OWLs helps raise awareness on human trafficking
Slavery was abolished in America in 1865, but it’s still thriving in the world today; the commodification of human beings profits $32 billion annually.
That’s more than Nike's, Google's and Starbucks' revenue combined.
The Organization of Women Leaders hosted Stop the Traffik on Thursday at Kaya Coffee House. The event was to show support for fighting human trafficking and help raise money for the Agape International Missions Rehabilitation Program.
The event lasted from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. Performers took the stage to read poems ranging from body image to single mothers while about 30 people attended.
“Events like this are important because it gives people in smaller organizations the chance to get their views and opinions out there,” said Lapeer freshman Tori Carlson. “It’s a way to spread the word to other people who may be interested in the same cause that may not know there’s other people behind it. It can gather support for causes in ways that seem small, even if it’s just at a coffee shop.”
Lowell senior Brianne Warren said despite human trafficking being the third largest black market behind weapons and drugs, awareness on the issue is shockingly low.
“I still can't wrap my head around the fact that people sell each other, that humans are treated like commodities in this world, that women especially, with children too, are seen as nothing more than sex objects that other people can use as they please,” Warren said. “It's silence and lack of education that keep people enslaved and it's high time we start fighting back.”
As one of the organizers of the event, she was excited to see the large turnout of supporters and performers. All money raised went toward financial donations and material donations to Agape International Missions and Youth with A Mission, two anti-trafficking organizations in Phnom Penh and the village of Kampong Cham.
Grand Rapids senior Kelsey Friberg will be serving in Phnom Penh, the capital of Cambodia and the global capital of the child sex tourism industry, this summer. The age of victims typically range from four to eight years old and are often sold into the trade by their relatives.
Friberg’s primary goal is to raise awareness. She said she understands that awareness alone will not rescue any of the victims from trafficking, but change requires mobilization, and mobilization is impossible without awareness.
“Awareness is the first step -- both public awareness and professional training,” Friberg said. “Trafficking is an exploitation of vulnerability, and it's important that the public understands these predisposing vulnerabilities and the horrors that come when humans own humans.”
