In my last blog post, I shared about how January is National Human Trafficking Awareness month and that together we need to rise up and do something about this crime. A friend suggested I share some practical ideas or examples from my own life on how we can do this (Thank you, Grace!). So here are my ideas on how YOU can be a modern-day abolitionist. :)
1) Pray. Prayer is a world-changing battle weapon that we oftentimes forget about or use as a last resort. I used to think that I was doing nothing to fight human trafficking because I didn't know what to do. But I was forgetting that I could fight human trafficking best when I'm on my knees! So pray hard. Don't just say a quick prayer here and there. Seriously and diligently pray for the end of human trafficking. Pray for the victims and the heroes working to find them and set them free. Pray for everyone involved and ask God how He wants you to get involved. 2) Get educated. To know how to fight human trafficking, you must know what it is. Learn about what it is and how you can recognize the signs of human trafficking. Become informed and educated. A good way to do this is to research about human trafficking through organizations fighting against it. Read books to educate yourself. My personal favorites are: Be The Change by Zach Hunter and Not Abandoned by MacKenzie Morganthal. For younger children/teens always check with your parents before using the internet or reading books. 3) Stay connected. Stay up-to-date with what is going on in the fight against human trafficking. Check out the websites of great organizations such as: the International Justice Mission, A21 Campaign, Restore International, and Love 146. A lot of organizations such as these do campaigns or fundraisers that you can be a part of. Subscribe to their newsletters and mailing lists to stay up-to-date on what they're doing to fight human trafficking. 4) Use your voice. Do you have Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+? What about a blog, magazine or newsletter? Use these tools to raise awareness! Awareness leads to change and helping others become aware of human trafficking around them can make a big difference. I have used these social media platforms to raise awareness and speak out about human trafficking. I have written articles for magazines and my blog about human trafficking. Even if you don't have any of these options available to you (I didn't either when I first found out about human trafficking), you still have a voice that you can use to speak to your friends and family about what you have learned and encourage them to get involved. 5) Buy fair trade. Most people who know me know that I do not eat any chocolate unless I know that it is 100% fairly traded. Not only does buying fair trade help break the cycle of human trafficking (even in a small way), but it also helps support fair wages for small farmers. Fair trade chocolate is more common now than it used to be and it's very common to find it in grocery stores now. You can also buy other fairly traded things such as coffee, jewelry and clothing. 6) Use your time, money, and talent. Host fundraisers or raise your money and donate to great organizations like I mentioned above. Are you good at writing, photography, crocheting? Whatever your talent is, use it to make a difference. I have used my gift of writing to share with the world about human trafficking and what we can do to end it. One example of this: If you enjoy crocheting, maybe you could crochet headbands, hats, etc. and sell them, donating all the proceeds from them to an organization fighting human trafficking. You could do this with other crafts too. 7) Connect with others. We can't end this horrific crime on our own. We need to join together and fight against it! Get connected with other modern-day abolitionists who seek freedom and pray together, pursue freedom together, organize fundraisers together, etc. Work together, because together we can end this! Believe in freedom and fight for it. God wants to use us to change human trafficking. What better month to start than in January 2016--National Human Trafficking Awareness Month! Start right here, right now and watch Jesus use you to change things. How will you use the freedom God has given you?
2 Comments
Grace
1/7/2016 08:34:21 pm
Thank you so, SO much, Bella!!!! :) This post was very helpful!!!
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Bella Morganthal
1/8/2016 09:42:04 pm
Good, I'm glad it was helpful, Grace! :)
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