Our Shared Hope International team hopes you and your loved ones are coping with the unprecedented disruption we are all experiencing and that you are doing well in the midst of so much change. Know that we are praying for you.
The women and children we serve are no strangers to lives turned upside down; and now we see that sex traffickers are taking advantage of this current nation-wide disruption to entrap more vulnerable youth with false promises.
Children are out of school for social distancing, and are now likely spending more time on the Internet or gaming than during a normal school week. With everyone being encouraged to stay indoors and children are home from school due to COVID-19, porn companies are offering free viewing of their content in select countries as a marketing strategy. And according to Google Analytics, porn searches skyrocket by 4700% when kids are out of school.
Shared Hope is working to counteract traffickers and Internet-based dangers by getting our Internet safety materials in as many hands as possible, to help you and other caregivers keep children safe from the lure of traffickers during social distancing. If we work together, we can stop the traffickers in their tracks.
Help us stand in the gap through prevention. Download and share our free resources and Internet Safety Video Series. The more people who know how to take action, the less traffickers are able to move in the shadows of the Internet.
Our policy team is actively working with US Senators’ offices that are sponsoring The Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies (EARN IT) Act, which will improve protections for children online by establishing best practices for the technology sector to combat online child exploitation. We created an advocacy campaign so that you can let your legislators know how critically important this bill is to you and to the children in your community. Taking action only takes a couple minutes and can easily be done from your couch.
And our international Villages of Hope are working hard to keep the homes healthy and safe, and paying close attention to levels of supplies; local stores are experiencing large amounts of shoplifting and hoarding. Those we are serving domestically are being made more vulnerable as resources are cut off; the reality of having to face school closings, lack of childcare, lack of options for hourly workers, and the list goes on.
Your faithfulness in giving will help us counteract the threat of economic instability for the women, men, and children we serve.
You will stand in the gap for survivors like Serana**.
Serana was born in small village where most of the girls born to poor families are prone to be trafficked. She was sold to India by her cousin at 13-years-old and there, she lived a life of Hell in the famous Red light District of Kamathipura. She was then moved to Mumbai with the brothel owner who highly indebted her. She had no control over her home or money. She was trapped for years. Our Village of Hope in Asha Nepal paid her debt to the brothel owner. She was rescued and offered a place at Asha Nepal. Now, she desires to serve and share her story to those who are still enslaved in the brothels of Mumbai. She is leading fellowship in Asha Nepal, helps in the kitchen, is receiving an education and growing skills in bag making.
In the coming weeks of uncertainty, your faithfulness and generosity are more important than ever — to make sure our critically important work is not diminished. Recoveries like Serana’s are made possible because of our supporters’ belief that no child should live the life that Serana had to live. Times of crisis should strengthen our resolve to serve, to band together and take care of each other.
Please help us counteract the traffickers.
Your sustained support will ensure those we serve remain stable and continue to thrive. If you had planned to give to Shared Hope soon or in the future, now is the time to do so. Your actions and giving will help us ensure stability and certainty for the women, men, and children we serve. Thank you.
**name was changed to protect survivor’s identity
