TULSA, OKLAHOMA, July 18, 2002: Thirty Asian-Indians held under conditions akin to slavery in Tulsa, Oklahoma, have been freed, a report said on Thursday. The Indians, without proper visas, were working for a pickle factory on half the minimum wages and were denied adequate food, NTV reported. They were made to sleep in a small room in a warehouse and were locked in with a guard outside, it said. Some of them managed to escape from the compound and went to a nearby church to tell their tale of woe. One of those in the church happened to be a former US Justice Department official in the Civil Rights Division who contacted the authorities and had them released. The young workers said through a spokesman that they came here chasing the American dream of prosperity, but were without proper visas.
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