Where do we start?

Human trafficking is a crime that hides in the shadows of society, that easily slips past us pretending to be something else. The unfortunate fact is that it is the most lucrative black market trade globally, second only to drug trafficking, with nearly 30 million people being held as modern-day slaves.

That is staggering. 

For most of us in North America, we cannot fathom that this abhorrent violation of human rights could be going on every day without our knowledge. We get angry, we hurt for the victims, we feel the need to do something, anything to help. But where do we start? It is absolutely overwhelming; these aren't small brothels run by a couple seedy guys, they are highly organized human trafficking rings, financed by millionaires, protected by politicians, that have multiple organizations spreading across the globe. This is a seriously daunting problem. 

One can easily argue that it is untouchable, that whatever efforts we do make will be a small splash in a terribly giant pool. However the awareness for this issue is only growing by the day, there are organizations across the world that work to combat human trafficking and they are succeeding. They are making a difference in the lives of victims, rescuing them from desperate situations, providing counselling and education, and giving hope. 

This is where we start. Humans without hope are lost. So if we start by educating ourselves on the issue, we can go on to support those organizations that make an impact in the lives of victims and work to bring justice to the perpetrators. We can give hope to the hopeless.


Here are some of the incredible non-profit organizations that our Spero Gala team supports:

International Justice Mission - https://www.ijm.ca
ACT Alberta - http://www.actalberta.org
Not for Sale Campaign - http://notforsalecampaign.org
EVE (Exploited Voices now Educating) - http://educating-voices.com
Stop the Traffik - http://www.stopthetraffik.org/canada
CEASE (Centre to end all Sexual Exploitation) - http://www.ceasenow.org