There are more slaves in the world today than there were before the abolition of slavery in America.

Nov 11, 2026

Previously: There are more slaves in the world today than there were before the abolition of slavery in America. [Accurate]: The International Labour Organization's 2022 Global Estimates count about 50 million people in modern slavery worldwide, including 28 million in forced labour alone. The United States held about 4 million enslaved people in 1860, so today's count is far larger than that. Compared with the whole world before 1865, the raw number is probably larger too, but historical counts are thin, today's definition is broader (it includes forced marriage), and the world's population is now many times bigger, so as a share of people slavery is much rarer. A reliable historical estimate showing more than about 50 million enslaved people worldwide before 1865 would prove this verdict wrong.

Now: There are more slaves in the world today than there were before the abolition of slavery in America. [Unverified]: The ILO's estimate for 2021 is about 50 million people worldwide in modern slavery, including forced labour and forced marriage. That exceeds the roughly 3.95 million enslaved people counted in the 1860 US census. But Rogan does not specify whether his pre-abolition comparison is America or the entire world. No comparable worldwide pre-1865 total was established here. Our earlier explanation's "probably larger" was not evidence for the global historical comparison, and the definitions and populations differ.

Remove unsupported global historical certainty while explaining the narrower comparison the evidence does support.