‘Enormous response’ for Jewish group’s anti-slavery campaign

A Jewish human rights charity has praised an “enormous response” from the Jewish community, after dozens of synagogues signed up to speak out against modern-day slavery during Shabbat services in two weeks’ time.

The awareness-raising campaign is being organised by charity René Cassin, and is timed to coincide with World Human Rights Day on 10 December. The organisation offers an online resource pack, including sermon notes and information on topics such as protecting overseas domestic workers.

Mia Hasenson-Gross, director of René Cassin, said: “The pain of slavery has particular resonance with Jewish people. That is clear in the enormous response we’ve had on this issue from synagogues – including one from Barcelona.”

She added: “Slavery conjures up images of the Israelites exiled in Egypt, or the infamous trans-Atlantic trade. But the terrible truth is that today more people are enslaved than at any time in history – including some 13,000 here in the UK.”