021 protest. She found that it was the Afro-Cubans that represented the majority of those involved in the protests. She said that during her visits to Cuba, she heard Afro-Cubans talk about how they are referred to in a different way or discussed differently than their white or lighter-skinned counterparts. She provided more context for listeners by interviewing Dr. Amalia Dache, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania who researches Cuba, about this phenomenon. Dache confirmed that the lighter-skinned Cuban population saw the darker skinned Afro-Cuban population as subordinate or as second-class citizens. She then said that “The colonial system of race did not end with the revolution.” Clearly, Cuba has a long way to go when it comes to building a society that respects all people. Still, there are efforts to improve, as demonstrated by the strong Cuban presence at the May 2025 meeting of the Permanent Forum on People of African Descent at the United Nations. It is also encouraging to see that, since April 2018, there have been many high-level politicians in Cuba who are Black. As Raúl Castro noted in his April 2018 retirement speech, racism is still rife in Cuba. However, Afro-Cubans are working hard to change this.
In principle, this could extend care to underserved populations and reduce the global burden of mental illness. But the technology is emerging in a context of longstanding disparities in mental health care; differences in who is diagnosed, who receives care, and who gets quality treatment.
How Bias Enters AI-based Mental Health Tools
Bias in AI systems does not begin with the algorithm alone; it often starts with the data. Historical and structural inequities, under-representation of certain demographic groups, and sensor or model limitations can all embed biased patterns that then get automated.
In the mental health screening context, a study from the University of Colorado found that tools screening speech for depression or anxiety performed less well for women and people of non‐white racial identity because of differences in speech patterns and model training bias. A separate study of four large language models (LLMs) found that for otherwise identical hypothetical psychiatric cases, treatment recommendations differed when the patient was identified (explicitly or implicitly) as African American, suggesting racial bias.
These disparities matter: if a diagnostic tool is less accurate for certain groups, those groups may receive delayed or improper care or be misdiagnosed. From a rights perspective, this raises issues of equality and non-discrimination. Every individual has a right to healthcare of acceptable quality, regardless of race, gender, socioeconomic status, or other status.
Human Rights Implications
Right to health and equitable access
Under human rights law, states have obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill the right to health. That includes ensuring mental health services are available, accessible, acceptable and of quality. If AI tools become widespread but are biased against certain groups, the quality and accessibility of care will differ, and that violates the equality dimension of the right to health.
Right to non-discrimination
The principle of non-discrimination is foundational: individuals should not face less favorable treatment due to race, gender, language, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, or other prohibited grounds. If an AI mental health tool systematically under-detects problems among women or ethnic minorities or over-targets mental-health evaluation for other groups, discrimination is implicated. For instance, a study found LGBTQIA+ individuals were much more likely to be recommended mental health assessments by AI tools than was clinically indicated based on socioeconomic or demographic profile.
Right to privacy, autonomy and dignity
Mental health data is deeply personal. The use of AI to screen, predict or recommend treatment based on speech, text or behavior engages issues of privacy and autonomy. Individuals must be able to consent, understand how their data is used, challenge decisions, and access human oversight. The systematic review flagged “autonomy and human agency” as core ethical considerations.
When AI systems target certain groups disproportionately, for example, recommending mental health assessments for lower-income or LGBTQIA+ individuals when not clinically indicated, it may reinforce stigma. Being singled out for mental health screening based on demographic profile rather than actual need can produce feelings of being pathologized or surveilled.
These psychological effects show that bias in AI is not just a technical defect; it can ripple into lived experience, identity, mental health trajectories, and rights realization.
Image 2: Chatbot conversation with AI technology online customer service. Adobe Express Stock Images. khunkornStudio. #567681994
Why AI Bias Persists and What Makes Mental Health AI Especially Vulnerable
Mental health diagnosis is not purely objective; it involves interpretation, cultural nuance, and relational trust. AI tools often cannot replicate that nuance and may misinterpret behaviors or speech patterns that differ culturally. That raises a psychological dimension: people from different backgrounds may present differently, and a one-size-fits-all tool may misclassify them.
Moving Toward Rights-Respecting AI in Mental Health
Given the stakes for rights and psychology, what should stakeholders do? Below are guiding principles anchored in human rights considerations and psychological realities:
Rights to remedy and accountability
When AI-driven systems produce harmful or discriminatory outcomes, individuals must have paths to redress. Clear accountability must be established among developers, providers, and institutions. Regulatory frameworks should reflect human rights standards: non-discrimination, equal treatment, and access to care of quality.
Psychological safety and dignity
Mental health tools must respect the dignity of individuals, allow for cultural nuance, and avoid pathologizing individuals based purely on demographic algorithms. The design of AI tools should consider psychological impacts: does this tool enhance trust, reduce stigma, and facilitate care, or does it increase anxiety, self-doubt, or disengagement?
Translate rights into policy and practice
States and professional bodies should integrate guidelines for AI in mental health into regulation, licensing, and accreditation structures. Civil society engagement, which includes patient voices, mental-health advocates, and rights organizations, is critical to shaping responsible implementation.
Looking Ahead: Opportunities and Risks
AI has enormous potential to improve access to mental health care, personalize care, and detect risks earlier than ever before. But, as with many new technologies, the impacts will not be equal by default. Without a proactive focus on bias, human rights, and psychological nuance, we risk a two-tier system: those who benefit versus those left behind or harmed.
In a favorable scenario, AI tools become transparent and inclusive, and they empower both clinicians and patients. They support, rather than supplant, human judgement; they recognize diversity of presentation; they strengthen trust and equity in mental health care.
In a less favorable scenario, AI solidifies existing disparities, misdiagnoses or omits vulnerable groups, and erodes trust in mental-health systems, compounding rights violations with psychological harm.
The path that materializes will depend on choices made today: how we design AI tools, how we regulate them, and how we embed rights and psychological insight into their use. For people seeking mental health support, equity and dignity must remain at the heart of innovation.
Conclusion
The use of AI in mental health diagnostics offers promise, but it also invites serious rights-based scrutiny. From equality of access and non-discrimination to privacy, dignity and psychological safety, the human rights stakes are real and urgent. Psychologists, technologists, clinicians, regulators and rights advocates must work together to ensure that AI supports mental health for all, not just for some. When bias is allowed to persist, the consequences are not only technical, but they’re also human.
This year in Zambia, Chambishi residents saw the Kafue River die before their eyes. Millions of liters of acidic, contaminated water containing toxic mining chemicals burst from a dam in February. Crops and animals died as residents suffered the effects of careless mining practices. This incident raises questions about environmental concerns regarding current mining practices in Zambia, as well as how to address cleanup and compensation for affected communities whose human rights were violated by this event.
Dam Failure and Toxic Water Spill
On February 18, a dam at the Sino-Metals Leach Zambia mining site collapsed, releasing a reported 50 million liters of contaminated water that flooded into the Chambishi Copper Belt region. Toxic spillage, containing heavy metals and high levels of acidity, flowed at least 60 miles down the Kafue River, a major river in Zambia used by many locals for fishing, irrigation, and water.
Image of the Kafue River Source: Olympian Xeus, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons
The immediate effects on the region were apparent in the devastation to local wildlife. The head of a Zambian monitoring group, Nsama Rusonda, reported the aftermath of the acid spill was shocking, saying, “It was a horror to see maize, bean crops that were green the night before, just turn brown. Tonnes of dead fish were floating in local riverways.” The environmental devastation was one of the first things to catch locals’ attention, but as time goes on, more and more effects of the toxic spill are becoming apparent.
Initial Reports and Health Concerns of Residents
The Kafue River is one of the largest rivers in Zambia, and many locals use it as a source of water for drinking, washing, and for their animals and crops. In the days after the spill, people ingested toxins through contaminated water and food, leading to “headaches, coughs, diarrhea, muscle cramps, and even sores on their legs.” Zambia’s reliance on the Kafue also exacerbates the seriousness of the crisis. 21 million people live in Zambia, and more than half rely on the river for water. For example, health concerns led to the water being turned off in the city of Kitwe, leaving 700,000 people without access to water. To drive home the magnitude of this catastrophe, Kitwe is Zambia’s second-largest city, and cutting off water to 700,000 people would be like cutting off the water to all of Washington, DC.
Officials from the Sino-Metal mining company expressed their regret for the incident shortly after it occurred, stating their intent to assist both with environmental cleanup efforts and to re-establish the economic means of affected individuals. To determine the scope of the damage, Sino-Metals needed to conduct an ecological study. South African company Drizit found that 1.5 million tonnes of hazardous waste were released during the dam collapse, 30 times the 50,000 tonnes initially reported by Sino-Metal. The need for outside observers during environmental disasters is crucial. It’s necessary to provide an objective report on the damage that communities and nations, particularly developing ones, have suffered, so they can respond appropriately, warn their residents, and hold parties accountable for human rights violations.
Official Response
In the days after the spill, the Zambian government worked to reverse the environmental damage. Hundreds of tons of lime were dumped into affected waterways in an effort to combat acidity from the spill. Zambian officials faced the challenge of finding an appropriate response that balanced harm to residents with environmental concerns, while also working with foreign powers and important infrastructure investments in their country. When Sino-Metals gave a $580,000 payout, Zambian Vice-President Nalumango remarked that this must be coupled with neutral environmental analysis to ensure proper reparations. Nalumango further said, “If the damage to the land and livelihoods proves to be more extensive or long-lasting than initially understood, then further compensation will be necessary and it will be pursued.” This approach will allow flexibility in Zambia’s approach, enabling it to assess whether additional negative effects arise for residents over time and then pursue more compensation accordingly.
Vice-President of Zambia Mutale Nalumango Source: Chellah Tukuta Rancen, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
Despite the words promising accountability and help from Sino-Metal, Zambia’s ability to force them into meaningful action remains limited. In direct response to the acid spill, Zambia fined Sino-Metals $50,000. This fine is not enough for restoration efforts and is an insignificant amount compared to the widespread damage to Zambia and the harm done to communities. Differences in political and economic power between countries may create additional difficulties when a smaller country is seeking recourse against a larger one. This may especially true for Zambia, a country heavily dependent on copper production, which has received $3.5 billion in investments from China in the past two decades associated with mining and metal in Zambia. Such dependence on economic support from larger countries may dissuade countries from taking action against foreign players in order to continue receiving funding.
Recent Analysis
While bureaucracy and legal proceedings may take months, residents face daily struggles in the aftermath of the disaster. Conditions from the spill persist in their toxicity to such a degree that Finland issued a travel advisory regarding high levels of toxic heavy metals in the water, and the US embassy issued an evacuation order for all officials from the area, citing health concerns related to the environmental state. In light of such serious concerns raised by other countries, Zambia was thrust into the international spotlight.
With global attention, Zambia seemed to dismiss concerns and assure that harms had been dealt with. A spokesperson from Zambia reported, “pH levels have returned to normal and concentrations of heavy metals are steadily decreasing, which means that the immediate danger to human, animal and plant life has been averted.”
Conveyor systems, often used in mining operations. Source: pkproject via Adobe Stock Images, Licensed for Educational Use
Residents affected by the pollution continue to complain of many physical ailments, including headaches and diarrhea, but the Zambian government’s dismissive attitudes towards concerns seems as though they are prioritizing their appearance and foreign investors over their citizens’ right to health.
While the mining sector is crucial for much of Zambia’s economic activity, it is, from a human rights standpoint, unacceptable for the government to not protect its citizens and to ignore or hide obvious and continued harms. A government’s duty to the wellbeing of its citizens should be foremost in its response during a crisis.
Chinese Influences and Zambia’s Future
This is not the only time mining activities have concerned residents in Zambia. In the past, residents have contracted lead poisoning from pollution incidents and mining operations, while schools have been shut down due to noise and hazardous chemicals.
Balancing China’s interests in minerals with protecting Zambia’s environment and communities is a difficult task for Zambia, especially when they have received billions in funding from China and are over $4 billion in debt to China. These power imbalances can lead to struggles for accountability and justice at both the community and national levels.
This toxic spill is only one event in a disturbing pattern of environmental devastation in Zambia. Access to clean water, secure livelihoods, and environmental justice are crucial to the survival and well-being of many residents. The Zambian response to this latest disaster will set expectations for future interactions and shape the fate of thousands of Zambians, and it is to be hoped that Zambia prioritizes its citizens’ human rights over all other concerns.
In mid-January 2025, people living among rural hills and rivers of the Catatumbo subregion of Norte de Santander —along Colombia’s border with Venezuela— faced a drastic and sudden surge of violence. Rival armed groups clashed in a territorial battle that forced tens of thousands of men, women, and children to flee their homes in a matter of weeks. According to available estimates, more than 56,000 people were displaced during this outbreak. Entire communities were uprooted almost overnight. Families left behind crops, homes, and schools as they escaped through mountains, carrying little more than what they could hold. Some families traveled for days on foot, crossing rivers and unpaved trails, hoping to reach towns where humanitarian aid might be available. The journey itself was dangerous, exposing them to natural hazards, extreme weather, and the constant threat of encountering armed actors along the way.
Despite the urgency and scale of this crisis, national and international coverage faded quickly after the first wave of reports in January and February 2025. That silence matters. When forced displacement disappears from headlines, so do the people living it. This invisibility normalizes neglect, delays humanitarian responses, and weakens accountability.
The invisibility of the crisis is not just informational, it is political.
Photo 2: A view of indigenous children from the Embera people, displaced by armed conflict. Source: UN Photo; by Mark Garten; Unique Identifier: UN7715269.
The Stakes: Life, Dignity, and the Fabric of Communities
This is not only a crisis of numbers—it is a crisis of rights and belonging. When the state cannot or will not guarantee protection, internal borders form. These lines are not drawn on maps, but rather through abandonment, neglect, and fear. Those living within these invisible borders are often left to face violence alone. The humanitarian system’s focus on immediate relief, without long-term strategies for restitution or reintegration, risks perpetuating these cycles of vulnerability.
For families, documentation gives words to experiences that are otherwise invisible. It allows survivors to describe what happened, who was affected, and who is responsible. Lists of victims, personal testimonies, and photographs are far more than records, they’re tools for protection, reparations, and accountability. Imagine a parent reporting that their teenage child has been forcibly recruited by an armed group; that report isn’t just a number in a database. It can trigger emergency protection measures, alert authorities to ongoing recruitment campaigns, and eventually inform broader policy changes. Photographs of destroyed homes, abandoned fields, or burned schools can serve as concrete evidence in legal and advocacy processes, ensuring that destruction and loss don’t go unnoticed.
But documentation on its own isn’t enough. In Catatumbo, the state is often absent, and political will is inconsistent at best. Armed groups operate with near impunity, while local authorities may lack the capacity, or the security, to act on reports of abuse. Without a platform to turn these records into action, documentation risks becoming a snapshot of suffering rather than a catalyst for change. This is why media attention, advocacy, and international solidarity are so essential. Without them, even the most thorough documentation can sit in databases without effecting any real-world impact.
The Colombian Truth Commission (CEV) has stressed that remembering is key to preventing repetition. Its final report highlights how collective memory plays a central role in breaking cycles of violence. But if testimonies simply sit in a database without leading to policy reforms or justice initiatives, then impunity continues, and survivors remain vulnerable. In other words, documentation must have a purpose: it must feed into action, whether through legal avenues, public policy, or protective measures.
Local communities have also taken matters into their own hands. Community radio stations like Voces del Catatumbo act as informal archives of survival. They broadcast updates, report abuses, and provide essential information about displacement, health, and security. These stations give residents a platform to be heard in real time and foster a sense of connection in a region where isolation is a constant threat. They are also a reminder that documentation isn’t just a bureaucratic process—it’s lived, community-driven work that can save lives.
Photo 4: A passenger truck travels on the road between Riohacha and Uribia on La Guajira peninsula, Colombia. Source: UN Photo; by Gill Fickling; Unique Identifier: UN7386312.
What We Can Do as Readers, Citizens, and Advocates
Keeping eyes on Catatumbo is both a moral and political act. Sharing verified information, reading humanitarian updates, and amplifying local voices helps keep the crisis visible. International partners can support local organizations with funding and technical assistance, while citizens can call for greater accountability from their governments and international institutions.
We must hold two truths together: the urgency of humanitarian needs today, and the necessity of long-term justice and inclusion. Attention, when sustained and informed, can make a difference.
If we listen to the people of Catatumbo—and now those arriving in Cúcuta—we learn that rebuilding is not only about returning to what once was. It is about imagining what could be: a community whose safety, dignity, and memory are protected, not merely by the absence of conflict, but by the presence of justice.
Image 1: Peaceful protester holds sign representing Sudanese flag in front of his face. Source: Adobe Stock. By: Gérard Bottino. Assert ID#: 273049844.
Gaseous chlorine is a yellow-greenish gas that, when inhaled, is extremely toxic and harmful to the body. It is a pulmonary irritant that burns conjunctiva, the throat, and the bronchial tree. In plain terms, it is a choking agent. When chlorine gas is inhaled, the respiratory tract is severely affected. The air sac in the lungs begins to secrete fluid, which causes a person to feel as if they are drowning. When used as a weapon, chlorine gas causes severe respiratory issues and, in extreme cases, death.
Recently, evidence has been brought forth in regards to Sudan’s military using chlorine gas as a weapon. The use of chlorine gas as a weapon goes against the Chemical Weapons Convention and is considered a war crime. Previously, at the end of 2024, a blog was written in relation to the civil war in Sudan by another blog writer. If you would like to read about the beginning of the war check out Delisha Valacheril’s blog post Civil War in Sudan: What is Happening and How to Help. This blog will address the Sudanese military’s use of chlorine gas amidst the humanitarian crisis and ongoing civil war in Sudan.
On May 22, 2025, the U.S. Department of State released a press statement that determined that the Sudanese military had used chemical weapons in 2024 that were in violation of the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991 (CBW Act). The statement neglected to detail which chemicals were used, and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) denied any such use of chemicals.
Since the U.S. Department of State’s press statement in May 2025, new evidence of the Sudanese military’s using chemical weapons has emerged. International news channel France 24 observed two incidents that occurred in September 2024, where the Sudanese Army was attempting to recapture al-Jaili oil refinery, which was then under Rapid Support Forces (RSF) control. In France 24’s investigation, they discovered that the chlorine canisters found around the oil refinery could only be carried by aircraft that the Sudanese military has exclusive access to.
Along with that, one of the oil barrels was imported from India by a Sudanese company that also supplies the Sudanese Army. The pictures and videos containing evidence of chlorine gas being used can be viewed in France 24’s report, linked here. In the pictures yellow-green clouds and large canisters with the remnant of a bright yellow chemical can be seen.
Utilizing chlorine gas as a weapon is a violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention. As such, the use of chemicals by Sudan’s military is considered a war crime and, should the individuals responsible be identified, they could be punished in the International Criminal Court (ICC). This violation also goes against international humanitarian law, which seeks to decrease the effects of armed conflict and protects non-combatants. The deliberate use of chlorine gas, which affected not only RSF, but also civilians working at the oil refinery, emphasizes the growing danger in Sudan.
The Ongoing War in Sudan and Humanitarian Crisis:
Image 3: Refugee camp full of people who took refuge due to insecurity and armed conflict. Source: Adobe Stock. By: Miros. Asset ID#541706323
The ongoing war officially began April 15, 2023 when Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and RSF engaged in violent conflict, which both sides stated the other started. Prior to the war, tensions had been increasing between leadership of the SAF and RSF. Background on the conflict and leadership is available in the aforementioned blog post Civil War in Sudan: What is Happening and How to Help.
However, as far back as 2016, there have been reports of chemical weapons being used on people in Darfur, a remote area in Sudan. Amnesty International found evidence that these weapons had resulted in the injury and death of many Sudanese civilians. In September of 2016, Amnesty International reported that around 30 chemical attacks were used in remote areas within Darfur, Sudan. These attacks resulted in chemical injuries and painful deaths. The people most affected by these attacks were children. In interviews, Darfurian villagers talk about blistering skin and rashes amongst many other symptoms from chemical exposure.
The struggle of Sudan has been a largely silent affair, one that is often overlooked by the media and the rest of the world. The lack of coverage of this conflict happens in spite of the fact that Sudan is currently experiencing the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis since World War II. The fight for power between SAF and RSF has left many areas of Sudan completely destroyed. Families have been forced to flee their homes, crops have been decimated, and villages have been set ablaze.
Since the fighting began, an estimated 150,000 people have been killed, and another 14 million have been displaced. Due to the large influx of people fleeing the conflict, refugee camps in South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Chad have been filled past their capacity. Furthermore, because of the fighting between the Sudanese army and the RSF militia, close to 30 million people in Sudan need assistance in various forms, such as medical attention, food aid, housing, etc. On the border of Chad and Sudan, around 850,000 people are seeking refuge and aid.
Throughout the war, hospitals, schools, and homes have been targeted and destroyed. This is another violation of international humanitarian law, no matter which side targeted civilian infrastructure. With housing and hospitals continuing to be destroyed, food insecurity and malnutrition are steadily increasing.
Conclusion:
When chlorine gas is used, or any gaseous chemical for that matter, it does not discriminate in who is affected. It burns the lungs and restricts the breathing of anyone it touches: combatant, non-combatant, or children. The use of such weapons is in violation of the Chemical Weapons Convention and international humanitarian law. It is a war crime, and it is something that no person, least of all children, should experience.
The war in Sudan has been ongoing for over 2 years now. The people of Sudan continue to suffer, and the conflict shows little sign of ending soon. Moments like this underscore the urgent need for humanitarian aid and media attention.
AdobeStock_136448884 – Maid changing pillows during housekeeping By Robert Kneschke
When Rosa* arrived to clean guest rooms at a popular beach hotel, the recruiter’s promises still echoed: “$12 an hour, free housing, and a chance to learn English.” Her temporary work visa had cost thousands in “fees,” which the recruiter said she could repay from her first months of wages. But the free housing was a crowded motel room with six other women. The “fees” kept growing. Her passport was locked in a supervisor’s desk “for safety.” Twelve-hour shifts stretched into sixteen. If she complained, the supervisor reminded her that she “owed” the company and could be sent home in debt, or reported to immigration. Rosa wasn’t chained. She could walk to and from work. Yet every part of her life, documents, debt, threats, and isolation, was controlled.
Rosa didn’t know it had a name. It does: labor trafficking.
What is labor trafficking?
Under U.S. law, labor trafficking (also called forced labor) occurs when someone obtains another person’s labor or services through force, fraud, or coercion. This includes threats of serious harm, schemes, abuse of legal process (for example, threatening deportation), or withholding documents and wages to compel work.
Globally, the International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates 27.6 million people are in forced labor on any given day. A 2021 report estimated that 50 million people are in “modern slavery,” which also includes forced marriage. In 2024, the ILO reported that illegal profits from forced labor in the private economy reached $236 billion annually, a 37% increase over a decade; this is evidence that coercion is lucrative for traffickers and intermediaries.
AdobeStock_36854977. Businessman holding a bag full of money. By RODWORKS
How does it happen? The “means” traffickers use
The ILO identifies 11 indicators that commonly appear in forced labor situations. You rarely need all 11 to determine risk; one or more strong indicators can be enough to signal danger. These are abuse of vulnerability, deception, restriction of movement, isolation, physical or sexual violence, intimidation and threats, retention of identity documents, withholding wages, debt bondage, abusive working and living conditions, and excessive overtime.
Rosa’s story shows several in practice:
Debt bondage via unlawful recruitment fees and deductions.
Withholding documents (passport confiscation).
Threats and abuse of legal process (“We’ll call immigration”).
Excessive overtime and abusive conditions.
These tactics can entrap anyone, citizens and migrants, men and women, adults and youth.
AdobeStock_321877815-1. Man putting smartphone, passport and money into safe. By New Africa
Where labor trafficking shows up (it’s closer than you think)
Hospitality, cleaning, and landscaping: Hotels, resorts, commercial cleaning, and landscaping often rely on subcontractors and staffing agencies, which can obscure who is responsible for wages, safety, and housing. The National Human Trafficking Hotline has identified hundreds of potential victims linked to hospitality supply chains.
Construction and manufacturing: Long hours, dangerous sites, and layers of subcontracting elevate the risk of coercion, document retention, and threats. The ILO’s indicators surface repeatedly in these sectors.
Domestic work and caregiving: Workers in private homes can be isolated from the public and regulators, leaving them vulnerable to withheld wages, restricted movement, and threats. The ILO’s global estimates include millions of cases of domestic work under forced labor.
Seafood and global supply chains: Beyond U.S. borders, supply chains can mask the use of forced labor in fishing, seafood processing, apparel, electronics, and more. The U.S. Department of Labor’s List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor is a sobering catalog, as it lists 204 goods from 82 countries (as of Sept. 5, 2024). Policymakers and purchasers use it to identify high-risk imports and improve due diligence.
AdobeStock_573441418. Exhausted little girl sitting on floor – labor exploitation. By AungMyo
State action and import bans
In recent years, the U.S. has restricted imports tied to forced labor under the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) and other authorities, adding companies to enforcement lists and blocking imports in sectors such as footwear, aluminum, and seafood. These steps matter because cutting off profits reduces incentives to exploit.
Recruitment fees and debt: Workers are charged unlawful or inflated fees by recruiters. Debts balloon through deductions for housing, equipment, or transport, paid back through labor; the worker can’t freely leave.
Document confiscation: Passports, IDs, or visas are held “for safekeeping,” removing mobility and increasing fear.
Threats and abuse of legal process: Supervisors threaten deportation, blacklisting, or calling the police if workers complain.
Isolation: Workers are transported to remote sites, housed on-site, or told not to speak to neighbors, customers, or inspectors.
Wage theft and excessive overtime: Unpaid overtime, below-minimum wages, or pay withheld until a season ends.
Subcontracting opacity: When multiple entities sit between the worker and the brand, accountability gets murky, and traffickers exploit the gaps.
AdobeStock_265465062. Teenage girl with other homeless people receiving food. By New Africa
How is labor trafficking different from “regular” workplace abuse?
Workplace violations (like unpaid overtime) are serious and enforceable through agencies like the U.S. Department of Labor, but they are not all trafficking. Trafficking involves a compelling mechanism (force, fraud, or coercion) that deprives a worker of a meaningful choice to leave. If you see indicators like debt bondage, document confiscation, or threats of serious harm or deportation, you may be looking at forced labor, which is a crime.
What progress looks like
Governments, companies, and civil society have tools to reduce risk:
AdobeStock_475597494.jpeg. “Ban goods made with forced labor ” By AndriiKoval
How you can help (even if you’re not sure it’s trafficking)
You don’t have to decide whether a situation is “definitely” trafficking. If you notice multiple indicators, such as debts used to control, threats, confiscated documents, isolation, abusive conditions, withheld wages, or excessive overtime, say something. Trained specialists can sort out whether it’s a labor law violation, trafficking, or both, and connect people to help.
In the United States
National Human Trafficking Hotline – 1-888-373-7888 (24/7), text “BEFREE” (233733), or online report/chat: humantraffickinghotline.org. (The hotline is supported by Health and Human Services and is transitioning operators; the number and channels remain active.)
DHS Blue Campaign / ICE HSI Tip Line – To reach federal law enforcement directly about suspected trafficking or smuggling: 1-866-347-2423 or submit an online tip.
OSHA – For unsafe or abusive working conditions posing imminent danger: 1-800-321-OSHA (6742).
911 – If someone is in immediate danger.
If you’re an employer or community leader, post these numbers in break rooms, faith centers, and shelters—and ensure reporting won’t trigger retaliation.
Bringing it back to Rosa
One winter night, a guest slipped Rosa a folded flyer with a number and the words: “You have rights.” She called during her only free hour. The advocate didn’t ask her to be certain; they asked about indicators, debt, documents, threats, wages, and hours, and created a safety plan. Law enforcement and labor investigators coordinated with a local nonprofit. Rosa got her passport back, moved into safe housing, recovered wages, and started English classes. She still cleans rooms, but now she does it on her own terms, and she keeps extra copies of that number in her apron pocket.
AdobeStock_239599722.jpeg. Young chambermaid with clean towels in bedroom By New Africa
If you or someone you know might be experiencing labor trafficking:
An expansion to a natural gas pipeline is slated to begin construction in the fourth quarter of 2026, a project that the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) has called a “fossil fuel superhighway.” The proposed South System Expansion 4 project is a $3.5 billion pipeline expansion that would span 291 miles across Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. It has been proposed to upgrade the Southeastern United States’ energy grid, providing an additional 1.3 billion cubic feet of natural gas capacity per day. Kinder Morgan, the company presiding over the project, touts the market-driven demand for natural gas and the sustainable growth that the expansion will bring to the region. The SELC cites environmental and economic concerns, urging the federal government to take careful consideration of the adverse impacts that this pipeline expansion could have on the communities through which it passes.
The project is currently under review by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which must issue a certificate of public convenience and necessity to construct any interstate natural gas pipeline. FERC accepted public comments that address potential hazards, externalities, alternatives, and relevant information regarding the project until October 6th. In a joint statement of protest, several organizations, including Alabama Rivers Alliance, Blackbelt Women Rising, and Energy Alabama, pointed out potential issues with the pipeline for FERC’s consideration. NYU Policy Integrity also urged FERC to consider environmental concerns in its decision.
ƒmodiSSE4 Environmental Impact Statement
Under the National Environmental Policy Act, an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) outlining the potential externalities of any project under FERC’s jurisdiction is required. The joint protest issued by Alabama Rivers Alliance, Blackbelt Women Rising, Energy Alabama, and others urges FERC to fully consider the effects of 14 new natural gas pipeline loops on water quality, endangered species, air quality, and marginalized communities in its EIS. In an outline of the project, Kinder Morgan addressed environmental concerns; they claim that the project is “committed to protecting significant cultural sites and environmentally sensitive areas.” The overview explains the environmental considerations they will make before, during, and after the project’s conclusion. It states that the field surveys will be conducted to avoid sensitive areas, environmental inspectors will monitor the project as it progresses, and land will be re-seeded and restored after completion.
The joint protest raises additional concerns. Crossing rivers and streams using open-cut methods can increase the water’s total suspended solids and damage local ecosystems. Horizontal directional drilling causes erosion. The project would require 130 million gallons of water, which would require extraction that can cause “water-shed wide ecological stress.” It also mentions that “[o]ut of the 14 compressor stations being modified as part of this Project, only one compressor unit is slated to be electric.” These non-electric compressor stations produce harmful pollutants like nitrogen dioxide and volatile organic compounds. The pipeline will also run across Alabama’s Blackbelt region, which already deals with toxic coal ash, industrial wastewater, and other environmental injustices.
As NYU Policy Integrity mentions, under a recent memorandum released by the Council on Environmental Quality, FERC is not required to examine environmental justice issues when considering a project’s potential harm and impact. This memorandum is in accordance with the January 2025 executive order Unleashing American Energy, signed by President Trump, which directs federal agencies to “expedite permitting approvals.” The memorandum adds that agencies “must prioritize efficiency and certainty over any other policy objectives.” However, FERC is still required to examine potential harms to the public, and the effects of the pipeline construction cannot be divorced from the local situation of the pipeline’s immediate impact area. The pipeline will cross through areas with higher concentrations of particulate matter than the national average. According to data collected from County Health Rankings and Roadmaps, the eleven Alabama counties that the project is projected to cross have an average of 8.9 micrograms per cubic meter of fine particulate matter in the air; the US average is 7.3. The prevalence of asthma among adults was also higher than the national average in each of the Alabama counties, according to 2022 CDC PLACES data. NYU Policy Integrity also lists elevated economic indicators of social vulnerability, including higher rates of poverty, near planned compressor stations. Given that the local populations already face health challenges linked to the environment, FERC’s consideration of the potential harms from the pipeline expansion should include the compounding effects of the pipeline’s construction in an area already impacted by environmental degradation.
FERC and Procedural Rights
FERC’s upcoming Environmental Impact Statement on the effects of the pipeline expansion represents environmental rights in action. Procedural rights, or the rights of people to participate in processes, are a cornerstone of environmental rights. The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) defines procedural rights as “access to information, public participation, and access to justice.” These rights are important for protecting the environment and upholding the rule of law. The UN’s 2019 Environmental Rule of Law report found that civic participation in environmental decisions in the US led to innovative, cost-effective solutions by adding information to analyses and reframing issues. The basis for these rights in international law comes from the 1992 Rio Declaration and the 1998 Aarhus Convention. The US is not a signatory to the Aarhus Convention, but the National Environmental Policy Act enshrines some of the same ideals in US law. The Environmental Impact Statement promotes public access to information, while the Joint Protest statement and NYU Policy Integrity’s report are examples of public participation. Access to justice is upheld when agencies like FERC take into consideration environmental injustices and hold companies to account.
Deregulation
Procedural and environmental rights at large may be in danger, as recent developments in US policy are clearing the path for the oil and gas industry at any cost. President Trump has championed a deregulatory agenda, notably withdrawing from the Paris Agreement and attempting to overturn the EPA’s 2009 endangerment finding. The Paris Agreement, adopted by 195 countries in 2015, set goals to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Methane, a greenhouse gas, has a much higher global warming potential than carbon dioxide, and a recent review of scientific literature suggests that natural gas pipelines’ emission impacts have been underestimated. The EPA’s endangerment finding, released in response to the Supreme Court’s Massachusetts v. EPA ruling, found that under the Clean Air Act, the agency is required to place limits on greenhouse gas emissions. The endangerment finding treats greenhouse gases like other harmful chemical pollutants because they also endanger public health, though on a broader scale than localized pollutants.
The Southern Environmental Law Center opposes the South System Expansion 4 project in part because of the immediate effects on the communities located in its path, but also because it expands the reliance on natural gas while increasing energy bills for regular people. Executive director of Energy Alabama Daniel Tait claims, “Alabamians will be stuck with the bill for decades while utilities invest in fossil fuels instead of cheaper, cleaner alternatives.” However, Kinder Morgan’s vice president of public affairs, Allen Fore, argues that Alabama Power and the Southeast will benefit from the additional natural gas capacity.
As with any project on this scale, the South System Expansion 4 pipeline is controversial. It raises questions about sustainable development, corporate responsibility, and the federal regulatory process. Central to all energy developments should be the right of impacted communities to their health and well-being. Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights outlines the right to an adequate standard of living, which the SSE4 puts at risk by polluting the surrounding area. FERC should listen to public comments and ensure that the project proceeds with the best interests–and the human rights–of the communities and the environment in mind.
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