Blogging for a Cause



Creation Under Fire


God's creation is amazing! There's no doubt about that. Genesis 1:31 tells us that after God made the world and everything within it, He saw that it was "good."  However, as we look around us it is also easy to see how creation has come under attack.  From the very beginning in the Garden of Eden, Satan went to God's most precious creation--mankind--to tempt and lead them astray.  Ever since then, he hasn't stopped plotting to “steal, kill, and destroy.” (John 10:10)

In my opinion, human trafficking—particularly sex trafficking is the devil's greatest assault on creation at this present age.

What is it?

Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery where people profit from the control and exploitation of others. (Polaris Project)

After drug dealing, human trafficking is tied with the illegal arms industry as the second largest criminal industry in the world today, and it is the fastest growing.” (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)

Human trafficking for the purposes of sexual exploitation is expected to eclipse the drug and weapons trade as the number one source of revenue for organized crime.

Currently, there are an estimated 600,000 to 800,000 children, women, and men trafficked across international borders annually. (U.S. Department of State)

  • 80% are women and girls...
  • 70% are forced into prostitution...
  • 50% are children

According to UNICEF, as many as two million children are subjected to prostitution worldwide.

The CIA estimates that there are one million slaves in the U.S. today. Between 100,000 and 300,000 of those enslaved and exploited are children.

Trafficking has a global annual market of about $42.5 billion. (Richmond Justice Initiative)

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."
-Martin Luther King, Jr.

The sad fact is that human trafficking will endure as long as it remains a profitable criminal enterprise, but Psalm 37:7 reminds us “not to fret when men succeed in their ways, when they carry out their wicked schemes...”

“For He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world….”
(I. John 4:4)

Creation Fights Back

What can you do to help?

Educate yourself! Your teacher was right... Knowledge IS power. Learn about the problem of human trafficking by reading the Trafficking in Persons Report 2011: www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2011/
Make Friends! Connect with others who are taking a stand against human trafficking.
Plan an Event! Plan a fund-raising event such as a yard sale or bake sale to raise awareness and funds for human trafficking organizations.
Donate! There are plenty of organizations to monetarily support. Read up on them and see which one speaks to your heart.
Volunteer! Research anti-human trafficking organizations in your area and offer your time to a great cause.
Shop Fair Trade! Fair Trade is a trading partnership, based on dialogue, transparency and respect, which aims at sustainable development for excluded and disadvantaged producers. If disadvantaged people groups have a supporting source of income, they are less likely to sell their children to human traffickers for promised wages. For more information on fair trade principles, visit http://www.fairtradefederation.org/. One of my favorite fair trade stores in the Richmond area is Ten Thousand Villages. Check out their homepage @http://www.richmond.tenthousandvillages.com/, or the main homepage @http://www.tenthousandvillages.com/.

"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men do nothing."  
-Edmond Burke





Anti-Human Trafficking Organizations

Here is a list of some of my favorite warriors in the fight against human trafficking:

Hagar International
It is an international Christian organization committed to the recovery, empowerment and reintegration of women and children in Afghanistan, Cambodia and Vietnam.
www.hagarinternational.org

International Justice Mission
It is a human rights agency that brings rescue to victims of slavery, sexual exploitation and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and aftercare professionals work with local officials to secure immediate victim rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to ensure that public justice systems -police, courts and laws - effectively protect the poor.
www.ijm.org

Mission RescueLife
It is an outreach of Life International that is committed to helping children discover their God-given destiny, living free of the pain and degradation of human slavery.  Currently, their efforts to help rescue young girls and women from the streets and brothels are centered in Cambodia, Thailand, India, and Romania.
www.lifetoday.org/outreaches/mission-rescuelife/

Pearl Alliance
It is a branch of Messenger International specifically designed to help raise funds and awareness to prevent the progression of human trafficking and rescue those who are already enslaved.
Pearl Alliance is committed to forming strategic alliances with onsite organizations to combat the trafficking of women and children. Currently their focus is Southeast Asia, specifically Thailand and
Cambodia. Lisa Bevere educates people worldwide about the injustice of human trafficking and raises funds to help finance on-site organizations.
www.pearlalliance.org

Richmond Justice Initiative
It is a grassroots faith based organization of modern day abolitionists committed to ending modern day slavery, commonly referred to as human trafficking. Their approach in order to eradicate this issue is to combat this crime on all fronts, through pursuing awareness, education, prevention, advocacy, aftercare and prayer.
www.richmondjusticeinitiative.com

Stella’s Voice
Their vision is to be the voice that speaks for the orphans of Moldova, from the smallest child, to the aged out teen. With each voice that adds with theirs, they are able to offer a loving home to more of these innocent children, raising them in a Christian environment as their own. Stella’s Voice has two houses: Stella’s House is a home for orphan girls who have aged out of state-run facilities and are prime targets for sex traffickers. Simon’s House is a home for orphan boys who have aged out of state-run facilities and are at risk for being sold into slavery for construction work in Russia.
www.stellasvoice.org

Zoe Children’s Homes
They are an international organization than rescues and cares for children who are sold, or at risk of being sold, into prostitution slavery; orphaned, or victims of other heinous crimes and abuse-worldwide.
www.zoechildren.org


“Being busy is no excuse for apathy. We all can give a little to those who have had everything taken.”
–Pearl Alliance