by Andreas Eckert

Even today approximately 40 million people live in «modern slavery». In his profund volume Andreas Eckert traces the dark history of an institution, that can be frequently be observed in different pecularities since the ancient world and in all parts of the world. At the same time he observes questions about the motifs of slavetraders and -holders, scopes for the enslaved and causes for the gradual transformation of slavery as an accepted evil to an outlawed abomination.

Reviews (Selection / German):

"Eckerts Einführungstext ist hervorragend strukturiert und mit einer klaren Sprache leicht zugänglich für ein breites Lesepublikum.“

by Richard Roberts

Roberts Book deals with Mademba Sèye - Mademba Sy, who with the aid of his French patrons, worked his way from a telegraphist up to the rank of an African king of the Sansanding states (in Bambara fama) on the shores of river Niger. In 1899, Fama Mademba, born in Saint-Louis, Senegal, was placed under house arrest in Kayes on charges of abuse of power, ritual murder, rape and extortion. Despite the seriousness of the accusation, he was exonerated and returned to his 'throne'. The Mademba case already reveals the negation of the principles of the rule of law in the face of the interests of the colonialism under construction.

Edited by Andreas Eckert and Felicitas Hentschke

This book provides a global perspective on the transformations in the world of work caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The collection of essays by former fellows of the research center from Africa, the Americas, Asia, and Europe will break down the general statistics and trends into glimpses of concrete experiences of workers during pandemic, of workplaces transformed or destroyed, of workers protesting against political measures, of professions particularly exposed to the coronavirus, and also of the changing nature of some professions.

The Berlin Center for Global Engagement (BCGE), an initiative of the Berlin University Alliance, funded a substantial part of the production costs. Without the support of BCGE, this project would not have succeeded!

The book presentation with the following panel took place on March 25th, 2021 via Zoom:

- Andreas Eckert, Humboldt University Berlin
- Felicitas Hentschke, Humboldt University Berlin
- Bridget Kenny, Roskilde University and re:work
- Preben Kaarsholm, University of the Witwatersrand

Please find the recording here.