Are you skeptical about the choice of Qatar for the 2022 World Cup? Well, conservative drinking laws aside, here's why you should be downright outraged. The country has an abysmal human trafficking record. Qataris have a staggeringly high GDP, due to the country's huge production of liquefied natural gas. But that wealth is created at the expense of slave labor.

The government of Qatar does not collect statistics on people trafficked through the country, but there's substantial evidence that the problem is dire. According to a 2007 report by the US Department of State, Qatar has failed to prosecute traffickers, comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking, and adequately protect victims.  Under Qatar's criminal law, the subscribed penalty for forced labor trafficking is a whopping 6 months. In other words, about the same as selling alcohol without a license. But guess what, Qatar? Selling a child is not equivalent to selling Yuengling.

Each year, thousands of migrant workers from countries as diverse as India, the Philippines and Ethiopia travel to Qatar to work in nearly every industry in the country. These outsourced laborers are brought to the country on two-year contracts, which encourages a strict turnover rate to prevent lengthy residency. Unsurprisingly, these workers often discover their terms of employment are vastly different than what they agreed to, and fall into involuntary servitude. Their abusers often threaten deportation, and confiscate the workers' passports and exit permits.  

Luckily, there's time. The U.S. should use this international event to bring attention to trafficking in the region. Urge the State Department to allocate funds to foster anti-trafficking legislation in the region by 1.) Aiding Qatari civil society who are working on victim support and trafficking prevention and 2.) Offering financial support and expertise to Qatar's national anti-trafficking plan. Send this petition to your friends and legislatures, and let them know that you care about trafficking victims just as much as soccer.