You Are Not For Sale

Statistics can be appalling. Numbers and digits and data and dates might confuse the mind, as we’re trying to resolve, “if so many people have been become enslaved by such and such, how many people is that?! And this compares to that…Yikes!”

And then I’m asking myself the question, does it really matter, to me? Does it reach me at my core that 27 million people are enslaved today? Or is that just a number that I put on my notepad that will shuffle aside and catch dust over the next few years? But more importantly, could I, we, do something about it?

Human trafficking is the practice of luring someone away from their home, and forcing them into labor of some sort, even sex, for little to no wages. Children across the globe are being trafficked for the purpose of sexual exploitation. It is happening in our own backyard. Visit www.slaverymap.org to discover what’s happening in your home town. Denver, Houston, L.A., New York; around the world. It’s everywhere.

Can something be done? Yes. And something has, and is, being done.

I must thank my dear friend Shellie for enlightening me on this issue of which I knew nearly nothing about. Shellie recently quit her job as an interior designer. She could no longer work on a project they had in Asia. A country club by day; a night club by night, men would be able to show up, and easily hire a child for sex.

Shellie has done her research and is now volunteering her time educating those of us around her on this catastrophe. These stories don’t necessarily make breaking news. But they are breaking lives.

Visit www.notforsalecampaign.org to learn more.

It is their mission to END slavery once and for all.

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man

 

 

John Perkins: Former economic hit man, now advocate for human rights and environmental change

 

 

“…a compelling story that also offers hope and a vision for realizing the American dream of a just and compassionate world that will bring us greater security.”

 

  

Some say ignorance is bliss. But too often, what we don’t know will only continue to hurt and exploit others. This book has the potential to bring you to a higher level of awareness of corruption and injustice found in our world, and may urge you to speak out.

 

After working as a paid professional for years, secretly manipulating countries out of money, this author comes forward with the truth of what most of us are entirely unaware of. His work is full of insight and ethical bravery we all could stand to reflect on. He challenges those concepts many of us have heard our whole lives and determined to be absolute truth.

 

We may acknowledge that injustice permeates our world. We might have wondered who made the shirt we buy for $20; how many cents she made. We might have reminded a friend that there are orphans on the other side of the world who had only one plate of food today. But maybe…we could do a little bit more.

 

 

 

John Perkins is the founder of Dream Change, a non-profit organization which encourages people to create more sustainable ways of living. Visit www.dreamchange.org to see how global consciousness is being transformed.

Servants’ Hearts around the Globe

This weekend has been enlightening, challenging, and provoking all at the same time.

 

I went to a benefit dinner for The 1010 Project, which is a non-profit organization that serves people in Kenya by helping them start their own businesses. Their efforts are concentrated on raising awareness of extreme poverty in the world. One of their partners in Kenya, Michael, is here visiting the States for the first time, and was invited to speak to the United Nations in New York!

 

At church a video was presented on a family who moved to Cambodia. A few years ago they were able to start up an orphanage and are currently raising 16 children there. These vulnerable little ones were merely surviving on the streets, but now have food in their bellies, a large loving family, and a community where love and acceptance are at the forefront.

 

I watched a DVD about a newly founded orphanage in Uganda. These three young ladies from Colorado are responding to the call of seeking justice by providing a home for countless young ones on the street. Their vibrancy and deep desire to make change in these little souls is inspiring.

 

And today is Micah Sunday! The Micah Challenge is a “global Christian campaign…..halve absolute global poverty by 2015.”  Micah Sunday is a day in which churches around the world are joining together in prayer, seeking guidance and increasing awareness of extreme poverty in efforts to uphold justice and create positive change.

          

 

How remarkable it is to learn of what our neighbors are doing to stand up and fight against injustice in our world!

                               (photo pasted from www.micahchallenge.org)

 

 

 

 

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What ARE our priorities?

I found the following data quite intriguing; sad at the same time. (Taken from www.globalissues.org)

Consider the global priorites in spending in 1998:

Global Priority	$U.S. Billions
Cosmetics in the United States	8
Ice cream in Europe	11
Perfumes in Europe and the United States	12
Pet foods in Europe and the United States	17
Business entertainment in Japan	35
Cigarettes in Europe	50
Alcoholic drinks in Europe	105
Narcotics drugs in the world	400
Military spending in the world	780

And compare that to what was estimated as additional costs to achieve universal access to basic social services in all developing countries:

Global Priority	$U.S. Billions
Basic education for all	6
Water and sanitation for all	9
Reproductive health for all women	12
Basic health and nutrition	13

Did you know that half the world – nearly three billion people – live on less than two dollars a day?

Today I spent more than two dollars on a cup of coffee for myself!