South Asia · Brick kilns · Bonded labor

Millions remain enslaved
God has not forgotten them.

Across South Asia, families remain trapped in generations of slavery.
Together we can set them free.

See the Reality Give Now
A worker balancing a load of bricks on his head at a brick kiln in South Asia
What Is Bonded Labor?

Deceived Into Debt.
Trapped for Generations.

Though outlawed across South Asia, bonded labor continues to trap families through deception, exploitation, and inherited debt.

  1. 1

    A Loan Built on Deception

    Unable to read or write, many families accept small loans in times of urgent need, without understanding the terms.

  2. 2

    A Debt That Never Ends

    Kiln owners manipulate records and inflate debts, trapping families in endless labor.

  3. 3

    Generations Enslaved

    Children are forced to shoulder their parents’ debts, perpetuating generations of bondage.

The law promises freedom. But without legal help, families remain trapped. That’s where we come in.

Sources: National Commission for Human Rights, 2023 · Anti-Slavery International, 2015
What We Do

Two Steps. One Goal.
Lasting Freedom.

1
Step One

Legal Freedom

Local attorneys fight to free enslaved families through investigation, negotiation, and legal action.

  • Case Investigation
  • Legal Representation
  • Safe Release
2
Step Two

Lasting Freedom

We provide the resources and support families need to rebuild their lives and break the cycle of slavery.

  • Basic Needs & Education
  • Livelihood
  • Ongoing Support
See how it works →

Generosity That Sets Families Free.

Your gift puts a local attorney between a family and those who hold them, then walks with that family into a life of their own. Together, we bring freedom and a fresh start.

Become a Monthly Partner
Make a One-Time Gift
Give Today
Our Foundation
“…to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God.”Micah 6:8 (ESV)

Every person in every kiln bears the Imago Dei — Latin for “the image of God.” Every one of them deserves freedom. That is why we do this work.

From the Kilns to Freedom

The Lives Behind Every Gift

Your support takes a family from the kiln floor to a life of their own. This is where they start — and where your giving helps them go.

Where They Start
A worker balancing a load of bricks on his head at a brick kiln in South Asia
Loads carried by hand, for long hours in the heat.
Laborers transporting bricks at an outdoor brick kiln in South Asia
Generations of families work the same kilns, bound by debt they never chose.
An elderly man stacking handmade bricks at a brick kiln in South Asia
Some have worked the kilns their entire lives.
A worker carrying stacked bricks on his back in South Asia
Wages are withheld to pay a debt that only grows.
Women workers shoveling coal and clay at an outdoor brick kiln in South Asia
Women shovel coal and clay for hours in the heat.
Where Your Gift Takes Them
A smiling family standing together, a father holding his young child beside the mother
Together, with a life of their own.
An auto rickshaw driver at work, seen from the back seat
An income of their own, one fare at a time.
Smiling children in a rural schoolyard in South Asia
A childhood returned.
A cheerful young schoolboy in a blue school uniform smiling, South Asia
A school uniform in place of a load of bricks.
A child receiving a vaccination from a health worker in South Asia
A medical checkup for every family member.

Help write the next chapter for a family still in the kilns.

Captions draw on published reporting. Sources: National Commission for Human Rights, 2023 · Anti-Slavery International, 2015
The Reality on the Ground

This is not poverty
This is slavery.

Across South Asia, millions of people — including vast numbers of children — wake up every day unable to leave, working long days with little rest, and unable to repay a debt that was never theirs to begin with.

*To protect the families we serve and our local team, we don’t name specific locations.
Inside the Kilns

Behind the Brick Walls

A family at a brick kiln in South Asia — children and their mother resting on a cot, the kiln chimney rising behind them

Children Work From Childhood

Children start working as young as five or six. They carry heavy loads and mix clay in extreme heat instead of going to school — born into a debt they never took on.

Bonded laborers at a brick kiln

Debt That Can Never Be Repaid

It starts with a small loan and never ends. The peshgi, an advance on wages, grows faster than it can be repaid as interest and fees pile up. When a parent dies, the children inherit it. The cycle can last for generations.

Families including children working at a brick kiln

Threats, Violence & Sexual Abuse

Fear keeps families in place. Workers report threats and beatings. Women and girls face sexual abuse. Those who complain or seek their release risk retaliation.

A lone child stands among stacked bricks at a South Asian brick kiln

Hunger & Illness

Wages are too low to live on, and living costs are added to the debt. In one survey, 79% of child kiln workers had gone hungry in the past year, 42% had anemia, and over half had breathing or stomach problems.

Brick kiln workers in South Asia

Isolation & Loss of Identity

Without papers, they are invisible. Many workers have no ID or social security cards, and families often need the kiln owner’s permission even to look for work elsewhere. Without ID, families cannot get services, register births, or ask a court for help.

Person bent under the weight of a heavy sack, symbolizing the burden of bonded debt

Religious Minorities Are Targeted

Christians and other minorities are hit hardest. In one province, about 60% of kiln workers are Christian. Discrimination leaves them with few jobs, few advocates, and few ways out.

The Law Already Forbids It.

Decades ago, governments across South Asia outlawed bonded labor. These landmark laws cancelled every bonded debt and made holding someone in bonded labor a crime. So why are families still trapped?

On paperIn the kilns
Every bonded debt is cancelled.Families are still made to work off “debts.”
Holding someone in bonded labor is a crime.Political allies shield kiln owners who use threats and violence.
Local committees must find and free bonded workers.Those committees rarely meet.
Every family can ask a court for its freedom.Most families have never met a lawyer.

The gap between law and justice is legal representation.That is what we provide.

Our Approach

We Get Them Out
Then We Make Sure They Never Go Back.

Our work has two steps: we secure a family’s freedom through the law, by negotiation or in court, and then help them build a life that keeps them free.
We walk with them every step of the way.

A Family’s Journey

From the Kiln to a Life of Their Own

  1. 1

    Case Verified

    An independent investigator confirms the family’s circumstances.

  2. 2

    Freedom Secured

    Local attorneys negotiate release or pursue legal action.

  3. 3

    Safe Release

    Our team brings the family safely out of bondage.

  4. 4

    A New Beginning

    We provide safe housing, food, essentials, identity documents, and education.

  5. 5

    Financial Freedom

    We provide families with a livelihood, such as a fully equipped rickshaw, to build lasting financial independence.

  6. 6

    Lasting Support

    Our case manager follows up at months 3, 6, and 12 to help families build stable, independent lives.

Step One

Legal Freedom
Through Local Attorneys.

Bonded labor is already illegal. What a family needs is someone to make the law real in their case — an attorney who knows the courts, the procedures, and the opposition, and who will not be intimidated.

Two Paths to Freedom

Our attorneys secure a family’s legal freedom in one of two ways.

Through Negotiation

Negotiated Release

Our attorneys meet with the kiln owner and negotiate the family’s release.

Through the Courts

Court-Ordered Release

Our attorney files a habeas corpus petition asking the High Court to order the family’s release. A court bailiff and our recovery team then carry out the order.

Two paths, one goal: a family set free.

Habeas corpus petitions are the most commonly used legal route out of bonded labor. Source: National Commission for Human Rights, 2023

What Our Attorneys Do

  • Review each family’s case once it has been independently verified
  • Negotiate the family’s release directly with the kiln owner
  • File a habeas corpus petition in the High Court — a request that the court order the release of someone held unlawfully
  • Prepare the sworn statements, stamp papers, and translations each case requires
  • Represent the family at every meeting and hearing
  • Work with our recovery team, and the court bailiff in court cases, to bring the family out

Why Local Attorneys

A local attorney knows the court. Knows the procedure. Knows which arguments land, at the negotiating table and in the courtroom.

Too often, help arrives from the outside — foreign lawyers and campaigns far removed from the communities they aim to serve. We believe the most effective advocate is a local attorney licensed in the region they serve: accountable to the local bar and its ethical standards, working within the system rather than around it. They are not guests. They are insiders fighting for their neighbors.

What Sets Us Apart

Local, Not Foreign

We do not send in Western lawyers from abroad. Our attorneys come from the region they serve.

Open to Every Family

We take the case of any family in bonded labor.

Not a Lobbying Group

We don’t need to change the existing laws. We make them work for families, at the negotiating table or in court.

The gap is representation, not legislation.

Step Two

Lasting Freedom.
Life After the Kilns.

A family freed from a brick kiln often walks out with nothing — no income, no home, no papers. Without support, freed families risk falling back into bondage. We meet each of those needs directly.

Sources: Anti-Slavery International, 2015 · National Commission for Human Rights, 2023
A man driving an auto rickshaw through a busy street in South Asia
A rickshaw gives a family an income of its own.
Three children in school uniforms walking to school with backpacks in South Asia
Children trade the brick line for the classroom.
Livelihood

A Rickshaw of Their Own

A new auto rickshaw with registration, a driving license, first-year insurance, and fuel and tools to start — an income that belongs to the family. Our plan is for its fares to support the family by month three.

The First Months

A Safe Home & the Basics

Safe transport away from the kiln, a rental deposit and first month’s rent, secondhand household essentials, clothing for the family, food for the first two months, and utilities for three months.

Health

Medical Screening

Years in the kilns take a heavy toll. Each family member receives a medical screening and initial treatment, using public and church health programs first.

Legal Identity

National Identity Documents

Without ID, a person cannot get services or prove who they are. We cover national ID cards for the parents, registration for the children, and a family registration certificate.

Education

Children Back in School

Children are enrolled in school, with their first six months of fees, uniforms, books, and supplies — trading the brick line for the classroom.

Freedom that lasts.

We do all of this for one reason: so that life after the kilns is sustainable, and a family freed from bonded labor never falls back into the cycle of slavery.

Get Involved

You Are
Needed.

You do not need to be an attorney or fly to South Asia. Your prayer, your presence in our newsletter community, and your financial support all make freedom possible for real families.

Give Every gift moves a family closer to freedom. Give now → Pray Stand with families, attorneys, and active cases. Prayer points ↓ Reach Out Attorneys, churches, and partners: we want to hear from you. Contact us ↓
Give Financially

Your Giving Frees Families

Every gift matters. Your generosity supports legal advocacy, family rehabilitation, and the essential operations that make this work possible in South Asia.

  • $750Can provide a year of education for three children
  • $1,000Can give a newly freed family a safe new beginning
  • $1,750Can fund the legal work to help free a family from bonded slavery
  • $3,000Can give a family a livelihood of their own
  • $6,000Reflects the typical cost of a family’s complete journey from rescue to independence
Freedom Work Underway

Be Part of the Rescue

We are working to free families trapped in bonded labor. Your gift helps lead the next family out of the kiln and toward a future of freedom and independence.

Give Now Or become a monthly partner →

501(c)(3) nonprofit · EIN 33-4285103
All gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

Questions about giving, recurring gifts, or larger donations? Contact us at info@lifeandfreedom.org

Questions Donors Ask

Before You Give

Straight answers about where your gift goes and how we protect the families we serve.

Questions? info@lifeandfreedom.org

Is my gift tax-deductible?

Yes. Life and Freedom Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, EIN 33-4285103. All gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law, and you will receive an emailed receipt for your records.

How do I know my gift reaches families?

Every case is independently verified before we fund it. A local case manager oversees each family’s housing, school enrollment, and rickshaw purchase, and funds are released in stages as each step is completed. Our field team sends written monthly reports, and we visit every family at months 3, 6, and 12. Our financial filings are available on request.

Why a rickshaw?

A rickshaw gives a family an income of its own soon after freedom — work that belongs to them, not to a kiln owner. We cover the rickshaw, its registration, a driving license, first-year insurance, and fuel and tools to start. Food is covered for the first two months; our plan is for the family to support itself by the third month instead of relying on aid or taking on new debt.

How do you keep families safe?

Freed families are resettled far from the kiln where they were held, in communities with local church partners who help them settle in. We never publish their names, faces, or locations.

How do your attorneys free a family?

In one of two ways. Our attorney either negotiates the family’s release directly with the kiln owner, or files a habeas corpus petition asking the High Court to order their release.

Why local attorneys?

A local attorney knows the courts, the procedures, and the language, and is accountable to the same bar as every other lawyer in the country. They are not outsiders; they are neighbors making the law work for families who have never had anyone stand up for them.

A group of smiling schoolchildren in uniform at an outdoor school gathering in South Asia

Every prayer and every gift moves a family toward a future of freedom and hope.

Intercede

Pray With Us

We believe that prayer is not a passive substitute for action — it is the foundation underneath every action we take. Please pray specifically with us.

1

For the Children

Pray for the hundreds of thousands of children living and working at brick kilns across South Asia — that God would protect them, that legal pathways would open for their families, and that they would know they are seen and loved.

Sources: UNICEF estimate, via The Express Tribune, 2010 · UNICEF Nepal, 2021
2

For Our Attorneys

Pray for our legal advocates on the ground — for their courage, their wisdom, their safety, and their families. They face real opposition from powerful people who profit from keeping others enslaved.

3

For Active Cases

We are building cases right now. Pray for wisdom in every negotiation with kiln owners, for open doors in courtrooms and fair judges, for witnesses who will speak, and for families waiting for the day they walk free.

4

For Families Starting Over

Pray for families as they walk out of the kilns — that their new start would go well, that they would find stable work and community, and that they would never return to the cycle of slavery.

5

For Government & Justice

Pray for the legal systems of South Asia — for magistrates who will enforce the law, for government officials who will take bonded labor seriously, and for systemic change that makes exploitation increasingly difficult.

6

For the Alliance

Pray for Life and Freedom Alliance — for wisdom in strategy, integrity in finances, unity in our team, and sustained energy for work that can feel overwhelming. Pray that God would build this organization as he intends.

Connect With Us

Reach Out

Are you an attorney interested in serving? Do you have a connection to bonded labor communities in South Asia? Do you want to partner as a church, organization, or individual? We want to hear from you.

Or email us directly:
info@lifeandfreedom.org

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Privacy Policy

Your Privacy

How Life and Freedom Alliance collects, uses, and protects your information.

Effective October 19, 2026

Who we are

Life and Freedom Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization (EIN 33-4285103). This policy explains what information we collect through this website, how we use it, and the choices you have. If you have questions, email us at info@lifeandfreedom.org.

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How your gift is used

Gifts are unrestricted by default. Unless you tell us otherwise in writing, every gift to Life and Freedom Alliance is unrestricted and is used at Life and Freedom Alliance’s discretion to further our mission of freeing families from bonded labor and helping them build independent lives. This includes legal advocacy, family rehabilitation, and the operations that make this work possible.

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We may also disclose information if required by law.

Protecting the families we serve

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Changes to this policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, we will change the effective date at the top of this page.

Contact us

Life and Freedom Alliance
66 W Flagler St
Miami, FL 33130
info@lifeandfreedom.org

Photo credits

Photos on this website are illustrative and do not show the families we serve. Photography by M Mahbub A Alahi, Tamhasip Khan, Sabbir Bhuiyan, Adil Ahnaf, Af Naf Shahriar, Mehmet Turgut Kirkgoz, Pallav Suthar, Ian Taylor, CP Khanal, Zomlien Neihsiel, Krepesh Chandra Sarker, Mushfiqur Rahman, Katrin Bolovtsova, DP Singh Bhullar, Ashutosh Kumar, Tarun Kumar — Pexels.

Sources

Where Our Facts Come From

Every statistic and fact on this website is backed by a published source. Here is each one.

We work hard to state only what the evidence supports. If you see something that needs a source, or a source that has changed, please email us at info@lifeandfreedom.org.

The scale of the problem

Children in the kilns

How bonded labor works

Christians and religious minorities

The law

About our own work

Statements about our programs, such as costs, what each gift covers, and our timelines, come from Life and Freedom Alliance’s own case budget and plans. Our financial filings are available on request.