The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Modern Slavery Partnership, in conjunction with Hampshire Cultural Trust, are proud to present the emotive and thought provoking exhibition ‘The real faces of Modern Slavery: unmasking the truth’.
This new exhibition is a journey through the compelling stories of survivors identified and supported within our surrounding area, with visual and audio content depicting their experiences past and present and their future aspirations as they start to attempt to rebuild their lives.
Jones: A hidden crime and can go undetected for years
Chair of the Modern Slavery Partnership, Police and Crime Commissioner Donna Jones, said,
“Modern Slavery is very much a hidden crime and can go undetected for years. It is not just a crime that happens abroad and in our cities but could be taking place behind closed doors on the streets we walk down on a daily basis.
“The crime of modern slavery within the UK and our local area remains a significant threat with the number of victims identified rising each year. The people whose stories you will see and hear at this new exhibition are all survivors who have been identified and supported within our surrounding area. By running this exhibition we hope to dispel the common myths that surround slavery today and raise awareness of signs that people are being exploited and how to report concerns.”
Exploitation types found within Hampshire include sexual exploitation of both adults and children, criminal exploitation including that within county lines and cannabis factories, labour exploitation such as that taking place in nail bars and car washes and financial exploitation in the form of benefit fraud.
The exhibition will be touring Hampshire and the Isle of Wight from October 2021, and taking place at 33 High Street, Newport, between 28th February to 26th March 2022.
Sapwell: Important in raising awareness of modern day slavery
Paul Sapwell, Chief Executive at Hampshire Cultural Trust, commented,
“This exhibition is so important in raising awareness of modern day slavery and the impact it has on the lives of local survivors.
“We are delighted to host this exhibition at four of Hampshire Cultural Trust’s venues, where the exhibition also includes an introduction to historic slavery.”
Find out more
This exhibition has been developed as a partnership initiative to raise awareness of Modern Slavery and it is hoped that visitors will leave with an understanding of how this can manifest in different scenarios within our everyday lives.
If you would like further information then please visit the Website.
Report someone in danger
If you come across a situation where someone is in immediate danger then please call the Police on 999 or for non-emergencies 101.
Together we can look to tackle this crime and bring support to those being exploited.
News shared by the office of the Police and Crime Commissioner, in their own words. Ed
