Jada Pinkett-Smith–actress, mother, musician, and wife to action-film star Will Smith–can now add another item to her resume: human trafficking activist.
The Smiths met with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton recently to talk about the absurdly high number of people affected by what they call “modern slavery”, and the talk was actually brought about because of a younger member of the family–Willow Smith.
“I will join Lou [CdeBaca, Ambassador-at-Large, Office To Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons] in thanking Jada Pinkett Smith and Will for being here,” Clinton said, “and through you, your daughter because, as Lou said, it was their daughter who brought this issue to Jada’s attention, and I am so pleased that she has taken on this cause. And we look forward to working with you.”
Clinton went on to address the fact that over 27 million people around the world are engaged in human trafficking, which includes being traded as sex slaves. The business mostly affects women, and Clinton says she is pleased that President Obama and his administration are taking the problem seriously.
“Traffickers prey on the hopes and dreams of those seeking a better life and our goal should be to put those hopes and dreams back within reach, whether it’s getting a good job to send money home to support a family, trying to get an education for oneself or one’s children, or simply pursuing new opportunities that might lead to a better life,” she said. “We need to ensure that all survivors have that opportunity to move past what they endured and to make the most of their potential.”
Pinkett-Smith has appeared in a video to raise awareness of how urgent and widespread the problem of modern slavery is; she sings entirely in Spanish to illustrate her point, as the sex slave issue is rampant in the Latino community.