Human Trafficking

A heartbreaking issue is the trafficking of huge numbers of adults and young girls and boys for labor, sexual exploitation, and other purposes. People in these situations have very little protections and options. For example, someone trafficked to the U.S. in many areas is seen as an illegal and are deported instead of prosecuting those who trafficked them, the laws are being changed, but it is still an ongoing fight for recognition of their plight. It is a tragic situation across the globe, and it is widespread although many people may not have heard about it. One area that has been impacted by this is Cambodia, one reason it is so prevalent is the poverty. When people have no options they will take any chance in hope of a job, but will often end up being trafficked instead. And parents will sell their children because they need the money to survive or they might hope that their child might have a better future.

Which is why I today I focus on Restoring Hope to Trafficked Girls in Cambodia, a project supported and organized by Hagar USA which support the mission of Hagar International. Their mission states that "Hagar is an international Christian organisation committed to the recovery, empowerment and reintegration of women and children in Afghanistan, Cambodia and Vietnam. Pierre Tami and his wife, Simonetta launched Hagar in 1994 in Cambodia with the vision of empowering women and children from devastating backgrounds of violence, abuse and trafficking, to become strong, resilient and independent members of community again. At Hagar, social programs meet social business.  This approach, including recovery shelters, education, vocational training, and employment, has enabled hundreds of women and children to reintegrate into community again."

I love the focus on empowering women who have dealt with so much violence and abuse in their lives and showing how strong and amazing these women can be. Women who escape and overcome situations, such as human trafficking, are often the fiercest advocates for change in their community and in stopping other women and girls from ending up in the same place as them.



This specific project is dedicated to helping young girls from 4 to 14 that were trafficked or experienced other forms of sexual abuse. They want to create a residential care facility for these young girls, a place where they can feel safe and receive holistic recovery services, including counseling, medical care, legal support, and education. The environment will be one that will support and nurture these girls to break the cycle of abuse and restore their lives.

Hopefully, it will restore hope to all the girls in Cambodia that pass through its doors. Please consider supporting it as well.

Great NYT article on giving...

Hey all,

I just read a great article the other day and thought I would share it with y'all . Its called "The Gifts of Hope" by Nicholas D. Kristof. And I thought it was a great little rundown on some amazing charities that I haven't heard of before but wish I had so I could have been supporting them...

The author asks "So what would your aunt prefer as a holiday gift — another Mariah Carey CD, or the knowledge that she’s sending a little girl in Haiti to school for a year?" And unless your aunt was in financial trouble and needed more material help or other types of support, I think many people would love being given a gift that positively impacts other lives as these organizations do.

One of the charities is Partners in Health which has done and is continuing to do amazing work in Haiti, so always a good choice to support. My favorite on his list is the Panzi Hospital which "treats victims of sexual violence in eastern Congo, rape capital of the world. It’s run by Dr. Denis Mukwege, who should be a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize. A $10 donation pays for transport to the hospital for a rape survivor; $100 pays for counseling and literacy and skill training for a survivor for a month"

However, I was also very interested in The Somaly Mam Foundation, which fight sex trafficking and slavery, and the Edna Hospital, a maternity hospital in Somalia which has the highest rates of maternal mortality. All three of these wonderful charities are something that I will make a point of supporting in the upcoming year and I hope you will to. Or donate to them for someones Christmas or Kwanzaa gift, I know I would love that personally.... :-)

Have a great holiday season with family or friends and always remember we can all afford to help others through time of money...

Save Darfur Store.

Today I want to talk about an issue which has yet to come up on the blog and that is the devastating war, genocide, and human rights violations occurring in the Darfur region of Sudan. This is one of the areas on the globe where life is extremely difficult and as many as hundreds of thousands have been affected by the strife.

There is no simple way to explain the current situation in Darfur quickly, for more info here is the wikipedia article on the Darfur conflict and some background from Save Darfur on the crisis. Here I learned about this conflict many years ago when I started learning about human trafficking and modern day slavery. The United Human Rights council considers it a genocide, which is a monumental accusation but one that many agree with. The president has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and for "directing a campaign of mass killing, rape, and pillage against civilians in Darfur."

Basically this is a region in extreme upheaval that is very dangerous for those who live their. And helping support those working for them would be a wonderful Christmas present to those affected by this war. One way of this is just through donating to Save Darfur and other organization that do this kind of work.

Another way is to purchase some of your Christmas present through their store. I think I want to purchase the decal that says "Stop the Genocide," because it is important for me to that people use that word and acknowledge the reality of the desperate situation of the people in Sudan.

So think about buy merchandise for people as another way to support your favorite charities while doing your Christmas shopping. Have a wonderful day everyone and remember all the good things in your life.