So you want to do something about human trafficking.
Maybe it was the article you read in the newspaper, or the documentary you watched last year. Maybe it was the survivor who bravely shared her story, or the statistics you read all over the internet.
You’ve already agreed that selling and exploiting other people is not OK. But what are you going to do about it? Or, maybe a more accurate question may be, what can you do about it?
The answer: a whole lot more than you probably think.
How Busy People Can Still Do Something About Sex Trafficking
So you want to do something about human trafficking.
Maybe it was the article you read in the newspaper, or the documentary you watched last year. Maybe it was the survivor who bravely shared her story, or the statistics you read all over the internet.
You’ve already agreed that selling and exploiting other people is not OK. But what are you going to do about it? Or, maybe a more accurate question may be, what can you do about it?
The answer: a whole lot more than you probably think.
It’s easy for the “average” person to believe that unless you have a degree in restorative counseling or a badge that says “Law Enforcement,” there’s not many hands-on opportunities out there. Or maybe you’ve heard of some of the great opportunities to get involved, but feel your schedule is simply too packed to add just one more thing. It’s ok–we get it. We’ve all been there too.
Instead, may we suggest a different approach?
Rather than adding “fight human trafficking” onto your already piling-up to-do list, why not sit down with that list and ask yourself a few questions?
● Is there a way I can incorporate awareness in any of these places?
● How can I harness what I’m already doing to make a difference?
● Where do I see opportunities to bring someone along with me?
We understand the many needs already asking for your time. We really do. And we love watching what happens when ordinary, even busy, people learn to infuse what they’re already doing with the opportunity to make a larger impact.
One great example of this impact is seen through Love Gives Way, an organization started by Andy Brophy in 2011. As a full-time wedding and portrait photographer, he decided to infuse his regular, everyday business with a chance to raise both awareness and funds towards anti-trafficking in his city.
“For me the wedding day is all about this act of self-sacrificial love for one another, and when you think about it, sex trafficking is really the darkest perversion of that, which is somebody taking something from somebody else for their own selfish gain,” remarked Brophy.
He decided to offer all wedding couples the chance to choose a Love Gives Way photography package, which would donate about 7% of the proceeds to a local anti-trafficking organization. Since then, “we’ve seen it explode,” he says. Other vendors such as wedding coordinators, videographers, and florists have wanted to join the team, and word has spread across the country. Currently LGW is a partnership of 31 vendors and 18 causes spread throughout 15 cities, and is still growing. In January 2013 they launched their website, which now offers couples a chance to see what vendors are partnering with LGW in their area.
Love Gives Way is a great example of using the skills and commitments you are already a part of to make a double impact. In the past few years we’ve seen dozens of other ordinary people step up and do what they can, from yoga instructors to stay-at-home moms, and everything in-between.
So what about you? What areas are you able to make a double impact? Maybe it’s becoming a mentor and taking at-risk girls along with you to the grocery store, or teaching them how to cook while making dinner. Maybe your business can become a way to raise awareness, or the time you spend with other moms at the neighborhood park.
Wherever you are, whatever you have to offer, we can guarantee this: it is needed.
