"One common wire
One silver thread"
- Patti Smith
singer-songwriter, poet, activist

Let's make "Goodsearch" a verb! But more importantly this wonderful search engine is a way to donate to Love146 by just searching like you normally would in Google! How cool, right? If you go to www.goodsearch.com, put Love146 in the charity box under the search box and then the more clicks - the more money goes to Love146 to abolish modern-day slavery and restore the survivors of child sex trafficking! We can make some change just by the way we use the internet... keep on fighting for justice!

Abolition & Restoration,
Elizabeth

"if you just keep on believing, there's a breeze that's heading right your way, coming to blow your blues away, so you've got to hold on...yes, you've got to hold on...just be strong, and hold on, hold on...."

I found this quote today on a support site and I read it at the right time, place, everything. And I imagined a girl in a brothel with no windows. Abolitionists are the breeze, we tear down the walls and let the breeze of freedom rush in to where there once was despair, shame and silenced wills and spirits. Now the warm summer breeze is surrounding the innocent and letting them breathe in freedom like a new dawn.

I am an abolitionist because the stories of slavery then restoration somehow make their way to my little spark on this earth. Today, I was approached by a young man who said, "Child sex trafficking sickens me, what can I do?"
He then told me a story of two girls he knows that were sex slaves. Seeing the number146 hit him hard. His two friends had numbers. They were made to suffer so much so that even thousands of miles away from the place of slavery, there were suicide attempts and PTSD.
These girls are living examples of the importance of really good and professional aftercare. A therapist sees the girls weekly and they are surrounded by great, safe, people. (Amen!!!) But I know through my support of Love146 how safehomes reach the core of the survivor and allow them to heal and thrive. Hopefully this movement to end modern-day slavery will raise up more and more safehomes so that children will know restoration in the light and safety of professional care givers and dedicated anti-trafficking agencies.
Please visit www.love146.org to donate.
Elizabeth

http://flickr.com/photos/swatt/1955187788/in/set-194907/
This amazing link will open your eyes to the terrorizing secrecy of child sex trafficking and how a filmmaker and his crew were able to unlock some of it.

"Touch people with the message of love. Pray for the peace and happiness of people in all other lands and cultures. Make a commitment to world peace by honoring the earth, honoring its people, and celebrating the unity of the human spirit."
-Masami Saionji

From 'prison' to safe haven
By Colette Hibbert
BBC News Online

The Poppy Project can support 35 women at any one time
"I have been raped, beaten, sold, cut with knives and threatened," says Maria.

"Although I am now free, I am depressed. I will never forget what they did to me."

Coming from a poor family in Albania, Maria was just 13 years old when she was sold by her sister to a man she did not know and taken to Italy by boat.

"I did not know where I was going. Once we arrived in Italy I was sold again, to a different man. He took me to a house and raped me," she said.

'Practical support'

As the UK marks the 200th anniversary of the Parliamentary Act which led to the abolition of the slave trade, there is evidence that slavery continues in this country, including cases like Maria's.

Maria was taken away by the police who took her to a nunnery for protection after neighbours overheard her screaming. She returned home after two years, but four days later she was sold again to another man - by her father.

She was taken back to Italy where she was kept prisoner and was smuggled into the UK in a lorry.

Maria ended up "working" in London for five years. "I worked every day, seeing 65 to 70 customers a day. I could earn up to £1,000 per day, but I had to pay £400 every day in 'rent' and £60 for a maid, as well as 20% of everything else I earned.

Eventually she managed to escape with other women in the house by running away with the owner's boyfriend. They then went to the police who introduced her to the Poppy Project, one of only two refuges for trafficked women in the UK.

Set up in 2003 as a pilot project by south-London based charity Eaves Housing for Women, the Poppy Project helps women aged 18 to 25 who have been trafficked to the UK.

Thursday, 10 January 2008
An IJM investigation in conjunction with local police has prompted the arrest of an American for his abuse of a minor in the Philippines. The 43-year-old man, a convicted sex offender in the U.S., is accused of sexually abusing a Filipina adolescent over a three-year period, beginning when the victim was 14.

IJM investigative staff in the Philippines received a tip that an American expatriate had habitually sexually abused a young teen for over three years and had gone so far as to illegally “marry” the victim when she was 15 in an attempt to legitimate his abuse. After preparing an initial investigation report, IJM worked closely with Philippine and U.S. authorities to locate the perpetrator under the auspices of the PROTECT Act, the U.S. law that makes sexual offenses committed against minors abroad by American citizens punishable in U.S. courts. Presented with documentation of the suspect’s sexual abuse of a minor, the Philippines Bureau of Immigration issued an order for his arrest in June.

However, the suspect was tipped off that police were looking for him and subsequently fled to an island several hours away. Despite his attempts at evasion, IJM investigators were able to track him down and resume surveillance. With confirmation that he was still at large, the Bureau of Immigration worked in collaboration with local police to arrest him.

After his arrest, the suspect and investigators traveled nearly five hours to return to the immigration office police station, where he was booked into immigration custody pending deportation.

In September, the suspect was deported to the U.S., where he was arrested upon arrival and charged under the PROTECT Act.

“These cases are critically important to demonstrate to pedophiles that there are no ‘safe harbors’ left in the world for the sexual exploitation of children,” explains IJM Southeast Asia Director Kaign Christy.

The victim has been placed in a safe aftercare home, where she is doing well. She is taking tutorial classes to prepare for her upcoming educational exams and will enroll in computer training courses.

LOOK! Love146 has projects to help so many more survivors of child sex trafficking. They can finally be safe like in the article above!

"*Pseudonyms have been used to protect the identities of victims and safeguard ongoing aftercare efforts.

Philippines Safehome Project

Rose Marie*, age 14, arrived at our safehome with all of her belongings contained in a small plastic bag. She comes from a street family and this bag also used to be her address. At a young age, she was raped by her stepfather and then sold by her mother into prostitution. Traded from pimp to pimp, Rose Marie became addicted to drugs and alcohol, and attempted suicide multiple times to escape the daily terror she lived in. The day after Rose Marie came to our safehome, one of our caregivers asked her “What is your wish in life?” Rose Marie answered, “My wish has come true. I am home.”

Location: Philippines
Rationale: Children rescued from prostitution and trafficking need restorative aftercare treatment to be liberated from their brokenness and sufferings.
Objective: Provide children in the safehome with holistic rehabilitation through physical, mental, spiritual and psychological therapy. Based on Love146’s Model of Aftercare, this project funds the operating costs for staff, food, shelter, therapy and education to ensure health and safety, effect healing and restoration, promote growth and development and enable the children to become productive members of society.
Project Cost: $175,000 is needed annually"


"Safehome CONSTRUCTION Project
Safe ~ Free from hurt, injury, danger or risk.
Home ~ A place of refuge and love.
Restore ~ To bring back into existence.

Location: Philippines
Rationale: More children could be rescued from sexual slavery if additional safehomes were available.
Objective: Build a safehome that is designed to meet the unique needs of exploited and trafficked children in a region where there is continuing rescue operations and a desperate need. This project includes the purchase of land, construction of the safehome, complete home furnishing, skills training, education, staffing and management. Project is scheduled from Jan to Oct 2008.
Project Cost: $365,000 has been fully funded"

Carry Love Project
Part II








Every person who has been photographed immediately wanted to go to love146.org (no lie) and felt like they were doing something great. Some have said, "I didn't know this existed." "This really goes on?" "How?" And it was great because I then answered all questions and I knew a seed of hope and awareness was definitely planted.

"Hey! I'm an agent of change!" - Greg R.

Carry Love Project
Part I

"I feel these four walls closing in
Face up against the glass
I'm looking out, hmmm
Is this my life I'm wondering
It happened so fast
How do I turn this thing around
Is this the bed I chose to make
There's greener pastures I'm thinking about
Hmm, wide open spaces far away

All I want is the wind in my hair
To face the fear but not feel scared

wild horses I wanna be like you
Throwing caution to the wind, I'll run free too
Wish I could recklessly love like I'm longing to
I wanna run with the wild horses
Run with the wild horses" - Natasha Bedingfield

Give Love...

From love, there is love.
From light, there is light.
From freedom, there is freedom.

"He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love."


Merry Christmas.
God is good, God is love, God is here.
The Creator frees the slaves;
She brings them justice, hope and healing.

Fighting to stop sexual slavery IS "Glamourous"


In her acceptance statement, Somaly said “I don’t know my name, my age, or my parents because I was sold into sex slavery when I was so young. What I am doing is to hope that some day, children and women can live a normal life, like you do, and can smile in my country.”



That evening, deeply moved by Somaly’s work, Queen Latifah and Barbara Walters each pledged to give Somaly’s organization $150,000 US dollars. So far, Somaly’s organization has saved 3,000 girls throughout Southeast Asia.



Read more about Somaly’s organization, AFESIP, www.afesip.org



Vital Voices’ Interview with Somaly Mam



The day after Somaly’s big night, Vital Voices’ Wenchi Yu Perkins interviewed Somaly Mam about her recent work, life, and how she feels about the “glamorous” evening she had the previous day.



Greeted by Somaly in her hotel room in mid-town Manhattan, Somaly exhibited fatigue in her face because of her two-week travel from Cambodia to Europe and the US. “Everyone else is out touring the city but I just want to stay in,” said Somaly, even though this is Somaly's first time in New York.



“I am afraid of seeing people because I am not used to this kind of publicity, glory, and celebrity.” Having received so many awards and so much international recognition for her important work, Somaly still is not used to these parties and celebrations. “I really miss my girls in Cambodia. I feel the happiest being around them. Now I just want to go home and see how they are doing.” “But I understand how important it is for me to travel outside of Cambodia because that’s the only way to receive critical support in order for me to continue my work."



Somaly said just a few months ago, she was so discouraged because her organization, AFESIP, was out of funding and it had been three months that she could not pay her staff a salary. “One of the shelters is closed because we are running out of money.” “I was seriously thinking about giving up. But my daughter said to me, ‘Mummy, please continue AFESIP’ and I just want to work for them.”




So what keeps Somaly going despite all the difficulties at work and in her personal life? “It’s my story” responded Somaly. “Everything I missed as a child, I want to give that to these children.” Somaly’s daughter was recently kidnapped and while she returned home safely, corruption and mafia continues to threaten Somaly and her family’s safety.



When asked about how the Glamour Award is going to impact her work, Somaly simply said “please give awards to other women.” “There are so many great women working in the field in Cambodia but they have not been recognized for their courage and achievements. Please give awards to them, not me.”



Even though Somaly and her organization, AFESIP, has been so successful in saving girls’ lives, she thinks there are still so much room for improvement and so much more to be done. “We need a lot of training to help our staff enhance their professional practice at work. For example, we need to learn how to provide better victim services, how to manage our finance and write good reports to funders, and to market and communicate about our work. We still need a lot of help.”



Somaly’s biography has been published in French in France, Italy, Germany, and Japan. The English version should be available in the UK and the US in early and September 2007 respectively.

Sorry I haven't blogged in forever. I've just been working on some personal stuff and needed to have some healthy distance from the Internet. This may sound hypocritical, and I do apologize, but if you are going trick or treating ( I can't due to SATs two days after) but I think it would be really great if you could just have a quick chat with your neighbors about child sex trafficking while you are at their doors anyways. This to me, seems really convenient to educate and spread the message of abolition and restoration, with maybe some candy on the side! :) It's just a thought and hopefully it can work for some of the readers.

With love & prayer,
E.

This article is an example of how sexual perpetrators get the upper hand. I would put every name of every child sex trafficker on these shirts, but there are too few shirts because of the secrecy and too many names because of the sickest greed imaginable.

University tries to limit anti-rape demonstration
At the University of Maryland, a traditional rape-awareness event is coming under fire.

For the past 17 years, students have participated in a rape awareness program where victims and advocates against sexual violence hang T-shirts along a huge clothesline on campus.
The program allows victims to turn their backs on the crime and have a voice. Some victims also write the names of their assailants on their shirts.

But this year, university lawyers are instructing participants not to write names on shirts to avoid potential lawsuits.


The students say they still plan on hanging the shirts with names on them. One student and a member of the Student Advocates for Education about Rape, Khalifah, says "This is just another way [of] silencing sexual assault victims.

This reminds me of my all-time favorite movie of bad-ass girls, Girls Town. There's a scene where one of the characters scrawls on their high school bathroom wall the name of the guy who raped her, identifying him as a rapist. When she comes back to the wall later, other girls have written down the names of their assailants. There's power in naming. The University of Maryland should support that."

Thank you to the Board of Benevolence for giving Love146 $500.00! Such wonderful acts prove, if there's a will then there's a way.
People DO care and DO want to abolish child sex trafficking and exploitation. You'll be surprised at how many abolitionists you will come across. The struggle for justice is very difficult, but we are not alone in our desire to end slavery. We even had kindred spirits back in the 1800s during the first abolition movement! We are carrying on their legacy and strength, to give strength to those who are enslaved.

Many Thanks!

Love 146

Love 146

...She still had a fight left.

Visit, explore, watch the video;
Be surrounded by Love 146.