FIRST though there is something that I know is on many of our hearts.......children!!! Right? I mean that is one of the many reasons you come to my blog ;) Those cute smiles....those adorable moments.....the achievements.....etc.
Today's post is a bit different though you see because there is something going on in our world- all over our world that we pretend doesn't happen. Sorry that sounded bad. Some of us KNOW and some of us simply don't yet, or don't know what to do about it. So I want to share something dear to my heart.....children in slavery.
It racks my brain that anyone can think this idea is ok- as in EVER! As in HOW IN THE WORLD CAN YOU THINK THIS IS OK? But as most of you I may not know what to do about it. Or where to start. There are many many many people I have found out a lot more through and one of those organization is.... Mercy Project!
GO HERE to watch a video that will really help see the TRUTH!!!
Yep........hard to imagine.....hard to think about......hard to really describe......
This is a bit about Mercy Project.........
There’s an estimated
7,000 children who work in the Ghana
fishing industry. Some of
these children are as young as 5 and 6 years old. All of these children are slaves.
these children are as young as 5 and 6 years old. All of these children are slaves.
Today many in our country
will take a day off from our jobs to celebrate the social and economic
achievements of American workers. No
matter if we’re celebrating at home or at the beach, we’re entering into a
tradition that has largely been shaped by Labor Unions - organizations that are
dedicated to protecting workers’ interests and improving their wages, hours,
and working conditions. Today as we
lounge around or hang out with friends and family, we’re not only celebrating
hard work, we’re honoring fair, ethical working practices and the laws that
prevent discrimination, abuse, and child labor in our country. Without these laws in place (and enforced),
the most vulnerable members of society suffer.
Who are the most vulnerable? Children.
Today as we’re celebrating
the systems in our own country that strive to prevent injustices like child
trafficking and child labor, we’re mindful of the many child slaves around the
world who are unprotected and the organizations, like Mercy Project, who are
working to free them.
As a mother, it’s
difficult for me to imagine my children working 14 hours a day, 7 days a
week. I’m unable to wrap my brain around
the thought of my children engaged in long, hard days of physical labor, eating
one meal a day, and then falling asleep at night on a dirt floor filled with
other slave children. Yet this is the
daily reality for kids who have been trafficked into the fishing industry in Ghana, Africa. As with much of Africa, there is a great deal
of poverty in Ghana.
Unfortunately, this leaves many mothers in an unimaginable position: sell their
children to someone who can take better care of them or watch them starve to
death. Most of the mothers are told their children will be given food, housing,
and an education. Instead, the kids are often taken to Lake Volta
where they become child slaves and their mothers never see them again. Thankfully, Mercy Project is working to break
the cycles of trafficking around Lake
Volta by providing
alternate, more efficient, sustainable, fishing methods for villagers –
ultimately eliminating the need for child slaves. Because of the work Mercy Project is doing in
Ghana, the first group of
children will be freed this month from Lake Volta.
Soooo Dawn......What do I do? Well.....first we must all open our eyes to the truth!! PLEASE BE INFORMED! Mercy Project has a facebook page and twitter page. You can see more about them there. In general- PRAY! Pray and fast! Teach your children about the truth! Teach your friends!!! Truth is contagious! Just like most of us know about adoption, foster care, statistics.......we know and we share. How many people share about child slavery?
Hard subject- ummm....YES!!!!! But what if it were YOUR CHILD? I don't know about you, but I would be beating down some serious doors to get it stopped.....and just like adoption, or foster care, or the people in poverty all over the world- they are my children, my family members, my brothers and sisters!
Please pray about this and see what God is laying on your heart!!! Stopping child slavery here at home in our own back yard and YES that exists, or in any country, is a part of what God calls us to do when he commands us to take care of widows and orphans!! Please- listen to God's heart.....to what the truth is, and pray about what God is asking you to do for the least of these......
Dawn, thank you for posting this and like so many horrific truths in the world, most of us turn away not wanting to believe it's happening. Right now I am visualising Jason and Juliette as five year olds taken from me and being enslaved - it breaks my heart just thinking about it. The one thing that a mother cannot bear is the thought that their child is frightened, really frightened. I will pray for the work of Mercy Project and the smiles, beautiful smiles brought back to these children and their parents.
ReplyDeleteWow! Thanks for sharing about Mercy Project. I've met the organizers of this ministry and Chris has a real passion for these children. (Great Aggies!)
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