There are many things I would not do. I would not litter. I would not poison my neighbour’s well, if he had one. I would not steal someone’s baby. I would not injure a person, especially a child. I would not stand idly by while a person was beaten. I would not overwork someone to the point of death. As much as I love chocolate I would not trade it for someone’s freedom.
Remorsefully, these are all things I have done. Not intentionally, for sure, but every time I use my purchasing power to buy a Hershey Bar or Toblerone I support people who do terrible things to other people and most often, children.
I watched a YouTube video this morning. I recommend it. I want it to help me make more informed choices and keep the chocolate experience thoroughly and far-reachingly sweet. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y882AajKo1s
I just watched the video you linked. It’s so very sad. 🙁 It makes me not want to eat chocolate anymore because how will I know which chocolate companies aren’t getting their chocolate that way? How can I still enjoy chocolate but not have to worry about the fact that it’s connected to this?
Great question, Angela. Here are a couple of links I found that list chocolate that is thought to be slave-free. The issue is a huge one and not easily remedied. As even the chocolate producers who are providing funding for education, agricultural training, and other sources of employment are not working toward rescue of enslaved children or monitoring what’s happening in the camps. Yes, it’s difficult information to grasp but worth knowing so we stop contributing to the tragedy. Let’s find a chocolatier that doesn’t buy from Guana or the Ivory Coast and help put an end to this wretched business!
http://vision.ucsd.edu/~kbranson/stopchocolateslavery/main.html
http://slavefreechocolate.org/directory-chocolate/
http://www.foodispower.org/chocolatelist.htm