books, quilts and human trafficking

If you’ve been reading for a while you might remember that I mentioned a few months ago that God has really been breaking my heart for the enslaved and trafficked . . . and then I pretty much never mentioned it again.

But just because I haven’t mentioned it doesn’t mean it hasn’t been on my heart and mind. It is something I’ve been thinking about almost daily.

I have been doing some reading from the book list I wrote up back in February. To date I have read: Girls Like Us by Rachel Lloyd, The Road of Lost Innocence by Somaly Mam, Somebody’s Daughter by Julian Sher, Little Princes by Conor Grennan and am currently reading Not for Sale by David Batstone. I would highly recommend any of these books, though if human trafficking is a new subject for you I think I would recommend starting with Not for Sale. David Batstone covers multiple forms of slavery in different countries and is a very good overview and introduction to human trafficking (though it is definitely not just a book for those who are new to the topic).

I’ve also been coming across lots of different organizations that work with people who have been freed from trafficking (usually women that have been freed from sex trafficking). Many of these organizations provide job training to those who have been exploited and sell the items online, anything from jewelry, to blankets, to scarves, to bags, etc, etc. I’ve been doing a lot of pinning (as I like to do) and you can find many of these items on my gifts that give board. Right now some of my favorites are kantha quilts, they are all so beautiful and unique:

Some organizations also sell apparel, this Love146 hoodie is so soft and amazing, my only regret is that I bought it for Jared and not myself. 🙂

This year I’ve been trying to make a concious effort to purchase fair trade more often, especially for gifts. I love giving a gift knowing that a) it’s fair trade and b) it’s usually so unique I don’t have to worry about the person already having that item!

If you have some favorite organizations that work with those who have been trafficked I would love to hear about them!

with love,
Chantel