Published July 30th, 2008
in Uncategorized.
Human Trafficking Convergence/Retreat
Student Coalition to End Human Trafficking
Have you been working to raise awareness about human trafficking, and modern day slavery on your college campus or in your community? If so then this is the retreat for you! If you’re looking to take your activism to the next level by building collective power with other like minded students from around the country, then retreat is for you.
When: September 5-7th
Where: Washington, D.C.
Application Due Date: post marked before August 15, 2007
This retreat is designed to create space for 20 student leaders who have demonstrated a commitment to the anti-human trafficking movement to come together in order to:
1. Learn more about the issue and discuss the problem
2. Design an action plan to unify students from all across the country to create a network of students to achieve a unified goal of ending human trafficking and modern day slavery in the 21st century.
At the retreat, you will:
•Engage with experts in the field of anti trafficking at the local, state, and national levels, as well as 20 fellow students who have experience organizing on human trafficking issues.
•Learn how to organize on a grassroots level, advocate for better victims protection and prevention policy, and build the next generation of activist and change makers in this country!
•Set goals, benchmarks, action items, and coalitions to see a change in 2008 and 2009 year.
Once this retreat is over you will be energized to make a change in your community! You will have the contacts, tools, and most of all the confidence to establish successful anti-trafficking campaigns at your campus. Your efforts will be amplified, improving awareness efforts and turning them into action plans! Americans for Informed Democracy [AID] will help to keep participants connected, active, and strong as we achieve our collective goals.
So does this sound like you?
To apply, please visit our Human Trafficking Coalition sign up page and provide us with more information regarding your experience, expectations for the retreat and vision for this anti-trafficking student activist network. The deadline to apply is August 15. As part of this convergence and strategy retreat, your travel and lodging will be provided.
To learn more, click http://aidemocracy.org/development/htretreat.php
This retreat is being co-sponsored by Americans for Informed Democracy, Polaris Project,
and FAIR Fund
Published April 28th, 2008
in Uncategorized.
Vital Voices Global Partnership brings together emerging women leaders who are poised to make a difference on trafficking in women and girls to receive instruction from top anti-trafficking experts, to gain critical field experience, and to cultivate new skills, alliances, and ongoing support for their work. Members of the Vital Voices Network return home to partner with government agencies, social service centers, counselors, the legal community, and other NGOs to help the estimated 800,000-900,000 women and girls who are shipped each year across and within national borders into modern-day slavery.
To learn more, click here. and to view the toolkit,
click here.
Published April 14th, 2008
in Uncategorized.
Who Cares About Girls? is an ongoing original documentary series dedicated to developing a composite picture of how the world treats young women and inspiring our audience to stand up for girls. The first three installments of the series, Daughters Left Behind, Slave Girls of India, and Sex Workers or Victims, are hosted by award-winning journalist Lisa Ling and produced by National Geographic Television.
It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of children are involved in prostitution in the U.S. Often, they are runaways preyed upon by pimps who exploit their vulnerability for commercial gain.
These girls are victims of trafficking, rape, torture and psychological abuse, yet are considered guilty in the eyes of the law. The standard practice is to prosecute these children as criminal sex workers and lock them up. Ling investigates the hidden world of the underage sex trade in New York, Dallas and Las Vegas. She will hear the stories of current and former sexually exploited children in their own words, ride along on an undercover investigation and get a rare glimpse of how prevalent this problem really is.
To check out these episodes, click here.
Published March 28th, 2008
in Uncategorized.
“Hardly a thing of the past, slavery thrives in our world.”
Investigative reporter Benjamin Skinner tells Salon the shocking truth about human trafficking in an article by Hannah Wallace.
Benjamin Skinner spent four years researching modern-day slavery for his new book, “A Crime So Monstrous,” during which time he posed as a buyer at illegal brothels on several continents, interviewed convicted human traffickers in a Romanian prison and endured giardia, malaria, dengue and a bad motorcycle accident.
Wallace writes: “Skinner’s great achievement is that he shines a light on the international slave trade, exposing the horrors of bondage not only through assiduous reporting and interviews with modern-day abolitionists and government officials, but by sharing the stories of several survivors. These poignant tales — of people like Muong, a 12-year-old Dinka boy from southern Sudan, who is abducted (with his brother and mother) by an Arab slave driver; Tatiana, an Eastern European woman who is tricked into slavery when her boyfriend of six months finds her an “au pair” job in Amsterdam; and Gonoo, an Indian man in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh who inherits a debt from his father and spends his days working it off at a stone quarry — illustrate the harsh realities of slavery while also offering some hope that former slaves can rebuild their lives.”
To read the rest of Wallace’s compelling article, click here.
Published March 28th, 2008
in Uncategorized.
“Crimes such as violations of child labor, general physical and mental abuse, poverty, human slavery and sex trafficking are only the tip of problems that one cannot even venture to comprehend for a child.” - Cassandra Clifford
Cassandra Clifford is a non-profit freelancer, who’s main objective is working to prevent human trafficking, especially with children. Ms. Clifford has done academic research in the areas of Ethnic Cleansing and Genocide in the Former Soviet Union, Nuclear Arms Reduction, Causes of War in Yugoslavia, Nationalism, and other various Slavic centered topics. Ms. Clifford is currently on the leadership board and stands as the Research Committee Chairperson for Stop Modern Slavery.
Ms. Clifford is the author of a compelling blog that addresses a wide range of issues, check out the Children’s Blog and, for Ms. Clifford’s more complete bio, click here.
