The fight to end slavery continues

Amazing Grace has been recorded over 3200 times; more than any other song. It was written by John Newton, a slave trader who sold over 20,000 slaves into captivity until a near-death experience at sea prompted him to leave the slave trade and dedicate his life to Christ. The lyrics of Amazing Grace tell of the remarkable transformation God created in his life. Newton said of himself, "Only God's amazing grace could and would take a rude, profane, slave-trading sailor and transform him into a child of God."

John Newton was a mentor to William Wilberforce and encouraged him in his fight to abolish slavery. Elected to parliament at the age of 21, Wilberforce led a life-long fight to end slavery. Although continually defeated over 20 years, a law to end slavery in England was passed in 1807, the year that John Newton died.

Wilberforce continued to fight for the abolition of slavery in all British colonies for 26 more years. The law was finally passed three days before his death.

Two hundred years after the British Parliament abolished slavery and 144 years after the Emancipation Proclamation, there are still 27 million people living in slavery; more than at any other time in history.

* 27 Million: Number of people in modern-day slavery across the world
* 800,000: Number of persons trafficked across international borders each year
* 17,500: Number of foreign nationals who are trafficked into the U.S. every year
* 91: Number of cities in the United States with reported cases of trafficking
* 50: Percent of all victims are children
* 20 Million: Number of bonded laborers in the world
* 218 Million: Estimated number of children working aged between five and seventeen
* 126 Million: Estimated number of children who work in the worst forms of child labor - one in every twelve of the world's five to seventeen year olds.
* 300,000: Estimated number of child soldiers involved in over 30 areas of conflict worldwide, some younger than 10 years old.

    ***MAY 2014 UPDATE***

• Texas ranks second in calls to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center Hotline.

• 25% of international human trafficking victims are in Texas.
  

• Interstate 10 is the #1 human trafficking corridor in America.