Given that you say “150 years ago” I’m guessing it’s the US.

Because it’s something that’s still relevant. Slavery ended but it’s not like the sentiments and people disappeared. They have continued to permeate, hell a confederate flag made it into the capitol for the first time this year.

People in America are gonna talk about American slavery and the lasting effects because they are American. People in America can do a lot more directly about the lasting effects of slavery, of the attitudes, than they can do by protesting the treatment of Uighur’s.

On top of a lot of what is being talked about isn’t actually about “slavery that ended 150 years ago,” that’s a dishonest description.

That doesn’t mean people don’t also talk about issues like the slavery and general exploitation that results from capitalism. Plenty of people will point out the fact that all we did was move child labour overseas. That the onus of avoiding these products in stores lies entirely on the consumer, that the majority of products in some categories have at least partial contributions from slavery.

Most everybody has talked about the treatment of Uighur people. Ironically, it’s easier to see the effects of slavery, or Jim Crowe, or general racism that still exists today than it is to tell what is made with slave labour. To avoid using electronic components that use materials involving slavery or are assembled by slavery or exploited workers is much, much harder because of how widespread it is.

I think the biggest illogical part of this is the title. People taking about slavery does not mean they don’t care about these other issues, or that they care less. It’s topical, it’s something the average American has learnt in school and is knowledgeable about. As well, how can a person “do something about” modern slavery? I get that they can try to avoid products that support it, but even that isn’t simple. One company uses material from slave labour, another company doesn’t, and they’re both owned by the same group. So although you may support a company that doesn’t use it, the people responsible get the same profit.

The crux of it is, to address modern slavery requires addressing issues with the intersection of global capitalism and consumer capitalism. That’s a lot more complicated and difficult topic, and doesn’t travel as well as “America has issues with racism.”

Also, the dishonestly in the implied “people can only care about modern slavery or history and effects of American slavery” from your post.