The Great Slave Debate: Redeem Them, Or Leave Them in Bondage?
Introduction
It's front page news. The military regime in Sudan supports the kidnapping of its citizens who oppose it. Carpet makers in India have kidnapped 200,000 children from their families to be laborers on their looms, under brutal conditions. Haitians seeking work abroad often find themselves indentured against their will. And Thai girls — and boys — find themselves as sex slaves, having been kidnapped, debt-bonded, or sometimes sold by their parents.
Jewish texts are clear — redeeming captives is one of the most important things a Jew can do:
• Maimonides says that ransoming captives takes precedence over feeding and clothing the poor.
• The Talmud tells the story of a rabbi who learned of a kidnapped child and said "I swear that I will not budge from here until I ransom him, regardless of the price demanded."
Also in the Talmud, two rabbis discourse on a situation where a new synagogue was being built and the construction materials were already purchased. One of them explained that redeeming captives is more important than building the synagogue, and that if needed, the construction materials could be sold to provide for ransom money.
• Joseph Karo, author of Shulkan Aruch, said that "every minute one delays in freeing captives ... is considered to be tantamount to murder."
• And of course, the Torah says "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
But there are complications. Some advocacy organizations like Human Rights Watch caution that paying money to redeem slaves may complicate the matter or involve fraud by the slave holder. The Government of Sudan argues against it entirely. They say it does nothing to end slavery. They say it gives money to kidnappers and that it is immoral to pay for people, and that it even encourages more slave raids and higher ransoms. Even Jewish texts put limits on redemption, saying in the Talmud, for example, that you shouldn't sell your synagogue to generate ransom money.
Where do you stand?
Debate Process
- The debate is: "Modern Day Slaves: Redeem Them or Leave Them in Bondage?"
- Hand out or read the Introduction above. You can also print material to pass around from the Resources section below.
- Before the exercise gets under way, ask everyone to pick the side which they believe is right by raising their hand:
- redeem the slaves;
- leave them in bondage; or
- undecided.
There should be no discussion to sway participants at this time — just an initial census of the group. Record the vote.
- Pick a moderator.
- Divide the participants into two groups: the "for" and "against" sides of the argument. Or, if there are many participants, you can divide into many groups, such as the family of the kidnapped, an organization which is in favor of redemption (e.g. The American Anti-Slavery Group), an organization which chooses not to endorse slave redemption (e.g. Human Rights Watch), and your Jewish community. You could even designate selected participants to speak as if they were specific people, like Harriet Tubman or a former slave like Francis Bok.
- Give each group 10-15 minutes to privately discuss its position. It should work out its main points, supporting arguments, weave in sources (such as those provided below), and think about counter-arguments to the other groups' positions. They may wish to consider some of the questions below. Each group should also select a designated person to speak for the group, or for each of their main points.
- Gather all the participants. The moderator should establish rules of the debate, such as the order in which debaters will talk and the time allotted for the first round of presentation. After everyone has presented, the moderator may wish to allow a more loosely structured debate or conversation, as long as s/he maintains enough order than speakers can be heard. The moderator may also wish to ask some of the questions below to spur additional debate or discussion.
- The debate should end after all the groups have made the initial presentation and the other groups have had an opportunity to respond — or whenever steam runs out.
- As a final step, take the vote again. How many people switched sides?
- Have fun!
Debate Questions
- Should slaves be ransomed or left in bondage?
- Who has the responsibility to ransom a slave? Immediate family? Extended family? Other relatives? Teachers? Friends? Neighbors? Other Jews? Non-Jews? Strangers? Americans? Foreigners?
- Is there a price limit of the ransom amount?
- Should someone take a mortgage on their house to redeem a captive?
- Should governments be involved in slave redemption?
- If a slaveholder is willing to sell his chattel for $50 per person (the current price in Sudan), and he arranges a sale to an abolitionist of 100 slaves — but ten are not really slaves, just stand-ins so the slaveholder can get more money (and the abolitionist subsequently discovers the deception), should the abolitionist cancel future rescues?
Resources
Jewish Texts
Maimonides, Mishnah Torah, "Gifts to the Poor" 8: 10-11
The ransoming of captives takes precedence over the feeding and clothing of the poor. Indeed there is no religious duty more meritorious than the ransoming of captives, for not only is the captive included in the category of the hungry, the thirsty, and the naked, but his very life is in jeopardy. He who turns his eyes away from ransoming him, transgresses the commandments:
You shall not harden your heart, nor shut your hand (Deut. 15:7)
Neither shall you stand idly by the blood of thy neighbor (Lev. 19:16)
and
He shall not rule with rigor over him in your sight (Lev. 25:53).
Moreover, he nullifies the commandments:
You shall surely open your hand unto him (Deut. 15:8),
That your brother may live with you (Lev. 25:36),
You shall love your neighbor as yourself (Lev. 19;18),
Deliver them that are drawn unto death (Prov. 24:11),
and many other abominations like these. To sum up, there is no religious duty greater than the ransoming of captives.
Talmud, Tractate Baba Batra, 3b
Ravina asked Rav Ashu: "Suppose money (for a synagogue) has been collected and is ready for use, is there still a risk?" He replied: "They may be called on to redeem captives and see it for that purpose." (Ravina asked further): "Suppose the bricks are already piled up and the lathes trimmed and beams ready, what are we to say?" He replied: "It can happen that money is suddenly required for the redemption of captives, and they may sell the materials for that purpose." "If they could do that," (he said), "they could do the same even if they had already built the synagogue!" He answered: "People do not sell their dwelling places.
Yosef Karo, Shulkan Arukh, Yoreh De'ah 252 ("The Laws Of Tzedakah") Paragraph 3
Every moment which one delays in freeing captives, in cases where it is possible to expedite their freedom, is considered to be tantamount to murder. (Deuteronomy 23:16-17)
You shall not turn over to his master a slave who seeks refuge with you from his master. He shall live with you in any place he may choose among the settlements in your midst, wherever he pleases; you must not ill-treat him. (Exodus 23:9)
You shall not oppress a stranger, for you know the feelings of the stranger, having yourselves been strangers in the land of Egypt. (Leviticus 19:16)
You shall not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor. (Note preferred JPS meaning: "Do not profit by the blood of your fellow.")
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