Belts Breaking Bondage

Today I got an email that I was totally stoked about and wanted to share with everyone.

There is a student group of activists at Ohio University that formed at the beginning of March. They call themselves, "Belts Breaking Bondage"

They sew and sell waist belts and donate 85% of the profits to different anti-trafficking organizations. They were so impressed with the work that Transitions Global is doing in Cambodia and in the US that they wanted to make sure we received the first check!

This is so great! I get so inspired when I see people join together and use their passions and abilities to help end slavery!

Thank you so much, "Belts Breaking Bondage"!!!

Ok Ok

So in December I renewed my commitment to blogging and then promptly quit... However, for the last several months I have been busier than a one legged man in a.. well you know the rest.

I will admit that for this first time back I am reposting a note from Facebook but I think it is worthy of retelling...

(Originally posted to FB on Feb 27, 2009)

Yesterday afternoon I had a wake up call that hit me like a surprise hook to the jaw.

Part of my job responsibilities with Transitions Global is to field calls that come into our business line. I don't get a lot of calls as the number is new and most people have our cell phone numbers. However, I do get the occasional "I want to help out", "Can you answer this question for my research project", or "I am responding to this post on Craigslist... do you think it is sketchy."

Yesterday was different... I got a call from a lady who is representing a girl that was rescued from sex slavery her in Portland this past week. She wanted to know if we had a secure shelter for this survivor. A place where this girl could be rehabilitated and reintegrated into society.

This is where my world temporarily fell apart... I had to tell her that, "No, we don't have a facility set up yet and we cannot help her directly." I quickly fumbled to give her some resources that I had, and put her in touch with our Director, so he could follow up with her... but the damage was done.

I had to tell her, "No... I cannot help you." This wasn't me giving another presentation, spouting out facts about human trafficking, and how horrible it is, and then trying to convince people that this is a worthwhile cause to give to. It was me.. right here... right now... saying, "No."

Over the last couple of months I have been working feverishly to build a fundraising infrastructure for Transitions Global. I ran a marathon last week, I am running a 5k with a group of people in mid-march, we are planning a cigar and wine event tentatively for April, we are working with Churches, we are working with bands, I am putting together a group of people to summit Mt. Hood in July, we are planning an immersion trip to Cambodia in August, I am putting together a triathlon team to race in July... and this is just a few of the things I have been working on... but for a moment all of this came to a screeching halt. I had to say, "No"

I am sorry little girl. I know you have been abused beyond all imagination and I know that you desperately need a safe place to feel real love, and to wrk through all of the crap that you have gone through, and to figure out how you are going to proceed with life but... I cannot help you.

I am sorry... I haven't done a good enough job at raising funds yet... I haven't been able to convince people that this is important... I am sorry, but "No"

My wife walked into the room and asked me what was wrong and through stifled sobs I tried to tell her what had happened only moments before.

As I drove to class last night I began to think... I can really let this bum me out or... (and this is the option that I have chosen) I can use this reality to increase the already raging fire on the inside of me, so that hopefully next time I can say "YES!!!"

Thanks for letting me vent...

The Business of Freedom

I have studied the issue(s) of Human Trafficking for the last two years, raised $12,000.00 this past year, funded a mini- documentary, traveled to Cambodia and Tunisia and yet I feel like I am just scraping the tip of the iceberg. 

I am working my way through Kevin Bales' book, "Ending Slavery" and he talks about our need to consult with a panel of experts on how to abolish slavery. The problem is that there is no panel of experts. 

Hope is not lost, Bales points out that this issue is only a $32 billion industry. That may seem like a lot to the "average Joe the plumber" but, in the grand scheme of global funds, it is a drop in the bucket. Ultimately, this is not a lot of money and this issue can be resolved in our lifetime. 

In all the studying that I have done I have found one common denominator. This movement... takes money! It takes 5 bucks here, 10 bucks there. It takes corporate sponsors, government grants; youth group car washes, etc. You get the picture. 

The number one phrase that I heard while I was in Cambodia was, "depending on funding." I heard it to the point that I became nauseous. Hearing this bothered me on several different levels. First, because I see these non-bureaucratic groups who have streamlined what they do and they are accomplishing tremendous things. They could do so much more if they had more funds. Then I come back to the States and I see presentations by different "funding organizations" and it is almost Taboo to ask for money. I see these people talk about the issue, get people to the point of emotionalism, and then they don't close the deal. They just leave it open-ended and tell people that they can practice "open source activism." Open source activism is just another way of saying that, "we don't really have a way to use you right now, so go try to find something to do to contribute to the cause." The sentiment that everyone can get involved is great but the sense of non-direction combined with the paralysis of such enormous issue leaves most feeling completely helpless. Here is an idea... rather than spending $3.80 on your large caramel coffee everyday why don't you invest that into the life of a child? (3.80 X 5 days a week X 4 weeks a month X 12 months a year = $912) $912.00 X 1,000 people = $912,000.00

I use the above equation to illustrate that if a lot of us do a little, we can make a huge difference. I also say this because while we are pondering whether or not to give up our sugar and caffeine fix, there are girls who have been rescued from the slave trade and want with all their heart to go to English school for the year and can't because they don't have $600.  There are girls who are waiting to be rescued but the groups that are doing the intervention don't have any place to put them, because the groups who run the safe homes don't have enough funds to duplicate the incredible job that they are doing. At this point I am just talking about the girls and how slavery has affected them... Every group that I talked to in Cambodia said with a sigh of frustration, "and we haven't even begun to address the issue with the boys."  

While all this is going on, well-wishers are telling For Their Rescue and other organizations that essentially, we want to do more than just send money. I love that people want to help, but if the groups that are in the trenches can't afford to pay themselves what makes people think that there is going to be a vacant spot for them to work in? These groups need money! It takes money to buy ink cartridges, to buy paper, computers, toilet paper, petrol, food, hygiene items, etc, etc, etc..... 

I don't mean to be crass about this subject and trivialize it by turning it into dollars and cents. I haven't been back from Cambodia for two weeks and I already miss the country deeply. I miss the people and the girls that I met. I also look forward to the people I will meet in Africa, Haiti, India, Europe, South and Central America. BUT.... The cold hard fact is this.... there are cruel, twisted men and women out there that are in the BUSINESS of Slavery. If we ever hope to abolish slavery, we need to be in the BUSINESS of Freedom!  

Transitions Global

This is a really good video about Transitions 

My highlight

I was in Cambodia for two weeks... We saw some amazing things, but for me the highlight is displayed in this picture.

Fritz and I were filming a mini-documentary about a young lady who was trafficked and eventually became a client at Transitions Global. She has been there for just over a year, she has gone through their reintegration program and while we were there she moved out of their safe-home and into an apartment with one of the other clients from Transitions.

In this photo we are outside the slum were she was born and were trying to get photos and video for her story. When all of the sudden she sees her mom. We have no idea how long it has been since they have seen each other but both Fritz and I were freaking out at this point... I mean what are the odds of this happening?

Anyways, they chat for a few minutes and then our movie star ask our driver/translator for money, so that she can give it to her mom. I butt in at this point to find out what is going on and figure out what is going down... I reach for my wallet and I only have $8 left for the day (the rest of the money is back at the hotel), so I took it all out and gave it without hesitation....

This young lady looked at the money as if it were a million dollars and then looked at me as if to say, "Are you sure?" In that moment I had one of those times where you have a thousand thoughts all at once.... I also started getting something stuck in my eye (because I don't cry.. It must have been really dusty) as I thought about how much it meant to her to be able to give this to her mom and how I was able to do this for her without any strings attached. How many men had she looked at before that had so many sick and twisted strings attached to their "provision"?

The whole transaction took less than a moment but I will remember it for the rest of my life!

Trip to Cambodia

At the beginning of the month I went to Cambodia along with friend/photographer, Fritz Liedtke. We took the trip for several reasons. I wanted to get a more intimate knowledge of the region and learn more about the issue of trafficking as it pertains to SE Asia and more specifically to Cambodia. I also wanted to meet the people who are on the ground and in the trenches fighting to abolish slavery. I wanted to learn about these people/organizations. I wanted to hear their heart, so that I can relay their message to people here in the States. 

We also went to obtain photos and video footage, so that we could tell the story of trafficking as it pertains to this part of the globe. Fritz did an awesome job of obtaining photos and video. We will be releasing these through multi-media in the weeks ahead. Fritz and Dayn Arnold are working at editing and producing several different videos with the footage that we were able to capture while we were there.  

My newfound commitment to blogging

Wow! A lot has happened since March... Mostly though I realize that I am not the greatest at blogging. So, as a pre-New Year's resolution I am going to attempt (in my spare time) to start posting blogs on a regular basis.