Chicago resident Sean Tenner is actively involved in organizations dedicated to social justice and public interest. In addition to being president of KNI Communications, he is also a co-founder of the Abolition Institute, which seeks to end modern-day slavery in Mauritania, a country in West Africa. Sean Tenner’s Abolition Institute recently sponsored a 15-person delegation of Americans to travel to Mauritania to support the anti-slavery movement.
Slavery in Mauritania was abolished in 1981 and criminalized in 2007. Unfortunately, with the anti-slavery laws yet to be enforced, at least 90,000 Haratines are still enslaved. Hereditary slavery has existed in the country for so long that it has become deeply imbedded in the culture. .
The 15-person delegation, which included Forest Park Mayor Rory Hoskins and his wife Monique, traveled to Mauritania with the purpose of meeting with leaders of the anti-slavery movement and interviewing people who had been previously enslaved. The delegation had a busy schedule, meeting with government officials and former slaves as well as engaging in other activities and visiting various places throughout the country.
