MTV EXIT Live in Manila, Philippines

From Business World:

To raise awareness and increase prevention of human trafficking, MTV Networks has joined forces with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) to hold a concert in Manila this Saturday night at the SM Mall of Asia concert grounds in Pasay City.

The free outdoor concert will be headlined by Korean pop sensation Jay Park, previously known as the leader of Korean boy band 2PM.

Actor and TV host Dingdong Dantes will also appear as MTV’s newest celebrity ambassador to help spread the word about the MTV EXIT campaign.

“As a member of the local entertainment industry, I may become helpful in this campaign by enlightening those Filipinos who are not yet aware of what is happening,” Mr. Dantes said in his speech during the concert’s press conference last week.

Mr. Dantes will also host a TV special called Enslaved: An MTV EXIT Special. The 30-minute documentary is the third in a 12-part series that MTV produced in Asia.

It will give audiences a glimpse into human trafficking and exploitation in the Philippines, telling the experiences of abuse and exploitation of four human trafficking survivors, and highlighting what everyone can do to help end this crime. Enslaved: An MTV EXIT Special will be aired on Nov. 27, 9:55 p.m. on GMA News TV. 

Read more

Are you going to this event?  If so get in touch to do a writeup!  Reach us at info@traffickingproject.org.

Beat Down Human Trafficking- Week #5

Here's another track from the album Beat Down Human Trafficking!

We will be releasing a new song off the album each Friday so be sure to check back next week for more.  And if you like what you hear share it with your friends and help us raise awareness.

Click to Download: J Nice- The Definition

Beat Down Human Trafficking is a hip-hop album about modern day slavery. 

During a 10-month Fulbright grant in the Philippines in 2007 to study the NGO response to human trafficking, Justin Hakuta decided he wanted to do something other than write a research paper. Hakuta was spending his days interviewing survivors of forced prostitution, domestic slavery and forced labor and learning about the economic, cultural and political factors that allow trafficking to flourish. Wanting to find a personal, accessible way to insert trafficking into the mainstream consciousness, Hakuta started recording Beat Down in the Spring of 2007.

Happy Friday! 

The HTP Team
 

MTV Exit Live in Manila, Philippines Promo

The event teaser for MTV Exit's Concert Event in Manila Philippines to raise awareness and fight human trafficking in Asia-Pacific.

Beat Down Human Trafficking- Week #4

Here's another track from the album Beat Down Human Trafficking!

We will be releasing a new song off the album each Friday so be sure to check back next week for more.  And if you like what you hear share it with your friends and help us raise awareness.

Click to Download: J Nice- Human Trafficking Pt II

Beat Down Human Trafficking is a hip-hop album about modern day slavery. 

During a 10-month Fulbright grant in the Philippines in 2007 to study the NGO response to human trafficking, Justin Hakuta decided he wanted to do something other than write a research paper. Hakuta was spending his days interviewing survivors of forced prostitution, domestic slavery and forced labor and learning about the economic, cultural and political factors that allow trafficking to flourish. Wanting to find a personal, accessible way to insert trafficking into the mainstream consciousness, Hakuta started recording Beat Down in the Spring of 2007.

Happy Friday! 

The HTP Team
 

Emmanuel Jal - Warchild

Emmanuel Jal, child-soldier of Sudan turned Hip-Hop artist, has incorporated his experiences into his album "Warchild," released on May 13, 2008. The inspirations for the 13 songs on "Warchild" are rooted in Jal's impossible past.

Learn more about Emmanuel

Beat Down Human Trafficking- Week #3

Here's another track from the album Beat Down Human Trafficking!

We will be releasing a new song off the album each Friday so be sure to check back next week for more.  And if you like what you hear share it with your friends and help us raise awareness.

Click to Download: J Nice- Set Up Shop

Beat Down Human Trafficking is a hip-hop album about modern day slavery. 

During a 10-month Fulbright grant in the Philippines in 2007 to study the NGO response to human trafficking, Justin Hakuta decided he wanted to do something other than write a research paper. Hakuta was spending his days interviewing survivors of forced prostitution, domestic slavery and forced labor and learning about the economic, cultural and political factors that allow trafficking to flourish. Wanting to find a personal, accessible way to insert trafficking into the mainstream consciousness, Hakuta started recording Beat Down in the Spring of 2007.

Happy Friday! 

The HTP Team
 

Launch: The mtvU Against Our Will Campaign

From mtvU:

The mtvU Against Our Will Campaign was launched in September 2011 in partnership with Free the Slaves, GEMS, and Polaris Project. The campaign amplifies America's college students' efforts to end modern-day slavery in the U.S., and empowers them to learn more and get involved. The name mtvU's Against Our Will Campaign, reflects the simple fact that this violation of our most basic human rights is against the will of the college students mobilizing around the issue, against our will as a free society, and against the will of those trapped in modern-day slavery.

Learn more about the Against Our Will Campaign

A Conversation Among Men About Sex Trafficking

The Coalition Against Trafficking in Women held a panel titled, A Conversation Among Men About Sex Trafficking on December 2, 2009 in New York City at the NYU Wasserman Center. The panelists included author, Aaron Cohen, actor/activist Michael Cory Davis, musician/philanthropist, Peter Buffett and Poet/activist Jonathan Paul Walton.

The causes of human trafficking are many with male demand acting as a primary contributor along with gender and racial inequality, poverty, organized crime, globalization and financial and political crisis. However, male demand for the commercial sexual exploitation of women and children is the most direct cause of the expansion of the enormously profitable sex industry, creating an economic incentive for sex trafficking. It's time that men step up and become a part of the solution. 

Learn more at CATW International

Beat Down Human Trafficking- Week #2

Here's another track from the album Beat Down Human Trafficking! 

We will be releasing a new song off the album each Friday so be sure to check back next week for more.  And if you like what you hear share it with your friends and help us raise awareness.

Click to Download: J Nice ft. Meryl- Human Trafficking

Beat Down Human Trafficking is a hip-hop album about modern day slavery. 

During a 10-month Fulbright grant in the Philippines in 2007 to study the NGO response to human trafficking, Justin Hakuta decided he wanted to do something other than write a research paper. Hakuta was spending his days interviewing survivors of forced prostitution, domestic slavery and forced labor and learning about the economic, cultural and political factors that allow trafficking to flourish. Wanting to find a personal, accessible way to insert trafficking into the mainstream consciousness, Hakuta started recording Beat Down in the Spring of 2007.

More to come!

The HTP Team

New effort to spot human trafficking in Houston

From ABC:

By Katie McCall

Human trafficking is a significant but hard to spot problem in Houston -- and across Texas. Now a new effort is underway to raise awareness, including an entire month dedicated to educating people about it. 

Houston is, unfortunately, a hub for human trafficking, which usually involves young women brought here for prostitution because of our proximity to the Mexican border.

The statistics are staggering -- a quarter of all trafficking victims rescued in the US are found in Texas, a large percentage in Houston. Local, state and federal representative s are supporting the Houston Rescue and Restore group's efforts to fight this problem.

Read the full article

Beat Down Human Trafficking- The Definition

The first single from the album Beat Down Human Trafficking.

Click to Download: J Nice- The Definition

More to come!

Happy Friday,

The HTP Team

ATEST/CNN Forum on Human Trafficking

ATEST and the CNN Freedom Project hosted a forum on human trafficking in Washington, D.C. on June 23, 2011. Moderated by CNN anchor Jim Clancy, participants included Mira Sorvino, Congressman Chris Smith, Ambassador Luis CdeBaca, CNN International's chief Tony Maddox, survivor and advocate Rani Hong, human trafficking expert Kevin Bales, and Humanity United's David Abramowitz.

Ashley Judd Joins Human Trafficking Fight

From CBN News:

Actress Ashley Judd has traveled across the globe to raise awareness on human trafficking and the damage "modern-day slavery" can have on victims.

Human Rights and Sex Trafficking: A Film Forum (Cambridge, MA)

December 2 – 5
Brattle Theatre
Cambridge, MA

Red Light Trailer:

The Boston Initiative to Advance Human Rights (BITAHR) board members Kate Nace Day and executive director Alicia Foley Winn have launched Human Rights and Sex Trafficking: A Film Forum to explore the use of film as an effective way to raise awareness and trigger action in combating commercial sexual exploitation of girls and women.

The forum will consider the role of film in advancing women’s human rights and the many governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) efforts to combat sex trafficking. Preliminary research indicates that this forum will be the first of its kind, merging filmmakers and academics in order to understand the phenomenon on all levels, from theory to practical solutions and law.

Sex trafficking involves a particularly perverse dimension: the use of the victim in perpetrating a fiction necessary to avoid police detection and legal sanctions. The victim becomes a coerced accomplice because she is proffered to the general public, johns, and law enforcement as a prostitute. Film and documentary offer an otherwise unavailable view into the process of trafficking, the accompanying torture, and the mindset of the victim.

Recognizing the need for greater public and academic awareness of sex trafficking, this forum will investigate the power of film in effectuating a movement to combat commercial sexual exploitation and modern-day slavery.

Learn more

Get Involved: HTP Content Contributors

Help build the Human Trafficking Project into an informational resource of news articles, analysis and insights for researchers and individuals interested in learning more about trafficking!

Are you a researcher? A student? A social worker? An advocate? A lawyer? A volunteer?

We are looking for gifted writers who are passionate about raising awareness of human trafficking and are ready and willing to provide analysis on current efforts to combat trafficking, report on new, innovative anti-trafficking strategies, interview organizations around the world that are making a difference, review trafficking news articles, attend and report on trafficking-related conferences and in general share their opinions and insights on everything that is trafficking (whew, that was a lot in one sentence).

We can't promise you fame and fortune (although site traffic is steadily growing, these are unpaid positions), but we can promise a forum where you can help raise awareness of trafficking and have your opinions heard.

Direct experience in the field is appreciated but by no means required. There is a lot of work to do and a lot of awareness to raise- together we can make a difference!

Time commitment is approximately 5 hours per week.

Please email a sample blog (e.g. what would you write for your first HTP post?) and a brief description of your experience and interest in trafficking to writers@traffickingproject.org.

Thank you for your continued support!

The HTP Team

Join IJM for the 5 Weeks For Freedom Finale Event in Buffalo Today

The International Justice Mission wraps up their 5 Weeks For Freedom Tour in Buffalo, New York at the Town Ballroom at 7:00 pm today. Join us! HTP will be there!

From the IJM:

Freedom Night: Special Finale Concert with Green River Ordinance and Enric Sifa

Join us for our grand finale event—the conclusion of 5 Weeks for Freedom — with performances by critically acclaimed Green River Ordinance – whose hit singles “Come On” and “On Your Own” have peaked in the radio top 40 charts – and a performance by Rwandan-born singer/songwriter Enric Sifa.

You’ll also have the opportunity to meet the 5 Weeks for Freedom riders as they conclude their 1800 mile bicycle tour, and participate in an exclusive screening of IJM’s inspiring new documentary At the End of Slavery (featuring music by Green River Ordinance and Enric Sifa) as we broadcast live from the event to kick off our global Weekend to End Slavery. Don’t miss this FREE event! Space is limited, so register today!

About 5 Weeks For Freedom:

Stop Injustice: 5 Weeks for Freedom is a major awareness and advocacy campaign to support International Justice Mission’s work and give a voice to victims of modern-day slavery and other forms of injustice. A team of ordinary people is giving up 5 weeks to cycle 1800 miles of the Underground Railroad – a route that reminds us that change happens when ordinary people do what they can to stop injustice, that the evil of slavery has been defeated once, and that, together, we can do it again. Get Involved »

Over the 5 weeks of the campaign – June 28 to July 31, every major city along the tour route will host events featuring music, celebrities, the tour riders and more, to raise awareness of modern-day slavery and other forms of violent oppression – and empower people to take action to stop injustice.

The cycling tour is led by Venture Expeditions, a non-profit organization committed to mobilizing support for humanitarian work through major cycling and climbing tours.

There will also be an Advocacy Training in Buffalo on Saturday from 1:00 pm to 3:00 pm at the Eastern Hills Wesleyan Church. This event is also free!

Check out their website and register for the events here!

First US Recipient of State Department's Anti-Trafficking Hero Award to Be Given This Year

From the Coalition of Immokalee Workers:

Great news out of Washington, DC: U.S. State Department to recognize CIW Anti-Slavery Coordinator Laura Germino as 2010 "Anti-Trafficking Hero"!

CIW Modern-Day Slavery Museum headed to DC to serve as backdrop for the ceremony. Germino (above, leading Sec. of Labor Solis on recent tour of museum) to be first US recipient of State Department "Hero" recognition...

As part of the annual TIP report release, the State Department recognizes the efforts of a handful of individuals from around the world who have shown extraordinary commitment and leadership in the fight against slavery, TIP "Heroes" as the State Department calls them.

This year, Laura Germino, the CIW's Anti-Slavery Campaign Coordinator, has been chosen to receive this terrific distinction, and when she does, she will be the first U.S.-based recipient to receive the recognition.

We are extremely proud of Laura, whose untiring work fighting forced labor in Florida -- beginning in the early 1990's -- helped launch today's anti-slavery movement in the U.S. Nearly twenty years later, Laura continues to investigate slavery operations, work in partnership with the Department of Justice to prosecute slavers, and train state and local law enforcement, community service organizations, and FBI personnel in how to identify and combat forced labor across the Southeast.

We are also very proud that the State Department has requested that the CIW's Modern-Day Slavery Museum serve as the backdrop for the 2010 TIP report ceremony. The museum will begin its way up 95 tomorrow with the goal of making it there in one piece for Monday's ceremony in Washington, DC!

The museum, housed in an actual cargo truck outfitted as a replica of the trucks involved in a recent slavery operation (U.S. v. Navarrete, 2008), may or may not make it there for the ceremony, so, just in case it doesn't, we're including here a great video on the museum and its tour earlier this year across the state of Florida. The video is set to, "Captain, Don't You Kill Old Bob," a work song performed by Fred Lee Fox, a 20-year-old turpentine worker, in 1939. The song was recorded by Stetson Kennedy, Florida's foremost folklorist and a renown human rights activist, at a labor camp outside Cross City, Dixie County, Florida.

Enjoy, and check back soon for more details on Monday's ceremony in Washington!

My personal exposure to the work of this organization leaves me with great happiness that this award is being given to Laura Germino. From the direct service they provide to farmworkers and their Anti-Slavery Campaign to their work on the demand side of labor exploitation and trafficking with the Campaign for Fair Food, this is definitely an organization worth following and supporting. You can gain information from their website on the statistics concerning farmworkers. You can read about their efforts in The Slave Next Door. You can explore their Take Action page to find out how you can help. Hopefully this recognition will also lead to greater attention to the slavery, abuse and exploitation that happens in our fields every day.

Please follow the release of this year's report this Monday, June 14th.

Congratulations to Laura Germino and the CIW!

NYC Let's End Human Trafficking Campaign

Press Release: Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, along with Deputy Mayor Carol A. Robles-Roman and Chief Advisor for Policy and Strategic Planning John Feinblatt, has launched a new Let’s Call an End to Human Trafficking public education campaign encouraging New Yorkers to “See It. Know It. Report It.”

Print advertisements have been posted in both English and Spanish at bus stops throughout New York City’s five boroughs, featuring silhouettes and quotes from ordinary people who may be affected by human trafficking, emphasizing the fact that the crime does not discriminate based on age, race, gender or ethnicity. These ads are accompanied by a new Human Trafficking website, launched earlier this month, where concerned citizens can go to learn more about modern-day slavery and how to prevent it. . . All too often human trafficking is seen as a foreign problem, one that exists only in corrupt and impoverished countries whose commitment to human rights is wavering. This campaign exists to let you know that modern-day slavery is occurring right now in our own neighborhoods. Click here to read the full press release.

I am excited to see cities around the US launch campaigns to raise awareness about trafficking in their own communities, to mobilize action to address this exploitation, and to call attention to the fact that the US is far from exempt from trafficking problems. With the pending release of the 2010 Trafficking in Persons Report, the first report to evaluate the US, it is a useful time to reflect on the reality of trafficking throughout the US and to promote efforts to address it.

Symposium on Human Trafficking in Los Angeles

From the UCLA Center for the Study of Women:

The University of California Institute for Research in the Arts and the UCLA Center for the Study of Women present

A Symposium on Human Trafficking in Los Angeles: Local Discussions and New Collaborative Directions in Anti-Trafficking Work and Research

UCLA Royce Hall, Room 314 – May 14, 2010 – 9am-4pm

Keynote Speaker Denise Brennan, Georgetown University

Confirmed Participants: Kathleen Kim (Loyola Law School) – Jennifer Musto (UCLA) – Lara Stemple (UCLA) – Elena Shih (UCLA) – Dennis Ballas (LAPD) – Maria Suarez (Human Trafficking Survivor and Advocate) – Imelda Buncab (Not For Sale) – Susie Baldwin (LA County Department of Public Health) – Vanessa Lanza (Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking) – Abbe Land (City of West Hollywood).

The Human Trafficking in Los Angeles Symposium brings together scholars, students, professional advocates, activists, and artists in Southern California to discuss regional trends, collaborative interventions, and artistic responses to human trafficking for the purposes of forced labor. Organized around structured conversations and panel discussions, this event provides a platform to reflect upon the multi-professional, cross-institutional relationships that have been forged to respond to human trafficking in Los Angeles and questions recent trends in identifying and protecting trafficked persons and researching the issue.

RSVP to Jennifer Musto at jmusto@ucla.edu by May 12th.

This event is being funded through support from University of California Institute for Research in the Arts and is cosponsored by the UCLA Center for the Study of Womenm the UCLA Department of Women's Studies, and the UCLA Anti-Trafficking and Human Rights Coalition Student Group, University of California Institute for Research in the Arts, the LA Metro Task Force on Human Trafficking, and the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking.

Polaris Project: The Importance of Social Media in the Anti-Human Trafficking Movement

Polaris Project New Media Fellow Vivian discusses the importance of social media in mobilizing a grassroots network.