I like to watch documentaries about social issues from all over the world. Whether it is disabled children in Bulgaria, the impoverished, wrongfully imprisoned, and homeless in the UK and US, the suffering of the lower caste systems in India, those without access to water in Africa, or all the children kidnapped, bought, and sold in China, these issues all interest me and make me feel empathy for my fellow human beings all over the world.

There is one commonality I have noticed throughout these documentaries, something that is worldwide and at the root of all of these problems. The inequality and mistreatment of the poor, disabled, and weak by those who are in power and hold the majority of the wealth. The elites. The fact is that for some (usually a small minority) to have much more than they need, others must go without simple necessities. Food. Shelter. Healthcare. It is easy to look at where you live and think the problems are unique to your country and your leaders, but they really aren’t. It is a worldwide and history-laden problem.

We tend to think here in the West that slavery and serfdom are things of the past, but if you look closely, you’ll see the same systems working beneath the surface. Perhaps they have progressed with time, or altered to fit each specific culture and system of law, but the abuse and mistreatment still exists all the same.

* Art by Maranda Russell