About the Florida Freedom Partnership

The Florida Freedom Partnership is working hard to end human trafficking in the United States. That’s right – in THIS country human beings are being bought and sold into modern day slavery. On July 8, 2004, The Miami Herald (free registration required) reported that the US Senate and Justice Department are investigating this "abhorrent offense." Here are some shocking statistics I found on the Florida Freedom Partnership’s website.

*Victims are trafficked into the U.S. to work in many different sectors: domestic servitude, garment manufacturing, sweatshop labor, food services industry, agricultural labor, sex industry, hotel industry, construction, forced marriages, begging, and peddling trinkets.

*The United States is one of the top three destination countries to which people are trafficked into modern-day slavery.

*18,000 to 20,000 persons are trafficked annually into the United States.

*Over 200,000 youths are victims of commercial sexual exploitation (including trafficking) within the United States.

The Florida Freedom Partnership is working hard to end this practice. They realize that often the only time victims are alone is when they are in the bathroom – so the FFP has started a campaign placing matchbooks with a toll free number in public bathrooms in hopes that trafficking victims will call for help. The hotline connects victims to much needed resources, such as medical care, psychological care, legal services and housing.

Human beings should not be bought and sold – that is what the 13th Amendment is all about. We need to do what we can to ensure that groups like FFP are successful at their goals. Every donation helps stop the cycle of slavery, and you’ll get Jessicurl discounts as a thank you! I urge you to read more about this at the FFP website.

We want to thank everybody who donated to the FFP during June and July. Your generosity made it possible for us to send them a check for $400. We also sent along some Jessicurl products for the women FFP is helping.