This article was taken from Issue 1 of our magazine. For more articles like this, please subscribe to the Great Health Guide magazine – (subscription FREE for limited time only)

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The modern day slave trade written by Melanie Schilling

Human trafficking is the fastest growing industry in the world.

Today, there are over 27 million slaves in the world – more than any other time in human history. In spite of an overwhelming dire situation one organisation brings hope. 

Meet The A21 Campaign – an organisation dedicated to fighting slavery, with the mission of abolishing injustice in the 21st century.

As you scroll over the lines of this magazine on your laptop or desktop screen – take a moment to consider something.  Let’s warrant a guess that this article will take you five minutes to read.  In that time – ten men, women and children will have been trafficked as sex slaves.  That’s because every thirty seconds, another individual like you and me is sold as a slave against their will … one was sold just now.    

GIRLS JUST TWELVE YEARS OLD

Let’s take a moment to remember what life was like as a 12-year-old girl? For me, life was spent living a pretty carefree existence. It was the year I climbed to the top of the primary school ladder as a year seven student – playing on the monkey bars, listening to music and practicing dance routines in my bedroom.  I remember so vividly all of the friendship letters that my best friends and I exchanged – each one beautifully framed with love-heart borders and smiley stickers.  Hindsight is a beautiful thing, isn’t it?

Sometimes I think about my young twelve-year-old-self in today’s world. My memories quickly become bittersweet as I try to reconfigure them into this new world in which we live. Today, many girls will be robbed of the ability to share the same memories that I have. Because of where I grew up, the house I called a home, and my family’s income as a start, I could probably never have dreamed of life any other way.

But for many women and children – for many young girls – the memories they’ll form as a twenty-something looking back on their childhood are fiercely different and altogether unimaginable. The average age for a girl to be trafficked is twelve years old … (that’s me twirling on the monkey bars or dancing around my bedroom). Just imagine how different my story would be in their shoes.

Because of trafficking, these girls now share memories poised with fear, shame and a torturous emotional and physical pain stored in a deep dark place inside. In today’s world, sex slavery is not something you read of in history books. It’s something very real that happens to real girls in the real world and affects every nation across the globe including right here in our very own backyard.

THE FASTEST GROWING CRIMINAL INDUSTRY IN THE WORLD

Today, human trafficking is alive and booming. It’s the fastest growing criminal industry in the world generating over $150 billion per year. Human trafficking is the illegal trade of people for the purpose of forced labour and sex trafficking; it is caused by an unprecedented global demand.

Traffickers prey on children and young women in a vulnerable state and heartlessly turn their lives upside down as they are tricked, lured and taken advantage of in more ways than one. The traffickers target children and young women in desperate situations, those from a lower socioeconomic class (orphaned or in foster-care systems) and those from poverty stricken areas (slums or government housing). Young women may also seek work or study opportunities abroad with the hope of giving themselves and their families a better chance at life. It’s the openness of these women and children, their desperation to start their life anew, that trafficker’s prey on.

Whether captured on the street, sold by one of their family members, or captured shortly after being placed on a plane to start their new life, the same process takes place as the trafficking begins. These girls are stripped of their identification and cut-off from the world. They are repeatedly threatened, beaten, sexually abused and tortured for weeks on end to ensure that, without a doubt, they are too broken, defeated and tormented to attempt escape.

But there’s hope …

AMIDST THE DARKNESS, 

THERE IS HOPE TO 

ERADICATE INJUSTICE 

IN THE 21ST CENTURY. 

By its very name, The A21 Campaign was founded by a guiding principal to eradicate human trafficking and injustice in the 21st Century. The heart and central desire of The A21 Campaign is to have trafficked girls released from a life of fear and abuse, giving them the freedom they so rightly deserve. Freedom from slavery is a basic human right. And those that take it away should know that they are seen. The A21 Campaign exists to bring this very real issue out of the darkness and to encourage a united global effort to stand for and demand freedom for all… until every last sex slave in today’s society is set free.

The A21 CAMPAIGN is working to abolish this injustice in a strategic, four-pillared approach:

1. PREVENTION

Globally, A21’s goal is to eradicate human trafficking forever by increasing awareness and interrupting the demand for it. Wherever A21 has a presence, they seek to facilitate prevention and awareness programs. They educate law enforcement, service providers, and community members on the tricks and schemes of traffickers. Fundamentally, if individuals are able to identify the prevalence of modern-day slavery, there is a much higher chance of collectively abolishing it.

2. PROTECTION

As an organisation, A21 aims to provide safe environments for victims away from all harm and injury. A21’s offices are located in Australia, Bulgaria, Greece, Thailand, Norway, USA, UK, Ukraine, and South Africa. In Greece and Bulgaria, A21 work with local law enforcement who conducts the rescues of victims. Through external victim assistance, A21 also provides services to survivors of human trafficking ensuring they are supported and their needs met. These services are currently active in USA, UK and South Africa. In A21’s aftercare facilities, the girls receive medical care and professional counselling (physical and psychological treatment). The girls are given the opportunity to study a skill of their choice and many are now integrated into the community working successfully. Ultimately, the aim is to facilitate the girls from a point of crisis to a state of stability in an environment where they can heal and begin to make informed decisions about their future.

3. PROSECUTION

It’s not enough to simply protect victims. In countries where A21 assists survivors, the organisation also works to strengthen the legal system and put traffickers behind bars. A21 provides legal counsel to every victim in their care and represents him or her in criminal proceedings.

4. PARTNERSHIPS

A21 also partners with local law enforcement, service providers, and community members to meet a comprehensive set of needs for those individuals rescued from bondage, so that injustice can be abolished. A21 have a large base of global partners, everyday people like you and me who help to fund the work of A21. Working with individuals and organisation (both local and global) allows A21 to have a greater impact. Working in collaboration means so much more can be accomplished compared to working alone.

NOW THAT YOU KNOW THE FACTS WHAT CAN YOU DO ABOUT IT?

So what now? What role can you play to ensure the end of human trafficking in this lifetime? People all over the world are partnering with A21 by giving and donating their time, money, resources and influence to be a crucial part of the solution.

Whether you host an event to raise awareness, donate your pocket change to fuel activities or share this very real story of human trafficking – no action is too small. Talk about this cause with your friends and family over the dinner table – spread this article across social media. Every action you take assists the cause to save another individual from slavery.

Through the generous support of people like you, The A21 Campaign has seen 130 girls come through the shelters and assisted over 425 survivors. They’ve also had the privilege of prosecuting and convicting 41 traffickers as well as educating tens of thousands of people on the issue of human trafficking…and there is absolutely no sign of The A21 Campaign slowing down.

For 21 ways to help – jump online right here www.a21.org and become a major part of the solution. Keep in touch with A21 and their latest news via https://www.facebook.com/A21Aus Fight for the global abolishment of injustice and for the freedom of men, women and children. Together, we can abolish modern day slavery!

This article was taken from Issue 1 of our magazine. For more articles like this, please subscribe to the Great Health Guide magazine – (subscription FREE for limited time only)

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