Tonight is Invisible Children Night!

Hey everyone, sorry for thew late update on the blog, been really busy lately.

Anyways, this is just a quick update. Tonight is the Invisible Children documentary showing at 7:00 in Cardinal Hall and will last about 2 hours. Spread the word, and hopefully you can all make it!

Peace,

Cody Bennett

Upcoming Invisible Children Event

Hello everyone, and I hope all is going well for you! This post is about our upcoming showing of the documentary "Invisible Children." This heart-wrenching documentary is about child soldiers in Africa, particularly those forced to work under the LRA (Lords Resistance Army).

This showing, as well as information about the group who made this documentary, will be available on February 28th in Cardinal Hall at the Student Center. Please, if you can make it, I implore you to do so and bring your friends! This documentary will be a real big eye opener for all! If you would like additional info, please feel free to email us at freetheslavesbsu@gmail.com or message us on our Facebook group Free the Slaves Ball State Chapter.

If you would like even more info about the documentary, please follow this link to the website:
www.invisiblechildren.com

That's all for this week everyone! I hope you will continue to read this blog and join us in the fight against slavery!

Peace,

Cody Bennett

Book List and Upcoming Documentary Showing

Hey everyone sorry for the late update to the blog. Been a little busy lately, but here is that book list I promised from the last post. Please note that this is nowhere near a complete list. This is just a sample of books that shed light and provide excellent stories and examples of modern slavery. If you can be sure to pick up a copy of any of these books from Amazon or at the library.

-- The Whistleblower: Sex Trafficking, Military Contractors, and One Woman's Fight for Justice by Kathryn Bolkovac

--Modern Slavery: The Secret World of 27 Million People by Kevin Bales, Zoe Trodd, and Alex Kent Williamson

-- A Crime So Monstrous: Face-to-Face with Modern-Day Slavery by E. Benjamin Skinner

-- Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery by Siddharth Kara

-- The Slave Next Door: Human Trafficking and Slavery in America Today, With a New Preface by Kevin Bales

-- Sold: One Woman's True Account of Modern Slavery by Zana Muhsen

-- Not in My Town: Exposing and Ending Human Trafficking and Modern-Day Slavery by Dillon Burroughs and Charles Powell

As I mentioned before, this is really just a small sample of the thousands of books out there on this topic. Just a simple Google search will yield a myriad of results. Please, for the sake of those trapped, check out these books, educate yourselves, and help be a part of the solution.

Coming up as well is the documentary Invisible Children. This is a heart-wrenching documentary about the life of child soldiers in the LRA (Lord's Resistance Army) in Africa. The documentary is scheduled to be shown on Tuesday February 28th from 7:00-10:00 P.M. at the Cardinal Hall in the Student Center. Please attend if you can. It is an excellent documentary and sheds light on a terrible part of humanity.

Well that's it for this week folks. Please check back this upcoming weekend for any new updates and/or news.

Peace,

Cody

Meeting Times

Hey everyone I forgot to mention meeting times. For anyone interested in becoming a part of something important, our meetings are Tuesdays at 9 pm in Bracken on the 4th floor. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to email us!

Peace,

Cody Bennett

Hello everyone, this is Cody Bennett speaking. Well, OK typing but you get the idea haha. Anyways, I would like to welcome you all back to the Free the Slaves blog! It's been quite some time since this blog was updated, but with me in control of it I hope to give updates at least once a week regarding possible new global legislation, charities, and media to help spread awareness of slavery worldwide. With that, I would like to welcome you all back!

To begin this official first blog post in over a year, I will be posting a movie list that explores the issue of global slavery. Some of these movies may be well know to you, and others not so much. However, I implore you all to look into these films and share them with everyone you can! We need to get more and more people in on this massive undertaking of global awareness, and it all starts with us, just one person at a time, spreading the word!



That's all for today folks! Make sure to check back next week for any new updates and I will hopefully be adding in a book list for you all to check out!

Peace,

Cody Bennett

Breaking News Update Location: Kolkata, India Date: Monday, May 3, 2010 Result: Three perpetrators sentenced for trafficking young girls This Monday, after years of IJM Kolkata's relentless advocacy, two men and one woman were sentenced to 10 years in prison for trafficking young girls for sex, following their convictions for the crime on Friday, April 30. The perpetrators were arrested in 2007 after attempting to sell three girls, ages 12, 14 and 16, to IJM undercover investigators. Convictions and sentences for sex trafficking have been rare in Kolkata — but because of the commitment of IJM supporters and frontline staff, and the partnership of the local government, change is coming to the city.

The three survivors abused by these perpetrators (including the IJM client pictured above) bravely took the stand during the court case and are each now healing in loving aftercare homes.

"Not only does the conviction of these perpetrators bring justice to the lives of their victims but it brings protection to the many more girls they will be unable to abuse because they have faced just consequences," explains IJM Director of Operations for South Asia Blair Burns.

Thank you for joining with IJM to seek justice and combat violent oppression. This is just one example of the victories made possible by this movement of friends, advocates and supporters around the world.

Gratefully,

Laurie Hayes
Director of Development

P.S. Visit IJM.org to learn about other recent convictions and rescues.

Orphans... Restavacs... Slaves

Protecting Children in Haiti

We received the following dispatch from Free the Slaves staffer Zorba Leslie in Haiti. He is helping our partner organizations combat the country’s “resavek” system of child slavery. Zorba’s account underscores how dangerous Haiti remains three months after the devastating earthquake, and how community organizations are working to save children from slavery.

Zorba writes:

“Some children that were in restavek slavery prior to the earthquake subsequently lost their “host” families and have been left to fend for themselves. And then there are children who were simply orphaned and now left unaccompanied who are falling into restavek slavery.

“The international agencies are working with the Haitian government and local groups to try to protect these children, but so many appear to be falling through the cracks.

“Many children that who have been taken in by families in camps are falling into the traditional role of a restavek: fetching water, running errands, cooking, cleaning, etc. But the conditions are so much worse and more dangerous. For instance, a family isn’t likely to send its own child on an errand after nightfall because they know the chances of that child being raped are heightened. So they’ll send the restavek child out into the dark.

“The community group KOFAVIV is continuing its essential work of providing support to victims of sexual violence. Participants trained in child rights are now advocating for children in the camps, and some parents are actively retrieving their children now that they understand the extreme harm inflicted upon them through the system.

“Free the Slaves’ collaboration with Beyond Borders, Limye Lavi and KOFAVIV seeks to significantly scale up this work.

"We’re planning to provide the training in child rights to dozens of groups across the camps. Participants will then form child protection committees to foster collective action to prevent abuse of children.”

Our work in Haiti is made possible by your continuing support.

Visit our online donor page to make a one-time or recurring contribution. Enter “Haiti Fund” in the designation window.

The 2010 Freedom Awards Sunday | November 7, 2010 | 6:00 p.m.

The Freedom Awards celebrate heroes of the anti-slavery movement from the U.S. and around the world.

The evening will be a powerful and inspiring testament to the human spirit, filled with musical performances and courageous personal stories from the frontlines of slavery. After the ceremony, right outside the door, join us for the anti-slavery movement’s best after-party: Freedom Rocks. Eat, dance, celebrate and find out how you can get involved in ending slavery.

2010 Freedom Award sponsorship opportunities now available. Click here

See how much fun you can have at the Freedom Awards, while you’re doing good. Click here

Frequently Asked Questions

1. When was Free the Slaves founded? Free the Slaves was founded in 2000 by Kevin Bales, Peggy Callahan, and Jolene Smith following publication of President Kevin Bales’ 1999 Pulitzer nominated Disposable People: New Slavery in the Global Economy. FTS has grown into a respected and thriving organization, perceived as a thought-leader and catalyst within the anti-slavery movement. It has programs in seven countries, supported by staff on four continents, with well-established systems of coordination and accountability.

2. What is Free The Slaves' approach in ending slavery?

We work by providing accurate research and reporting on slavery, raising public and political awareness about the continuing existence of slavery, eliminating slave-made products from the supply chains of industries, and building partnerships with grassroots organizations who fight slavery.

3. What is Free The Slaves' annual budget? For 2010, around 3.5 million dollars.

4. What percentage of our funding comes from foundations versus private donors? Right now we rely heavily on foundation and institutional grants (roughly 70%), however in the future we want to rely more on individual donors and unrestricted gifts.

5. What is the percent/total of budget spent on staff?

Personnel costs are about one-third of the annual expenses for a staff of 25, here and abroad. Of these, 4 staff members do not receive any salary, but donate their time.

6. Do we receive government funding? Free The Slaves receives government funding to support a portion of the work of our international partners.

7. Do we work with other anti-trafficking organizations? Free the Slaves is a member of the US based ATEST (Alliance to Stop Slavery and End Trafficking) coalition with a number of prominent anti-trafficking organizations including Polaris Project, IJM, Vital Voices, Ricky Martin Foundation, and CAST. We also have close ties with the World Bank, UNICEF, IOM, UNIAP, and other major players in international work.

8. Do our international partners free slaves and offer direct services?

Yes, some of our partners directly remove and rescue victims from their situation, with the cooperation of local governments. There is a great need for more rehabilitation shelters for those newly freed workers ready to start a new life.

9. Where are our grassroots partners?

India, Nepal, Ghana, Uganda, Haiti, Brazil, and in process, the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

10. Do we provide any direct services to victims in US?

No, but Free the Slaves does refer cases to Polaris Project and other organizations focusing on the domestic problem.

11. What are the Freedom Awards and why are they important?

Begun in 2008 by a grant from the Templeton foundation, the Freedom Awards are given to celebrate heroes of the anti-slavery movement from around the world. Individuals and organizations chosen from a large pool of nominees by an international selection committee come to Los Angeles for a dazzling ceremony honoring their work. The cash prizes and media attention help them to leverage more support for their programs and scale up their work. The inspiring award ceremony is open to the public.

Fondue Party Poetry

Hey everyone!

Scroll on down and check out the awesome poetry from the event!

We ended up running out of fondue (I think we ordered enough for 100) and the last time I heard the count was about 130ish (if someone actually knows fix this please). The speaker was great and it was nice to have someone who actually lived through it speak at our event, and the poets' poems were really good, and I can only guess that we had yummy fondue-that is what I get for being late-no fondue.

Hopefully next year it will be even bigger, better, and tastier!

Look at me and tell me what you see

Look at me and tell me what you see

Should a young man like me dream dreams that seem impossible to reach

Should I write to breach those who’ve been taught to break the mold

Whose thoughts of gold are caught in this world’s onslaught

Which brought upon distraught and they fought to fill in what’s internally missing

Just as I’ve been, millions maybe even billions of browned skinned young children

This generation sealed in a nation where the thirteenth amendment didn’t emancipate enslavement

Dig deep to reveal what’s concealed under the pavement and you will see minds of all ages in cages

Barred together, tarred and feathered, charred in weather, scarred forever

So now we spar together

To fight for rights and despite that I write these letters

It’s clear that we’re still far from better

I guess it’s hard to sever this instilled mentality

So now you’ll see we stand on corners casually

Passing weed, crack, and speed reaching for success passively

Until you feel the breath of reality on the neck of a fallacy

And you gradually step closer to death or prison

Now in a prism that’s best left bereft

But I guess its slavery depth is one of the best kept secrets

Because, this institution, we despise but decide to keep it

Inside we feed it what we believe are diseased pieces

This is a war but I don’t need battle fatigues or a saddled steed

I’m not trying to dabble in greed

No I’m not asking for forty acres, any favors, or even reparations

No need for any form of repayment to replace with what’s been taken

The only thing that can save man are prayers to a savior

The flavor of victory is no mystery to history

For history has persistently overpowered equality

You’ve lost a part of you and I’ve lost a part of me

Through the middle passage you can follow me

To strange fruit hanging and dangling from hollow trees

To those who suffered in Dachau Auschwitz, Belsen, my apologies

My heart goes out to those lured from overseas

Sold into sex slavery

Those set in debt bondage forever

Sprayed with fire hoses and dogs unleashed

Through the Tallahatchie the blood leaked

Walked three hundred eighty one days just for a seat

And I still wonder what is the price to be free

-Daniel Travis

The List of Things I’ve Never Done

You’ll have to forgive me.
I’m a little nervous.
I guess you could kind say that this is my poetry debut.
I’ve never done anything like this before.
So I thought about it
And made a list of some of the things that I have never done.

I’ve never seen the sun set below the horizon of a never-ending field, while riding in the back of
a flat bed truck after a hard day’s work.
I’ve never had the chance to listen in on Philosophical conversations, held by educated men,
while I served them coffee or Brandy.
I’ve never been able to provide diamonds for all of the beautiful girls in the world, let alone all
the girls that I have loved.
I’ve never traveled to the heart of New York, where I was able to peddle goods, on street
corners, to earn money for those who paid for my trip.
I’ve never worked in coffee fields for an hourly wage that is much less than the price being paid in the purchase of the final product.
I’ve never been forced to walk the midnight streets of L.A. making in money for pimps by
doing favors for strange men.
I’ve never had to work in shops that are defined by the perspiration that comes from my long hours and manual labor.
I’ve never been sprayed with pesticides while working in heat that could boil your blood.
I’ve never had to wade in the water while being watched over by mercenary men with machine guns held hand-in-hand.
I’ve never been knocked out and kidnapped from my family only to come to in a house full of
broken girls.
I’ve never been kidnapped from my home, given drugs and brain washed into wanting to fight as
a child soldier.
I’ve never seen the last look on my father’s face while I was torn from his arms and taken away.
I’ve never had my virginity stolen from me when I was 10 years old.
And I’ve never been born into a system, where I didn’t have a choice, but only a way of life.
I’ve never done any of these things before.
So the least I can do,
is take on these nerves,
and create awareness for those who have.


-Luke Boggess

How I Relate to Slave Labor

I walked into the M.T. Cup

(where the coffee’s not great but

at least Myles hires cute girls

for minimum wage

to work behind the counter)

with an Indianapolis Star

in my right hand

and the idea of a drink on my mind.

“Black coffee please.”

Because that’s what great poets do

as they read the daily news

as if to taste the pain of the world

through

the plain color of a plastic lid.

With my idea in my hand

and the paper on my mind,

I paid the cute girl with a tip,

left her with a smile,

and made my way outside

to where the people sat around black circles

and discussed grey topics

as the insides of their cups

began to show their true colors.

While I

made my way

to a spot below shade

and set down my black pack

that reminds me of a book bag

that I once had when I was seven years old

that read:

“Made in China”

on the front pocket

below the emblem of

my favorite basketball team.

I remember asking my mom

“Why was this made by Chinese

if they didn’t speak English?

if they don’t know who the Chicago Bulls

were?

And if they’ve never seen Michael Jordan

play ball before?”

Answering my own question

before she had the chance to explain

I came

to the conclusion

that it must have been a mistake.

So they donated it to America.

Knowing a little more on the topic

now

but thinking about it a little less,

I took a seat at the table

and a sip from my drink.

It was warm outside that day.

So I, removed my Nike cap

that was Made in China.

Unzipped my Columbia fleece

Made in China

Exposing my gray J. Crew T

Made in China

And tugged at the legs of my jeans

Made in China

Adjusted the shades on my face

Made in China

And leaned back,

and propped up on the table

my red, white, but mostly blue

converse

that were Made in China.

And I thought about how comfortable

I was

as I read those censored stories

about the poor

and about the raped

and about the abused.

And I sipped from my black coffee

as if I could taste the pain of the world

through

the plain color of a plastic lid.

-Luke Boggess

2nd Annual Fair Trade Fondue Party

We are putting on the Fair Trade Fondue Party again this year with help from some other student organizations on campus. It is also a tie-in with the Freshmen Connections Common Reader, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah, so we were able to get more funding to make it even bigger and better. There will be poetry readings and motivational speaker Marti M. Fitzhugh who is a survivor of international human trafficking, addiction and homelessness. She rebounded to live a happy and prosperous life in California and Indiana, alternately. Marti has begun speaking to raise awareness about human trafficking. Her story is powerful and uplifting.

Come Join Us:

	Tuesday, November 17, 2009
	7:00pm - 9:00pm
	Pruis Hall at Ball State There is also an event on facebook, click here to RSVP

Another Opporunity...

...To go make and buy yummy treats!

Yes we are having another bake sale. The sale will run through today and start up again tomorrow morning at 9am until we either run out of goodies or run out of daylight. Today we have lots treats including: vegan spice cake, peanut butter cookies, puppy chow, funfetti cookies, chocolate chip cookies, brownies and lots of other goodies as more people bring them in. Also there is information about the upcoming Fondue Party at the table, don't worry information is free, while all goodies are 50 cents. The goodies are going fast so I might suggest hurrying over to Teachers College to go get yours for the day.

Think of it as doing your good deed for the day...

Pictures from the Bake Sale

Sorry it took me so long to get these posted. Better late than never. Also don't forget to check out the facebook group! I am going to post them up there too.

Bake Sale and Meeting

Today is the Bake Sale! Already we have run out of a few tasty morsels, it is still going on tomorrow so make sure to go buy some treats, if you can't make it out today. Also we have a meeting at 8pm in the Writing Center (RB291). I took some pictures of the bake sale this morning and will post them later.

Happy Birthday Gandhi!

To celebrate go look up information about his life and works.

Another Thought

If we're going to do it inside anyway, what if we go ahead and do our "annual" Fair Trade chocolate fondue party? I still have all the information from last year about our bid to CAFB about the cost for food. It would be another thing to juggle, but it really might attract more people. Vote now!

Inside / Outside Thoughts

It'll probably be cold, so it would be nice to have it inside. But, that also limits our exposure to random people walking around. However, if we advertise well enough, hopefully everyone will know about it anyway.