Shining a Light

27,000,000 are trapped in slavery today. I don't know how to wrap my head around that number when it comes to people... think 27 million people could fill every professional football stadium 12X.  Or the entire population of the state of Texas.  27 million of anything is a lot.  And we are talking about human lives.  Men, women, and children. 

There are three main types of slavery today, and they are all wrong:

Bonded labor is one of the most common forms of slavery in the world today. Bonded labor victims are often born into slavery, forced to repay a loan, sometimes from generations before. Indebted, often through deception and a system stacked against them.

Forced labor is any work or service someone is forced to do, against their will, under the threat of punishment, with little to no pay. This is most frequently found in labor-intensive, under-regulated industries, such as agriculture, fishing, domestic work, construction, mining, quarrying and manufacturing.

Human trafficking is when someone is taken away from their home, family, or community and transported to another city or country, many times under a false promise of employment or a better life. Victims are stripped of their identity, then forced to work against their will, with no hope or way to return home.

All of the statistics, and there are many, are staggering.  It's overwhelming for me to comprehend the magnitude of this $150.2 billion dollar organized crime industry. 

What can I do?  I am just one person with minimal excess income to give and my few dollars and not going to make a difference by themselves. 

This is where team work comes in.  Quakers have long been known for their stance against slavery and they stood for abolition at a significant personal price. 

What are Quakers known for today?  Are we doing anything TOGETHER to make a difference in the lives of others? 

Isn't it time that we team up, all of us who have Friends/Quaker in our name; regardless if we are liberal, evangelical, Hicksite, or Gurneyite; and in beautiful Quaker tradition join hands and shine a light on injustice?

I would love to see an uprising in our meetings across the world.  Until then, I have a team I am putting together at #enditmovement and you are welcome to join my little family and me.   

#Quakers