Today is my 24th birthday.
So far, I like being 24 better than 23. I like even numbers.
But, it has been a bit of a bummer, because I went from thinking that I would be spending my 24th birthday in Nepal (when we were planning to go on the Race with F Squad), to thinking Josh and I could do something fun like go trail riding or zip lining, to realizing that I have to work a closing shift, and Josh works a day shift.
I had been kind of bummed, thinking that I wouldn't get to do anything special for my birthday. It would be just like any other day.
I couldn't think of anything that I wanted or needed for my birthday. I only wanted it to be special. Set apart from my regular days. I resigned myself to the fact that this year it wouldn't be special.
Then, I saw this image shared on my Facebook newsfeed:
At 3:00pm yesterday we launched our new Love146 Task Force on-line Community. We featured an "Action Item" requesting Amazon remove a sex tourism book called "Age Of Consent". Over the last 24 hours, our volunteer Task Forces and friends responded. Late this afternoon The Huffington Post picked up the story. By 8:30pm tonight Amazon had removed the title from its product offering. Thanks to our volunteers and friends. Thanks to Amazon. This is the collective shout at work.
For my birthday, I don't want gifts, cards, to be in another country, or to have fun (although those things would be cool, haha).
For my birthday, I ask you to become an abolitionist.
What?
You see, Love 146 (http://love146.org/ )is an organization that was founded in 2002 as a "multi-level response program designed to reduce the risk toward commercial sexual exploitation of youth", which focuses on prevention and aftercare.
Love 146 began after co-founders Rob Morris, Desirea Rodgers, Lamont Hiebert and Caroline Hahm went undercover at a brothel in Southeast Asia, and witnessed the girls that were for sale. They were kept behind panes of glass, wore red dresses, and each had numbers pinned to their dresses. They had little tvs to watch cartoons on, and many of the children watched them blankly. They were shut down, joyless, and mere shells of children.
Their hearts broke as they saw each child, and they eventually got to #146. She was different. She wasn't watching the cartoons; she was staring right back through the glass. She still had fire in her eyes, a passion to fight. She was eight.
They could not do anything to save #146 or the other children right away, because that brothel was still under investigation and they needed to gather more evidence. Eventually the brothel was shut down, but when they returned to rescue the children, #146 was not there. They do not know what happened to her, but they decided to found this organization to prevent other children like her from being trafficked in the first place, and to love and rehabilitate children, teens, and adults who have escaped.
Not many things get me more fired up than sex slavery, especially that of children. Please take a few minutes to watch the videos below.
I would love it if, as a birthday gift to me, you would become an advocate for those that are trapped in modern day slavery. Whether that is through supporting Love 146 financially, other anti-trafficking organizations (Remember Nhu is a great one that AIM and World Racers work with http://www.remembernhu.org/), or supporting Josh and I. On our Race, we will be traveling to Thailand and Cambodia, where we may get the opportunity to work with organizations such as these.
And remember from those School House Rock videos, "Knowledge is Power!" Spread the word. One of Satan's greatest tools is deception. Many people do not know that such a human rights atrocity is taking place in the world today. Not only in Southeast Asia, but all over the world, including in the U.S.
This is modern day slavery. Millions are enslaved all over the world. Become an abolitionist.
