If you are on facebook, be sure to become a fan of modern abolition, a fan page started by yours truly to empower abolitionists by making it easy for facebook users to have links to breaking news and stories about slavery and human trafficking right into their facebook feeds.

Some of our recent highlights:
National Human Trafficking Resource Center:
Started by the amazing people at the Polaris Project, the NHTRC provides information about human trafficking and practical information for identifying victims of trafficking and how to help them, including the national trafficking hotline. Go ahead, put the number in your cell phone. You know someday you'll need it.

The Slave Next Door: Human Trafficking and Slavery in America Today
Kevin Bales, one of the world's leading experts on human trafficking, has a new book. We've strongly recommended his books before (like here and here) and I cannot say to you enough: Go Read His Books.

Roundup from the BBC:
Spanish police have arrested 23 people suspected of trafficking Nigerian women into the country and forcing them into prostitution by using voodoo curses.
Police in eastern China have arrested 10 people suspected of beating mentally disabled people forced to work as slaves in brick factories.

The community's founders are also on twitter. There are a lot of abolitionists working very hard on twitter to spread information: You can find some of them at the humantrafficking twibe.

Why Disney Will Never Build A Themepark in Dubai. (found by fisher_queen).

If you want to understand how slavery and the economy works on a micro level, this article is a must read. It is stunning in its explanation of how Dubai was built on the backs of slaves.

Hey there, abolitionists!

You may have seen the previews for the movie "Taken" starring Liam Neeson. While I first thought it was a simple case of kidnapping, but I recently learned in an updated preview that it is actually about trafficking in women. I am now going to see this movie even though previously I thought I would be too freaked out by it. Traffickers gettin' their pants scared off? Yes please!

Just thought you guys would like to know!

The Office of the United States President-Elect, Barack Obama, has neglected to include information on his plans to combat human trafficking on his "agenda" on his website, Change.gov.

Please take a minute to write and share with his administration your desire to see him put forth his plans for combating human trafficking.

If you are a user of Facebook, please also sign the petition Make Human Trafficking A Priority.

Following up on the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2008, President Bush just signed the bill into being.

The Baptist Press has a picture here.

Consider writing or emailing the President to thank him for his continued support of modern-day slaves. If your senator voted in favor of H.R. 7311, thank them too.

Hi, I'm new to this community! I'm a college student from New York. I currently live in lower Manhattan. I just typed up a post over at my dying community peoplerepublic about slavery, based on an article I read. This inspired me to search other livejournal communities, which is how I found this one.
The article (http://www.foreignpolicy.com/story/cms.php?story_id=4173) brought to light some new things for me, and made the important point that although many in the West are preoccupied with sex slavery and forced prostitution, for every 1 sex slave there are 15 slaves in other industries. I'm very concerned with all sorts of social issues plaguing our world today, including slavery in all of it's forms. I joined this community to hopefully become more aware of the problem and to find different ways that I can help in any way possible.

The William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2008 has been passed through the House and the Senate and is just waiting for President Bush's signature to be authorized. This will probably be one of his last significant acts in office.

This is great news! The TVPRA increases the strength of U.S. policy in diplomacy around the world to consider issues of trafficking and slavery, authorizes new studies, and also improves the T-Visa to protect victims of trafficking.

You can read the bill Here by searching for "HR 7311".

Much of this bill's success comes from the efforts and campaigning of Not For Sale, Free The Slaves and Polaris Project. It is your contributions to and support of these organizations that is helping make changes in policy that affect those in need of freedom.

BBC: 'Thousands made slaves' in Darfur

I don't know about you guys, but this is hardly "news" to me. Way to be fast on the uptake, news sources.

Do something good for Christmas.

Note: We've focused on giving gifts under $50. Make a big splash with a little present.

Give a specially marked donation:

Not For Sale:
Education in Peru ($50)
A surf board to support The Surfing Tribe in Peru ($50)
Welcome Kit to Sex Trafficking Survivors in Cambodia ($50)
Dental Care for Sex Trafficking Surivors in Cambodia ($50)
Bicycles for rescued children in Thailand ($50)
Medical clinic for rescued children in Thailand ($50)

Free the Slaves:
One-time donation
For just $14, you could fund the education of a rescued child slave in Ghana for a year

International Justice Mission:
Holiday Gift Catalogue
Pay for half a day of Investigative Work for $25, or a full day for $50. Fund half a day of Aftercare for $40.

Support abolitonists and have something under the tree:
Not for Sale Freedom Store
The Emancipation Network
(All leather bags are 25% off for Christmastime. Save 10% on your purchase by using the coupon HOLIDAY before 22 Dec)

Highlighted Items:
These are not from abolitionist organizations, but it goes to show that goods that support the victims of human trafficking can be found places you might not expect.
Freeset Bags:
Support former victims of trafficking with these beautiful bags made in Calcutta.
Freeset Window to the World Messenger Bag ($18.00)
Freeset On the Spot Tote Bag ($18.00)
Freeset Jute Messenger Bag ($21.95)
Freeset Jute Bag Maroon Dot ($16.95)
Freeset Jute Bag Blue Dot ($16.95)

Gaiam's Thoughtful Tees:
$5 from each of these shirts goes to Hagar International, to help trafficked women in Cambodia.
Let Go, Fear Less, Love More Tee ($23.00)
Let Go Tee ($19.00)


Buy Fair Trade:
Here at Clapham Circle we've said many times that we think Fair Trade is a positive and powerful way to speak with our money to say we don't want to buy products made with slave labor. Many towns have local fair trade stores, such as Ten Thousand Villages. But there are lots of online stores that sell fair trade as well:

Fair Trade on The Hunger Store
Support artisans around the world in self-sufficiency, and feed the hungry. It doesn't get more win/win than that.

Global Girlfriend
Also sold at The Hunger Store, Global Girlfriend offers a variety of products made by women that are also eco-friendly and fair trade. Your purchase also funds microgrants to rural women in Africa.

Original Good

White Apricot Special Offers
Showcasing organic & fair trade clothing companies, this page is updated weekly with special offers for discounts and savings.

Treat The Origins:
The causes of human trafficking are rooted in poverty, lack of opportunity, and hunger. Give a gift to help address these problems around the world.
Heifer International Gifts
Help stop poverty and hunger that makes people vulnerable to trafficking in the developing world with the gift of a flock of chickens ($20), a flock of ducks ($10), a flock of geese ($20), an apiary of honeybees ($30), or a "basket of hope", full of fast-multiplying livestock like rabbits and chicks ($50).

Mercy Corps Mercy Kits:
$16 can buy women in the Congo a fuel-efficient stove. $25 can buy vulnerable children the food they need to have good nutrition. $40 can purchase a family garden kit that supports agricultural programs to bring home gardens full of fresh food and water. $45 can help women in developing countries start their own small business. $50 can provide a camel to farmers in Asia or Africa.

Goodshop
Using Goodshop, do your online shopping in other venues with an added bonus: By choosing an abolitionist charity, like Free the Slaves, Not For Sale, or International Justice Mission, part of your purchase will be donated to the organization of your choice. Get exactly what you wanted and make a difference. It couldn't be easier.

There's more! Tell us where you've found gifts that help bring freedom and hope.

Bisie, Congo: Deep in the forest, high on a ridge stripped bare of trees and vines, the colonel sat atop his mountain of ore. In track pants and a T-shirt, he needed no uniform to prove he was a soldier, no epaulets to reveal his rank. Everyone here knows that Col. Samy Matumo, commander of a renegade brigade of army troops that controls this mineral-rich territory, is the master of every hilltop as far as the eye can see.

Click to end slavery!

For the month of November every click at youthnoise donates $0.01 to Not For Sale! Help raise $1,000!

Tonight, I went with my father to see CALL+RESPONSE.

For those of you who haven't heard of it yet, it's the new abolitionist rockumentary. What is a rockumentary? What is CALL+RESPONSE? It's like a benefit concert on the silver screen that also happens to be packed with moving stories and information. CALL+RESPONSE switches from concert to documentary with meaningful ease. The artists who performed in CALL+RESPONSE include Justin Dillon, Julia Ormond, Natasha Bedingfield, Five For Fighting, Talib Kweli, Emmanuel Jal, Moby, Switchfoot, Matisyahu, The Scrolls, Imogen Heap, Ashley Judd, Rocco Deluca, and Cold War Kids. Speakers include Cornel West, Madeleine Albright, David Batstone, Daryl Hannah, Nicholas Kristof, Gary Haugen, and Kevin Bales.

The music is moving. The speakers are pointful and full of love. Cornel West tosses in a little humor then and there too, but it always comes back to the same thing: a deep, moving determination to make this change. While watching CALL+RESPONSE, you're suddenly hit with the notion: I am not alone. I'm not the only one who cares! Now the next step is to let the victims hear that answer. You are not alone. You're not the only one who cares!

One of the most shocking things about slavery today is how few people are aware of it. Even the people in the audience left in a disbelieving daze, and these are people who didn't exactly have CALL+RESPONSE sprung on them in a surprise attack. Had it been, I can imagine they'd be weeping. I nearly did, and I haven't cried in a theatre since Mufasa fell off that cliff. From the child brothels of Cambodia to the craft slaves of India to the domestic workers of the United States, CALL+RESPONSE shows the audience a world with calls full of fear--and a response that is completely unafraid.

How can YOU respond this very moment? Get your cell phone.

Text "CALL" to 90999 to get a way to help right now.

Never forget that justice is what love looks like in public.

It's with great pleasure that I have a shining example of a company within the clothing industry taking a stand for human rights and against modern day slavery.

Nau clothing, maker of fine eco-friendly activewear and outdoor clothing, has just released their business policies for public viewing. Take a look at their code of conduct:

Voluntary Employment:
Each employee's presence must be voluntary. There shall not be any use of forced labor, whether in the form of prison, indentured, slave, bonded, or any other form of compulsory labor.

Child Labor:
No person shall be employed at an age younger than 16 or younger than the age for completing compulsory education in the country of manufacture where such age is higher than 16. To ensure these age standards are complied with, the supplier does not use any form of homework for Nau production.

They even discuss their logic for global sourcing and link to the third-party verifier who insures that no human rights are being violated in their factories, Verite.

Additionally, Nau partners with charities like Mercy Corps to help the needy.

Nau has set a high standard for socially responsible clothes that we are pleased to recommend to you. We believe that companies like Nau deserve your patronage for the extra steps they take to go above and beyond industry standards to try and create a better world. Send the company an email to thank them for their courage to boldly stand up for the rights of their workers and demand a slavery-free product to sell. Encourage other companies you patron to set forth such bold policies and to make them public.

And of course, if you or anyone you know are in the market for high-quality, eco-friendly sportswear, give them your patronage. We vote with our wallets; supporting the work of organizations like Nau over corporations who don't care is important.

Nau's fall collection will be available for purchase starting the 21st of October.

We're very excited at Clapham Circle to endorse Call+Response, as you might have noticed. We feel this is an extremely worthy project, that has the potential to raise a lot of awareness and do a lot of good. The film is releasing today. If you are near one of the cities it is showing in, please join in and go see this incredibly important film.

Here's some of what people are talking about the film.
Washington Post: 'Call + Response' Raises a Voice Against Human Trafficking
MSNBC'S Morning Joe interviews Nicholas Kristof and Justin Dillon
The Seattle Times: "Call + Response": A rough but impassioned call to end human trafficking

Call+Response has dedicated their website to some exciting projects. Here's the higlights:

Fund a Project helps you donate directly to NGOs working to fight slavery and follow the progress of your money. International Justice Mission, Free the Slaves, Transitions, and Global Angels are all funding specific projects that need a tangible cash contribution. If you've never been sure who to give to in the past, what project is "most worthy" of your money, now you can choose whether you want to help rehabilitate child soldiers, end sex trafficking, end bonded labor, or help child slaves, and see just what your money is doing.

Chainstore Reaction enables you to send personalized emails to many companies to encourage them to take steps to slavery-proof their products.

Open-Source Activism encourages people to pool their talents and resources to fight slavery. Got an idea for how to help end slavery? Let us know what it is! This website is full of wonderful resources; videos and inspiring stories that can help you plan your own strategy of attack.

Check out all that and don't forget to buy a ticket or two: Call+Response. The proceeds of every ticket is donated to Free the Slaves. It doesn't get much more win/win than that.

Last two things: Tell all your friends to tune in to their TVs this weekend:
A segment on CALL+RESPONSE, featuring interviews with Justin Dillon and Julia Ormond, is set on CNN "Newsroom" on Saturday, October 11 at 7 PM (Pacific Time)/10 PM (Eastern Time). Please check local cable listings for the exact channel.

Julia Ormond and Justin Dillon are on Dr. Phil Friday for a full hour-long show on Call+Response. Check out more.

News:

• 'Call + Response' Raises a Voice Against Human Trafficking


• Conference on human trafficking calls for grass-roots involvement


• California: $34,000 Raised to Stop Human Trafficking, and Still Going


• Florida: Man sentenced to 20 years for human trafficking


• Human-trafficking appeal withdrawn in British stone-layer case


• Philippines: Gov't intensifies drive vs. human trafficking


• Man sentenced for human trafficking

Blogs:

• Exploitation in Canada: human trafficking, exotic dance, and temporary visas

The following is a message from the Free the Slaves team via Facebook:

Greetings all FTS Supporters!

The 2008 Walk for Hope is just around the corner! If you're in the West Coast around SoCal, join us for this AWESOME EVENT!

Free the Slaves will be participating in 2008 5K Walk for Hope hosted by Be the Cause at El Dorado Park in Long Beach, California. The event is expected to attract over 500 people and is entirely free with snacks, T-shirts, and live entertainment. The Walk is a gift from Be the Cause with all proceeds raised by walkers directly benefiting their selected charity.

When: Saturday, October 18, 2008 - 9AM to 1 PM
Where: El Dorado Park, Long Beach, CA Map <http://maps.google.com/maps?q=7550+East+Spring+Street,Long+Beach,+CA>

FB Event URL: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=31093562633

If you plan to walk on behalf of Free the Slaves please Sign Up Now <http://www.bethecause.org/walksite/index2.php> so you can begin collecting your sponsorships. Be sure to select Free the Slaves from the drop box of charities. Once you have signed up please let me know (we are unable to download a list of FTS walkers at this time). We will have extra fundraising tools available for you, in addition to the tools found on the Be the Cause website.

There are also volunteer opportunities available for those of you not able to participate in the Walk.

* Fundraise on behalf of another walker
* Booth Worker

Email us on how to be involved with either option!

Volunteers are the backbone of what we do; the success of this event depends on you and we appreciate your efforts.

For more information, email volunteerwest@freetheslaves.net

THANKS!! We hope to see you there!!

Best,
Free the Slaves Team

News:

• Philippines: Role of videoke bars in human trafficking cited


• Negros: Local laws mulled to avert human trafficking


• UK funds IOM projects to combat human trafficking in Sri Lanka


• Washington: Mexican Man Pleads Guilty to Sex Trafficking of Minors and Transportation for the Purpose of Commercial Sex Acts


• Two Indonesians involved in human trafficking case in Australia


• Florida: Couple alerts Rotary about human trafficking


• Mozambique-South Africa-Trafficking


• Manila: New shelter for trafficked humans opened

Blogs:

• Q & A with Justin Dillon


• Project Rescue


• Human Trafficking Awareness Conference in CO

News:

• Manila: DOJ spearheads drive vs. human trafficking


• LAGON: Modern-day slavery


• Bahrain: New drive to tackle trafficking in hotels


• (Kenya?): Traders in humans risk life behind bars


• Manila: DSWD: 68 rescued from human trafficking in GenSan since Sep t'07


• Lebanon: UN details human trafficking in Lebanon features in report


• San Fransisco: Prop K calls for legal prostitution in S.F.


• Congresswoman wants BBC's apology for racist skit

Blogs:

• San Fransisco: Prop K To Suppress Trafficking and Prevent Child Prostitution


• Venezuela News and Views: Revisiting the "China Syndrome": human trafficking under Chavez


• New Anti-Trafficking Legislation in California


• Human Trafficking in Bangladesh and Beyond


• Human Trafficking


• Human Trafficking (movie)


• Free the Slaves: LAGON: Modern-day slavery--Human trafficking's terrible toll


• Priceless Souls: Exhibit


• Human Trafficking Highlighted in Novel