Meet Nomi Network

See how the Nomi Network is trying to combat human trafficking and find out how they chose the name "Nomi" from meeting an eight year old sex trafficking survivor.

Child Sex Trafficking on San Diego's Streets

Can buying Ben and Jerry's Ice cream really help stop modern day slavery?

      You always hear such horrible stories about human trafficking and many wonder if there really is anything we can do to stop such a horrendous crime. And the answer is YES, there are many things we can do to stop human trafficking. One of the most important things we can do is buy certified fair trade products. Fair Trade means that no slave had their hands in the production of the product, it also means that the product was made through environmentally friendly means, and that the workers were paid a decent wage. You can tell if a product is fair trade certified if you see one of these symbols on a product.

Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream is working on becoming fully fair trade certified by 2013, currently they have many ice creams that are fully certified or are at least half way there. Check out their website to see what flavors are fair trade certified. If you want to learn more about fair trade products and companies that make fair trade products including: clothing, coffee, chocolate and much more check out Fair Trade USA. And remember, next time you want some ice cream choose Ben and Jerry's!!! 

Please Don't Close Your Ears to the Truth

Modern Day Slavery isn't an easy topic to swallow, many people I talk to simply don't really want to know about it. Why? Well for one its depressing; who wants to hear about children being raped or women and men being forced to make our clothes or our coffee? Which brings us to another point, guilt. People don't want to feel guilty, because when we feel guilty we feel uncomfortable and lets face it no one wants to feel uncomfortable.

Picture your loved ones face here...

      I have many friends that will be shocked and horrified when I tell them stories of girls prostituted by their own families, or little boys trafficked to produce Hershey chocolate. But after that they simply don't want to hear it, they don't want to see it. Many people say, "Well, slavery happens in other countries, not America so why do we have to worry about it?" Well even if that were true, that slavery does not happen in America (which it's not), we as American consumers contribute to slavery whether we are aware of it or not. More than half the things we buy are slave produced; from gas, to cell phones, computers, agriculture, clothes, coffee, chocolate, diamonds, rubber, bricks. I'm not saying you should feel guilty because its not your fault, we just aren't aware of it because let's face it: companies aren't about to shout out, "Hey we sell you slave-produced products!"
    I know that hearing about slavery can be a real downer, and many people feel it's a hopeless battle. But if we turn our backs on this egregious crime against humanity then we let down millions of people who are praying for the day they will be set free; the day they see their families again; the day they get to see their traffickers imprisoned. Just think, slavery happens everywhere, not just to the poor or in some small tribe in Africa. It happens EVERYWHERE and TO EVERYONE including the rich, the middle class and the poor. These kids could be your kids; these victims could be your daughter, your son, your cousin, your niece, your nephew, your mother, your father, yourself. And I know none of us would want our loved ones to be enslaved. So remember that, when you hear a story of someone who was trafficked, it's time to listen to the truth no matter how horrifying it is--beacuase if we don't speak out for the freedom of 27 million slaves, then who will?

Side Note
For those of you wondering how you can help the fight against human trafficking I will soon be posting blogs about the many things people are doing around the world to not just speak out about this horrific crime but to take action. I will show you how you can buy "fair trade" products which means slaves did not produce them; how you can help change laws for traffickers in your own state or country, all the different ways you can help bring awareness to your community, and how you can help raise or donate money to help those that have suffered. So keep reading and remember there is something you can do to help abolish slavery, even if its as small as just telling somebody the truth that slavery still exists.

10 Minute Teaser of Call+Response

Check out this trailer for the new documentary Call and Response, which shows us the horrors of sex trafficking from inside the brothels and also incorporates some of the top singers in the music industry. Also check out their website and see how you can help stop modern day slavery http://www.callandresponse.com/

Meet a Real Survivor of Human Trafficking

Human Trafficking at Fashion Valley

According to 10 news, in 2009 a 14 year old girl (who 10 news is calling Amber) was trafficked into prostitution by a women, named Tara Duncan, whom Amber met at the Fashion Valley shopping center. A few days after their meeting Duncan took Amber to a party, where Amber was raped multiple times by 3 to 4 men who turned out to be Duncan's pimps. After that her and Duncan would go to motels and turn tricks. Duncan would actually drop Amber off at home, but Amber was to ashamed and afraid to tell her family what was going on. Amber was rescued by police and Duncan was sentenced to two years probation and fined $160 dollars.

Do you own (stuff made by) slaves?

Many people don't know this but we contribute to labor trafficking by buying products that were made by slaves. It's not really our fault since companies have not felt the need to tell us when they are using slaves in their production line. But our ignorance is contributing to slavery and in order to stop slavery we must become informed. Many of the things we buy from fruit, to jewelry, to coffee, to chocolate, to clothes, to cell phones (especially the I-phone) and even gas, has a high likely hood of coming from a production line that used slavery. Watch the video below to find out more.

Branded - Sex trafficking Film

When I was in 11th grade I decided I wanted to make a film that would capture the horrors of human trafficking and bring awareness to the public. So I created Branded, a short experimental film, that uses dance, voice over, and music to give people a sense of what it would be like to be trafficked - to feel hopeless, to feel trapped.