Blog Archives - Page 7 of 17

The Role of Youths in Human Trafficking Advocacy

March 19, 2016 By Bukola Oriola

Youths have a unique position and role to play in the community. Youths are armor bearers. They are change makers in any community around the world. “If youth[s] are included in programs to meet needs and empower communities, they can become lifelong participants and take on a sense of ownership in development efforts,” stated Brennan, Barnett and Baugh in Youth Involvement in Community Development: Implications and Possibilities for Extension.

As a result of the unique position of youths in the community, it is important to engage them in the fight against human trafficking and other forms of violence against humanity. They can use their energy and motivation to create a positive change.

It is in the hope of creating that positive change that The Enitan Story has officially launched a campaign geared towards college students. The campaign is called Students Against Abuse and Slavery International (SAASI). The goal is to engage students in human trafficking prevention through awareness. Students are encouraged to participate in various activities on and off campus that enhances education and awareness in their respective communities.

There are key roles that students can play in the campaign like becoming a SAASI Ambassadors. As an ambassador, you will be able to learn more about the subject of human trafficking, educate others within and outside your campus community, and collaborate with fellow students, groups, or organizations working to end human trafficking in your community.

Interested students can contact the SAASI U.S. Coordinator at coordinatorus@saasi.org to apply to become an ambassador.

Thanks for reading. I hope to talk to you again through my blogs. If you have questions, comments or suggestions, please, send me a note – fill out the contact form. I want to hear from you. You can also get my recent posts by signing up to receive updates.

Bye for now, until next time.

Reference: Involvement in Community Development: Implications and Possibilities for Extension.

Resource: Student Opposing Slavery: http://www.lincolncottage.org/education/sos/

Facts and myths about labor trafficking

March 17, 2016 By Bukola Oriola

The Trafficking Victim Protection Act (TVPA) defines labor trafficking as the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage or slavery.

According to the International labor Organization (ILO), almost 21 million people are victims of labor trafficking around the world. Victims of labor trafficking are forced for work against their will. Their freedom is usually restricted and are under threat of violence or some form of punishment. Forms of forced labor can include domestic servitude, agricultural labor, sweatshop factory labor, janitorial, food service and other service industry labor, and begging.

Labor trafficking can happen to anyone, regardless of who you are. Below are some of the facts and myths about labor trafficking.

Myth: Only women and girls are labor trafficked.
Fact: Labor trafficking victims include women, men, boys, and girls.
Myth: Labor trafficked victims in the US are only foreigners.
Fact: US citizens can also be labor trafficked.
Myth: Labor Trafficked Victims do not suffer trauma like sex trafficked victims.
Fact: Labor trafficked victims suffer trauma such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder like sex trafficked victims.
Myth: Labor Trafficked victims are undocumented immigrants.
Fact: Labor trafficked victims include individuals with legitimate visas and undocumented immigrants.
Myth: Human trafficking is only sex trafficking.
Fact: Human trafficking can be labor or sex trafficking.

Bye for now, until next time.

ILAB names 73 countries with child, forced labor

March 14, 2016 By Bukola Oriola

The Bureau of International labor Affairs (ILAB) has names 73 countries identified with child and forced labor. The list entitled, List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor include some of the staples food in the household and some of the precious items that you like to own.

ILAB maintains that the list is published “primarily to raise public awareness about forced labor and child labor around the world and to promote efforts to combat them….” adding, “it is not intended to be punitive, but rather to serve as a catalyst for more strategic and focused coordination and collaboration among those working to address these problems.”

The list comprised of staple foods like rice, banana, strawberries to precious items like gold, silver, and diamond. Whenever, you are purchasing any of this items, and more, stop and think for a minute whether the item has been produced by a child through child labor or forced labor.

This is the time to stand up against child labor and forced labor. Every school aged kid should be in school and not working, especially doing hard labor like mining diamond, making bricks, harvesting rice, sugarcane, cocoa, coffee, and so on.

You can download the 2014 report here and also read the list of countries and goods here.

What my video broadcast on Periscope below. You can subscribe to my Youtube channel to get new videos in case you miss my live broadcast on Periscope.

Meet the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking

March 12, 2016 By Bukola Oriola

In January 2016, a member of the Brooklyn United Methodist Church invited me through The Enitan Story’s Facebook page to a community event at the church. At the event, she invited me to be a speaker in March on human trafficking and the newly formed U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking.
The event was scheduled for March 9. I introduced the Advisory Council members in my presentation entitled, Human Trafficking: The Role of the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking.
The members of the Advisory council are leaders in their various communities who are also working hard to fight human trafficking. Most importantly, the council represents the voices of survivors across the United States and other parts of the world.
The Advisory council has been saddled with the responsibility of making recommendations, among others to help shape services to better serve survivors of human trafficking across the United States.
Download my presentation here to learn more detail about the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking.
The first report is due in May. I am using this opportunity again to call on community members, and, especially, survivors alike to reach out to us should you have recommendation that will benefit survivors across the U.S. and other parts of the world.

Below is a video report from the event. Thanks to Channel 12.

Bye for now, until next time.

Taking action for result

March 6, 2016 By Bukola Oriola

According to Google search, an action is, “The fact or process of doing something, typically to achieve an aim.” Reading Dictionary dot com definition, one of the six listed definitions caught my attention more. It stated: “An act that one consciously wills and that may be characterized by physical or mental activity.” So, to get result in any endeavor or desire, you have to act consciously, willingly, physically or mentally.

Nobody get’s result without taking action. Successful people take several actions before they achieve their desired result. One of the causes of failure, which occurs as a result of lack of action is giving up when you are yet to see your desire come to life. Napoleon Hill in his book, Think and Grow Rich calls it temporary defeat. Perhaps, family and friends even mock you for your lack of result, but when you don’t stop taking action, you will get your desired result.

Former President of the United States, Jimmy Carter focused on action to fight violence against women. He made this glaring in the title of his book, A Call to Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power. He knows that taking action and asking people to take action is what will eventually win the fight against the violence that affects women around the world.

I did a Periscope Broadcast today on taking action. You can watch the video below. The broadcast was informed by one of the viewers of my training on Starting your website with $0 down. Little did I know that she was taking action when I was doing the broadcast. Few hours after the broadcast, she sent me a Facebook message which I asked her permission to publish on my blog post yesterday. And, by today, her website was live and she already has some posts on it. That is how you take action. Action is what will give you result.

I hope you will take action today. Share what you are taking action on by commenting on this blog.

Bye for now, until next time.