Yesterday, February 27, 2014, a one day focus on a call to end human trafficking took place on social media. Human trafficking and slavery is not an easy subject to talk about. Many are ignorant to its pervasive existence. Others simply look the other way.
My wife and I joined thousands of others by drawing a red X on our hands as a way to shine a light on this problem. You can search hashtag “enditmovement” on Twitter to see national celebrities, athletes and politicians participating.
Now one day later—Will everyone move on to the next social justice issue or will we take some real, practical steps to end this during our lifetime.
I used to think it was a problem that existed only in other countries. When Danielle and I lived in Pattaya, Thailand we saw and learned more than we cared to know about human trafficking.
Danielle spent a lot of her time working with a prostitution rescue ministry, Tamar Center. Tens of thousands of women, many of them underage, work in the sex industry in Pattaya. Tamar offers a way out by teaching them life and work skills. I
Danielle is leading a team of 10 women on a trip this summer to work with Tamar.
I often visited the Pattaya area jails. After awhile I learned that a lot of illegal immigrants from Cambodia were in jail. ‘Employers’ brought them over for work. However, when the work was completed, they were turned in to the authorities who put them—and their children—in jail.
This stuff happens all over the world. Even right here in the good ol’ USA. In our states. In our cities. In our communities.
The question is—what will I do about it? Or will I just look the other way like it doesn’t exist.
Since I am not an expert, I list here a few links to websites that will tell you about human trafficking and give you practical ways to help end it during our lifetime.
End It Movement
[quote cite=”End It Campaign”]When you think about slavery, if you think about slavery, you probably associate it with the sex trade. And for good reason. 8 of 10 human trafficking cases worldwide involve the sex industry in one way or another. The others involve labor trafficking, people being made to work in sub-human conditions in factories and farms and shadow businesses worldwide.[/quote]Love 146
[quote cite=”Love 146″]Love is the foundation of our name because it is our motivating drive to end the trafficking and exploitation of children. Martin Luther King Jr. said, “Justice at its best is love correcting everything that stands against love.” We hold that to be true.[/quote]The A21 Campaign
[quote cite=”The A21 Campaign”]Human trafficking is the illegal trade of human beings, mainly for the purposes of forced labor and sex trafficking. As the world’s fastest growing criminal industry, it affects every nation across the globe. Every thirty seconds, someone is forced into this type of bondage—modern slavery. The average age of trafficking victims is 12-years-old.[/quote]Polaris Project
A leader in the fight to end modern-day slavery, Polaris Project is transforming the way communities respond to human trafficking in the U.S. and globally. Polaris Project operates the 24-hour National Human Trafficking Resource Center hotline, advocates for strong laws to help victims and prosecute traffickers, provides lifesaving services to survivors, and is a respected source for training and information.
[…] this blog I wrote a few months ago. Here you can find out several other organizations working reach those […]