January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month—Here's what You can Do

January is Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Every year we try to have a new angle to share on this. But as Januarys (Januaries?) come and go, it gets harder to come up with a fresh perspective.  The facts remain the same: Slavery still exists—almost 50 million people are living in slavery, and about 1 in every 135 women worldwide.  People are still enslaving and exploiting their fellow humans for money.  Is there anything grosser?

So no new angle today, just this: 

• Slavery still sucks.
• We have the power to fight it.

There's an army of people working on this. Every time any of us has a conversation with a friend, purchases something that was made without slave labor, joins a protest, signs a petition, makes a donation, or calls a senator, the army grows.

 Individual lives are being changed as people and groups and businesses and governments work together to fight human trafficking and help people find freedom.

We want to keep the fight going all the time, but this month is an especially opportune time to focus our efforts. We've got a few ideas of things all of us can do to fight slavery below.

Thank you for caring and for being in the fight.

Things We can all do to Fight Human Trafficking 

Every action really does make a difference—so let's keep on! Here are things we can all do this month:

• Wear blue on January 11 (National Human Trafficking Awareness Day) to raise awareness about human trafficking and show solidarity.
• Learn red flags of human trafficking (both in your community and while traveling) and report suspicious activity to the National Human Trafficking Hotline (1-888-373-7888 or online.)
• Purchase items that are guaranteed to be slavery-free by workers earning great wages (of course that's the case for every item on DoneGood).
• Let your representatives know that human trafficking is an important issue to you. You can find contact info for all of your representatives here. 
• Post about the reality of human trafficking—modern-day slavery—on social media. 
• Check out resources and information from reputable sources like Polaris Project, the Department of Labor, Department of Justice, and Thorn.
• Host an educational event in your workplace, school, church, social media channel, or other community gathering place. 

DoneGood Brands on a Mission to Fight Human Trafficking

Every item on DoneGood is slave-free. And these partner brands were created with a mission to fight slavery on all fronts:

Grace Farms Foods 

Your purchase of Grace Farms Foods coffee, tea, and cookies: supports fair trade harvesting and gives back 100% of profits to fight slavery all over the world through the Grace Farms non-profit.

MADE FREE

Your purchase of MADE FREE bags and accessories: provides secure and well-paying jobs to women in India who are vulnerable to human trafficking. 97,461 days of freedom for women have been secured so far...and counting.

Savhera 

Your purchase of Savhera essential oils and accessories: provides dignified jobs to survivors of sex trafficking in India and cares for their holistic health and restoration.

Malia Designs 

Your purchase of Malia Designs accessories: helps vulnerable women in Cambodia stay free through dignified jobs, and gives back to anti-trafficking causes.

Starfish Project 

Your purchase of Starfish Project jewelry: helps survivors of sex trafficking in Asia escape the sex trade, find safe housing and good jobs, and establish dream careers and independence.

Made for Freedom

Your purchase of Made for Freedom accessories: invests in human trafficking prevention, restoration of women through dignified employment, and awareness education.