Meet Pamela Rojas, a mother of 3 beautiful children and a partner at Trades of Hope, an organization giving hope to women and children saved from sex trafficking and extreme poverty.
Created with a passion for helping women and children in need, following the 2010 earthquake that demolished Haiti, Trades of Hope has now enriched over 56,000 people worldwide. In places like Haiti, when hurricanes and earthquakes demolish their villages, parents are sometimes forced to give their children to orphanages so they will be able to survive and have food to eat. Pamela explained to us that this is what drives her passion to help these mothers. Being a parent herself, she could hardly imagine the devastation these mothers face when giving up their children. Another common problem in impoverished areas is there is no hope which results in many women opting into selling themselves in order to have their basic needs met.
Pamela describes a trip she took with her husband to the Dominican Republic where she learned it had the 3rd highest rate of human trafficking in the world at the time. Pamela told us about a little Dominican girl who at the age of 10 was abandoned by her mother then forced to be her father’s mistress. Once her father impregnated her at 11 years old, he sold her to a 60 year old man. She was then forced into sex trafficking and had no access to education or help. Trades of Hope stepped in to assist her and provided her with counseling, safety and protection. Trades of Hope also assisted her in her court battle against this 60 year old man. She won her case and he received 15 years in prison which was one of the longest jail sentences received by a sex trafficker in the Dominican Republic. Currently this young girl works for Trades of Hope as an artist to make and sell jewelry, which enables her to support herself and her son.
This is just one example of a life renewed because people support organizations like Trades of Hope. As horrific as these sex trafficking stories are, we can help these victims overcome by shedding light on this dark world and exposing it. April has now been deemed National Sexual Assault and Awareness month in the United States. Numerous trafficking operations are being busted daily worldwide and tons of perpetrators are being brought to justice. Trades of Hope’s primary focus is to help the victims. Each item is made by an artist and the money received for your order goes directly to the artist who created the item you purchased. You’ll even receive a card from your artist with a background on who they are and what obstacle they’ve overcome. We hope you’ll support by sharing this message and by sending love to these amazing survivors of one of the most insidious crimes against humanity. Please also see links to youtube videos below for survivor stories created by those who are speaking out to raise awareness.
To purchase something online from Trades of Hope click here: MyTradesOfHope.com
Trafficking Victims Speak Out:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqcobKVk1Lc&feature=youtu.be&app=desktop
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ng–1uY5Atc&list=PLMGlczNsi6zJCgGTVLzOKDy8Bz1TIKWXJ&index=2&t=0s
