The Underground Railroad

Fighting Slavery Using Google MOTION!

Google has a new feature designed to make communication, documentation, and innovation easier, faster and even more user-friendly than ever before! GOOGLE MOTION!

With your computer now designed to respond to your motion commands, you are now able to fight slavery with both hands free -- no keyboard required! You are free to glide into collaboration! Jump into innovative aftercare! Stand for justice! Hula-hoop for human rights! Yessireee... Google done right by us by creating: Google Motion...

Don't believe me? Just take a look at how the good abolitionist folk are using Google Motion in their fight against slavery. Good job team! Carry on!

Together, we will end slavery in our lifetimes... one google motion at a time.

 

 

"I Know Who You Are" - Parental Cyberbullying

 
Social networking sites are being used as a tool for human traffickers. Check out Amanda Kloer's article on Change.org: Everyone's on Facebook, Even Human Traffickers (note the example she uses is from Calgary, Alberta).

I don't really need to go back into the maelstrom of Craigslist. Suffice it to say, traffickers are online and using technology well.

We need to teach our kids to be tech savvy -- ways to stay safe on and offline.

How do we teach them? By example.

I'm not going to get into firewalls or keeping the sense of only one computer in the house (located in a public area), etc. I'm going to talk netiquette.

For those of you who don't know, netiquette is the term used to describe proper and polite words and actions used on the internet. For example, spelling out a word all in capital letters denotes SHOUTING!

With the anonymity that the internet brings, you can say anything and be truly anonymous about it. It is this anonymity (and the fact the law hasn't really caught up with the speed of social networking just yet) that gives cyber-courage to people to say things they wouldn't normally say. And while social networking has done an enormous amount of good, the issue of cyber-bullying is new territory and is on the rise.

The following is my opinion alone. It's what I have seen and experienced online, but still an issue worth taking to task.

It used to be physical snubbing at school was a girl's worst nightmare; or, being beat up in the locker room was a guy's hill to die on. While these things are still prevelant and certainly traumatizing, these days being blocked off someone's Facebook or Twitter accounts are the biggest diss' of all.

Or... to have someone start an FB rumour that you have an STD... download an embarrassing picture of you and spread it around... make horrible comments on your page ("Ur stoopid"..."Gonna kill u"..."ugly pic"..."u gonna get it at school"...).

Pretty blatant. Other than the horrific grammar and spelling, these actions are not acceptable. How can we expect our kids to learn to be safe online when other kids brutalize them?

Why?

Because we do it too.

Adults: parents, couples, drunken forays, people with nothing better to do, etc. Except... we tend to be a bit more passive-agressive about it. We'll post things such as:

"My life is falling apart because of so and so. You know who you are!  :( "

"There are people causing all the bad stuff around here and I know who they are. They're such hypocrites!"

"Some people, and I won't say who because that's gossip, are trying to judge me and my lifestyle!"

So when youth come to me in tears because their friends suddenly tore them to shreds online, thinking it was funny, I ask: "Why don't you take steps to stop it?"

What's the number one answer?

"Why should I? My mom does the same thing. Why should us kids stop beating each other up when you guys are just as bad?"

We can do better, folks. There are predators online who are pro at recruiting and deceiving. If someone makes a public statment and you respond, take responsibility for your words. Yes, there can be a time and place for public discourse and opinion when the opinion is public.

Enough of these petty secret decoder messages meant for one or two people on the face of the planet, but plastered up on your walls for all to see. They might make you feel good and powerful, and put down the other person, but honestly... your character is shining through loud and clear. Enough. Our kids are taking note...

... and they are learning all too well.

Cartoon Characters: FB Stand Against Child Violence or Porn Lure?

http://inwent-iij-lab.org/Weblog/2010/12/02/pinoys-join-in-on-facebook-campaign-against-child-violence/

The racing FB trend to change your profile pic to a cartoon character in support of the UN's stand against child violence apparently began in the Philippines (see link above). I've looked around a fair bit, but as the above article also says... the UN has never recognized November 22 (the initial day where no one was to have a human face on FB) to December 06 (the latest date) as any kind of "day" standing against child violence.

The FB profiles are anonymous. Lots of people have questions. Right now, awareness is big. Social media is doing wonders for awareness campaigns and modifying them to be creative, fast and in-your-face.

Here's the thing: I can't give you a straight up answer as to who started this or if this was launched by kiddie predators. Predators have been found on Facebook, Kijiji, Craigslist and other social networking sites. It's not out of the realm of possibility, but for the Cartoon Campaign, I cannot find a source to substantiate this claim anymore than the UN can verify that it began with them.

What I can do is offer some pointers on awareness substantiation:

1) Go to the source. Always. If the source seems fishy to you or there's no contact information, assume that either the campaign is bogus or the person who started perhaps isn't tech-savvy and simply didn't know how to use an FB page to start a solid campaign.

2) Contact the contact info. If there is contact information, EMAIL, CALL, SKYPE!!! Standing against child violence is a great cause, but know with whom you're aligning yourself with. Decide for yourself if this organization is legit and if you agree with why they're campaigning the cause that they are.

3) Take the time. As soon as something like this appears on FB or Twitter... it soars. Take the extra time to investigate. If it's a worthy cause, you owe it to the people you're standing with to stand for the Truth. Scrolling Google for a cool pic instantly may not be the greatest starting point.

4) Legit or not, FB peeps know now how many people are against child violence... sort of. See the thing about awareness is that if there isn't a solid, real, verified momentum behind the awareness, it stays as just that: a bunch of people online who have changed their profile pics. And what's actually being DONE to stop child violence? Any answers?

5) If a campaign turns out to be bogus, find an organization that WILL support such a worthy cause! Did anyone think of going back to the UN and asking if they would recognize December 06 as "Cartoon Character Day"? Just because someone else started a good thing without any foundation, doesn't mean it's a lost cause. Take initiative! Ask the questions! Move from awareness to action.

Oh yeah... legit or not, if you choose not to change your profile pic (to Scooby-Doo or anything else for any type of cause), you're not an evil person. There are so many ways to get involved. Awareness raising is just one. Hey... write a creative FB note and tag your friends... find fave quotations of other people and use them in your status updates to further your awareness... lots of ideas!

I'm sure there are other common sense steps to take that others have thought of... anyone? Post your comments here! Share them! 

Getting Rid of the Halloween Overdose

Okay people... in response to numerous emails, posts, questions, and FB posts, here's my take on excess Halloween candy.

1) make this year the year to say "Enough's enough. Halloween is obese with candy we don't need and yet in the name of fun, we do it anyway." Halloween is done and gone for 2010, but pursue a change in mindset for 2011: having fun without taking more than we ought. 

2) give back ALL that candy you know your kids (and you) will never get through until this time next year. And don't lift it off to some poor little children who might like a taste of it. Mail it back to the companies that made the chocolate bars, lollipops, gum and everything that includes cocoa and sugar -- two big ticket items on the slave trade list. If Nestle and Hersheys are going to change, they need to know that one of their biggest moneymakers -- annual Halloween gluttony -- will not be tolerated anymore. 

Kids -- adults, too -- are not to be dying because cute little goblins and gremlins and fairy princesses show up at our doors and look sweet for sweets. 

Like Christmas commercialism, if we're going to complain about Halloween overdosing, then it's time to do something about it. No more talk. Take action.

Mexico's Hydra

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/americas/08/26/mexico.human.trafficking/index.html?iref=allsearch

Home to some of the most violent gangs in the entire world, Mexico faces dire circumstances when challenging issues of human trafficking. The Hydra is strong here. As claimed in the article, the flesh trade is second only to narcotics in this part of the world. Tied as well to poverty, human smuggling, ransoms, illiteracy, and more -isms any one mind can feasibly keep track off, cutting off one head of the monster here certainly sees a regrowth of 2 more heads. Guaranteed they are stronger, quicker, and deadlier.

Is it hopeless?

Never.

We are never without hope. Slavery, and all its brother and sister heads, is exceedingly physically visible and tangible in this part of the world. It strikes at multiple points and people repeatedly. But the monster knows its days are numbered, being on the side of a defeated foe.

What do we do? A many-headed dragon needs a many-headed counterstrike. Spiritual, physical, emotional, mental, relational, political, communal... every aspect of who we are as human beings, being the objects of poison for the Hydra, needs to come around it, surround it, and strike... again, and again, and again.

From law enforcement training, to tattoo removal for gang members, to immigration reform, to addiction services, to victim support, to education, to parenting skills, to micro-loans, to cultural pride, to ... teaching a little boy to read, and teaching him to teach his sister, and his sister teaching her friends... all levels, all arenas, all people must pull together and surround the monster. 

The poison within it is not an infinite well.

Van Stories I

Our first day with YWAM saw us doing the Urban Plunge -- walking Hastings from the eastside in the morning to the westside in the afternoon. We were allowed a bagged lunch, a few coins in case of emergency, but no cell phones, cash, debit/credit cards, cameras or anything touristy. In our groups, as we walked and prayed, we were to listen to the voice of God and if we were led to give our lunches away, we were to give them away. 

Catch: don't just leave a lunch by a slumped form in a doorway. We needed to sit down with whomever we were sharing our food with and listen to them, talk with them, converse with them. They were our equals and outreach included seeing people as Christ would see them, and learning to see street life through the eyes of those who lived it.

But it also included a shock -- walking from one of the poorest postal codes in North America to one of the richest in a matter of minutes. West Hastings, home to such financial giants as TD Waterhouse, Bank of Montreal, RBC, The Four Seasons Hotel, The Fairmont Pacific and other swanky stores, saw tourists from all over the world shopping, doing business, and enjoying life and leisure.

Not so on the eastside.

But for many on our team, we found a friendlier and more tender welcome from the residents on this side than in the midst of wealth and power. Many of us had lunch with people who enjoyed Oppenheimer Park all day (a famous gathering place just past Hastings), and we were introduced to loving, caring people who were just like... us.

More disturbing was the fact that far too many of us felt all too comfortable in the westside. The people there were not nearly as welcoming but walking into one place, we felt like we were in West Edmonton Mall. Same old, same old... and that scared me.

More to come... lots learned...

... in less than a few blocks, the rich and poor rubbed against one another in a grating sound akin to fingernails on a blackboard. The division was stark, immediate... and painfully familiar.

 

Humanity Bites the Apple... Again

 Adam and Eve bit the Forbidden Fruit and the rest is history. Murder, lies, slander, exploitation, gossip, coveting, lust, adultery... all those faces of sin that set our death sentence in stone. Redemption was (and is!) free for all, but will we ever learn from the first bite?

Behold! New from Apple, the new iPhone 4! http://www.apple.com/iphone/

Like cars, phones and computers are over-accessorized (meaning, many apps on iPhones are left unused or are not necessary to begin with but the consumer has to pay for the full package deal anyway). And like the consumer generation we are, we will look at our puny, pathetic excuses for phones, iPhones, mP3 players, laptops, notebooks and even the newly released iPads and suddenly realize: "I need that new iPhone!" What we have is no longer good enough because it doesn't have the extra 100 apps this new phone does. What we have is no longer good enough because it's not nearly as slim as this new phone. What we have is no longer good enough because...

... of no damn good reason.

Do we truly know what our greed and insane lust for technology is doing to the world? Our bites from the proverbial Apple have grown so huge that places like the Congo are being stripped of its environment, its people (slavery booming in the mining industry), and black market activities are leading to the unprecedented rape of women and children across the country.

http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2010/03/15/congolese_mines_are_ransacked_for_minerals_used_in_high_tech_devices/

In our race to get the latest and greatest, will we stop and take a good look at what our actions are doing? We are tipping the scales of a gluttunous monster.

Is technology to blame? Not necessarily. It has done great things for the Gospel. But to rely on that reason alone to go out and buy, buy, buy is a cop-out. It's obesity. It's wrong.

To whom is given much, much will be required. And we demand A LOT. Are we going to take responsibility for it all? Do we realize that we have to?

The earth and its people cannot be dying for a phone.

'Sexting' -- Innocent Fun or Dangerous Game?

  Everybody's doin' it: texting, that is. Everyone from small children up to the President of the United States to CEO's to doctors to teachers to parents to students to pastors... you get the idea. The age of texting has taken hold so much so that teachers are struggling to help students 'un-learn' text lingo and start using proper English in their written assignments.

But another issue has arisen from the Text Era: "Sexting". If you don't already know what that is, it is the practice of sending erotic photos of one person to another person(s) using cell phones. It's one thing for people over the legal age of consent to send these images to one another. It's quite another when "monkey-SEE, monkey-DO" kicks in, and teenagers begin doing the same thing. You can be your very own porn star without leaving home, classroom, school bathroom, work, friend's house or party and have the same incredible rush of doing something 'naughty' for your boyfriend or girlfriend.

Now... if an adult is demanding such photos from a minor, child pornography is obviously the term we would would use. But what if minors are producing these photos for one another out of sexual experimentation and not porn? Here are some scenerios that are generating HUGE discussion around the world in regards to the sexting phenomenon:

1. If an image is sent to a boyfriend/girlfriend for private use only, is that really child porn or children trying to act like sexually mature adults? Do we want these young people labelled forever as sexual offenders just to teach them a lesson?

2. If an minor sends sexually explicit to an adult out of common teenage infatuations, is that adult guilty of receiving 'child porn' and/or is the minor guilty of producing it?

3. Do minors truly understand that by sending such images, they CANNOT take them back? Furthermore, how trustworthy are teenage relationships? Is the guy in the lockeroom receiving a pic of his girlfriend's breasts plumped up against the screen really going to keep that pic to himself? When pics are sent, are they really sent to only ONE person?

4. Do minors and parents really understand the danger in terms of traffickers being able to single out young people who are sexting and use those images against them in recruiting new people into the sex trade? Images like this can be used as flattery into the porn industry... or blackmail.

5. Should these minors be charged with the production, distribution and posessions of child pornography? Is it REALLY kiddie porn?

6. Are we willing to admit that there are youth out there already exhibiting sexually dangerous behaviours above and beyond experimentation and truly do have the motivation towards pornography and prostitution. They have the capability and understanding... but are they the majority?

In some places, sexting is a crime. Again, as I have said in other posts, I would suggest that this creates a problem because youth under the age of 18 are considered to be too young to make certain sexual decisions. So why are we charging them with sexually-related charges we've already deemed them too young to make? On the other hand, how do we get the message across that sexting is dangerous. Even if a trafficker never comes across your image you sent to your boyfriend, what happens to YOU if that one pic gets out to the whole school? Your reputation is ruined, people are bullying you, laughing at you and you start feeling a lot of shame, embarrassment and fear.

Adults must set the example and be careful when sexting as well. Don't think that just because you're over 18 that traffickers aren't looking out for new blood. Don't think that because your spouse is 100% trustworthy, that someone else can't hack into your phone and suddenly spread your birthday suit all over the internet. Where's your safety and intimacy now?

I've only posed the many questions and issues that are abounding due to the sexting craze. As parents, be open about the topic and talk about it with your kids. Sending sexually explicit photos is not a behaviour that builds a healthy life! In fact, the images can really destroy your life. There are people out there who will use them for their own ends (exploitation) and make no apologies for it. Furthermore, when you're 14, you're not ready to be that commited to someone that you would bare all for them. They have no claim to your body in that regard (male or female). If your relationship is based on erotic photos of each other... you don't have a relationship. You have prostitution. And that's not love.

Always be careful of what you send online on over cell phones. Always. There are countries would try and convict young people of child porn with valid reason... or sometimes not so valid. The debate over whether this is a crime rages on. But the fact remains: this is dangerous and not cute or experimental or sweet. 
 

The Inspiration Series Part 4 -- Denver Moore and Ron Hall

The blurb on Amazon talked about the story of a modern-day slave. It had my attention instantly. But I thought it was fiction. I bought it. And as I read it I realized this was no fictitious fever. This was a true story. And my life, even within the past 48 hours has not been the same.
   Denver was born a slave. He worked as a slave. He escaped a slave. He lived homeless, did hard time in Angola prison, and returned to life on the streets. Ron Hall was born lower-middle-class who stole his way into the millionare's stratosphere. He put his marriage, family and God on the rocks because he found he had a knack for making money. His wife - Deborah - brought these two together. And what became of it all has had even US Presidents sit up at take notice. I'm reading this book and I cannot put it down.

"It was at Starbucks that I learned about twentieth-century slavery. Not the slavery of auction blocks, of young blacks led away in ropes and chains. Instead, it was a slavery of debt bondage, poverty, ignorance, and exploitation. A slavery in which the Man, of whom Denver's Man was only on among many, held all the cards and dealt them mostly from the bottom of the deck, the way his daddy taught him, and his grandaddy before that." ~ Ron Hall

The book is fundamentally about the discovery of homelessnes, it's ravages and ruins, and what it does to human beings. Poverty is inextricably linked to slavery. Poverty creates a ripe and budding environment for exploitation and all too many people take advantage of such opportunities. After reading this book, however, I came away with a renewed spirit. There IS hope, even after decades of decadence or despair, to be restored by Jesus Christ. And the testimony of these two men have shown that this restoration can change lives... and the world.

Here's Ron and Denver together at a speaking engagement in Abilene, Texas. It is a bit longer but I assure you... it will be one of the best spent hours you've had in awhile. And I dare you not come away form the book or the video clip changed.

I dare you.

 

 

Not For Sale LIVE from Facebook Headquarters

Yup.

There's actually a "head" to the "Face". Not For Sale friends are down there now, at Facebook headquarters... live stream!

David Batstone is chatting the Global Forum -- the first of its kind on human trafficking. It's to be held in Carlsbad, CA... October 8-9.

Luis de Baca, United States Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons

Ms. Anuradha Koirala, Founder, Maiti Nepal

and more... not to mention Canada's VERY OWN:

Benjamin Perrin, Law Professor, University of British Columbia and 2009 G/TiP “Hero Award” winner!!!

It should be a phenomenal plethora of the greatest fighters of human trafficking in the world!