Who we are

Our vision is freedom from slavery for everyone, everywhere, always.

We are small and powerful changemakers delivering freedom now and ensuring it for the future. We free children and adults from slavery, we equip them to claim their rights and we change systems to end slavery now and for tomorrow.

Oldest in the world

Thomas Clarkson (1760-1846) was a man who stood up for what he believed in. He refused to stand by and watch people treated as no more than collateral to be traded and abused. His fury at the injustice and cruelty of the slave trade drove him to become one of the founding fathers of the abolitionist movement. He would also become one of the founding fathers of Anti-Slavery International.

Today, at over 180 years old, we are the oldest human rights organisation in the world. We have had a clear and unerring focus since the very beginning – do everything we can to bring an end to slavery in all its forms, everywhere it occurs.

While the tricks and methods used to enslave people have evolved over that time, the crime at its heart remains the same: destroying and exploiting the lives, hopes and dreams of ordinary people in the pursuit of profit or power.

Our successes

We have had plenty of success over the years in delivering freedom from slavery to people affected.

• We brought an end to the horrific slavery practices carried out by Leopold II in Congo Free State (later the subject of Joseph Conrad’s famous novel, Heart of Darkness).
• We influenced numerous international laws and conventions, providing legal protections for millions of people affected by slavery across the world.
• We helped to force cocoa producers in West Africa to go Fairtrade and address child trafficking;
• We successfully campaigned for the UK Parliament to make forced labour a criminal offence
• We were one of the first to investigate abuses of the ‘kafalah’ system for migrant workers in the Middle East; including in Qatar ahead of the FIFA World Cup.

Today, we are working to deliver freedom from slavery for everyone, everywhere, always.

We work to make ending slavery everyone’s concern. We are an ally to survivors and people at risk of slavery. Together, we challenge and change law, policy and practice so everyone, everywhere can be free from slavery.

To have the biggest impact we can, we work in partnership with our supporters, governments, businesses, like-minded organisations and global movements to bring about long-term, sustainable change.

Working together, untangling person after person from slavery and dismantling the systems that enable exploitation, we can deliver true freedom to people across the globe.