A look into how Dressember chooses grant partners

It’s the end of January, which means that both the Dressember style challenge and the U.S. National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month is almost over. You and your team have managed to raise $3,500, which is half the cost of a mission to rescue a victim of human trafficking from their situation, and your $3,500 has contributed to Dressember’s overall goal of raising over $2,300,000! It has been another successful year of raising money to combat human trafficking.

Yay! Woohoo! Yeah!

The crowds go wild!

But just where do those funds go?

DressemberJanuary 31, 2019Dressember2018, Grant Partners, blythe hill, emily james

Hope For Kolkata: International Justice Mission

Kolkata is described as a lively city, at the center of Indian culture with much to offer its citizens. Its central location, bordering other countries, and vast transit system keeps the busy metropolis moving. There is another world keeping pace with a demand, not for ease of access, or the enjoyment of India’s beautiful and rich culture, but for sex.

DressemberNovember 14, 2018Grant Partners, Dressember2018

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: olive crest

But the sad reality is that 60% of those children – 60,000 children – who were recovered in FBI raids can be traced back to foster care and group homes. They were the hurt, the lonely, and the seemingly forgotten children and youth of society. According to Olive Crest Executive Director, Jaime Zavala, “children and young adults who have been a part of the foster care system are some of the kids at greatest risk of being engaged in human trafficking.”

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: Love146

With offices in Connecticut, Texas, North Carolina, the United Kingdom, and the Philippines, Love146 is working to end child trafficking and exploitation around the world. Their programs address the biological, psychological, social, financial, and spiritual impacts of victimization, and help youth develop strategies to stay safe. In the United States, Love146 also conducts one-time interventions called “Rapid Responses” that provide at-risk youth with information, safety planning, and referral services related to human trafficking and sexual exploitation. The organization’s Prevention Education program is designed to reach children before traffickers do. Through its “Not a Number” curriculum and other tools, Love146 has impacted thousands of children in classroom and community settings, equipping them to recognize vulnerabilities and protect themselves and their peers from exploitation.

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: CAST

When I asked Kay Buck, CEO and founder of Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST) about the work she gets to do daily, she proclaims “My job is such a blessing. I have the opportunity to work with survivors every day. I think that’s what makes CAST unique. Is that we work long term with survivors so we are able to form that trust and see them through to success.” CAST’s work is indeed unique — they are not only the nation’s largest provider of comprehensive life-changing services to survivors but also fierce advocates for groundbreaking policies and legislation. After benefiting their Transition Age Youth (TAY) program at our 2017 “You Can Do Anything in a Dress” 5k, we were honored to invite them into further partnership for our Dressember 2018/2019 campaign.

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: youthspark

Many organizations over the past few years have taken a stand against human trafficking. One of those, though, stands out above the rest. Located in one of the biggest hubs for human trafficking, youthSpark is a visionary in changing the face of human trafficking and child exploitation rates in Atlanta, GA, and all over the United States

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: International Justice Mission

IJM is the world’s largest anti-trafficking organization in the world. They work to protect the poor from violence in the developing world with a vision to “rescue thousands, protect millions, and prove that justice for the poor is possible.”

According to the United Nations, 4 billion people live outside the protection of the law. This means that their public justice systems- police, courts, and laws- are so broken, corrupt, and dysfunctional, that there is nothing to shield the poor from violence.

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: BEST

This year, Dressember Foundation is excited to introduce one of their new grant partners: Businesses Ending Slavery & Trafficking (BEST). Based in Seattle, Washington, BEST provides awareness, consultation and training to employers in a variety of sectors in an effort to put an end to human trafficking within businesses. BEST recognizes the great need for prevention strategies to avert the recurring cycle of modern slavery, and it believes using businesses as an avenue to allocate its resources will effectively bring an end to the injustice.

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: thorn

This year, Dressember is proud to partner with Thorn, an organization that uses technology to combat child sex trafficking. The internet has become a widely used place for sex traffickers to advertise. The good news is, this can help investigators track down traffickers. The bad news is that law enforcement just doesn’t have the time, energy, or manpower to efficiently pursue the information available online. That's where Thorn comes in.

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: Mcmahon/Ryan Child Advocacy Center

Children have been given the gift of great power: they change lives, alter plans, move hearts, and send waves throughout humanity. As simple as it sounds, everyone alive was once a child. But this great power is coupled with great vulnerability. Five children die every day from abuse. That number is inexcusable. Children need to be seen, protected, and most importantly, heard.

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: Restore NYC

This year, Dressember is expanding its grant partners like never before, adding nine incredible organizations as benefactors of this campaign. I have the distinct privilege of introducing you to one of Dressember’s newest grant partners: Restore NYC. Restore NYC is nationally recognized for its leadership in identifying and helping trafficked women. Its mission is bold: “End sex trafficking in New York and restore the well-being and independence of foreign national survivors.”

DressemberOctober 5, 2018restore nyc, dressember, human trafficking, Grant Partners

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: Saving Innocence

Did you know sex traffickers in Los Angeles make about $49,000 per victim? Or that the average age for a child to be introduced into trafficking is 11 to 14 years of age? Were you aware that victims normally live an average of seven years after first being trafficked?

DressemberOctober 4, 2018dressember, human trafficking, Grant Partners, saving innocence, amber davies

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: Pathfinders

At 16-years-old, Vanessa* found herself alone and living on the streets of Milwaukee. She knew there was a better life for her, but felt her unsafe living situation left her no choice but to run away and make it on her own. As her situation grew more desperate, Vanessa began to exchange sex for money to meet her basic needs. It wasn’t long until her situation left her vulnerable and she was taken advantage of by traffickers.

DressemberOctober 3, 2018Grant Partners, pathfinders, erin king, Dressember2018, human trafficking, modern day slavery

Introducing our 2018/2019 Grant Partner: A21

The number of people trafficked from Bulgaria is the second highest in the European Union. Each year, women and children are forced into the domestic and regional sex industry while men and children are mistreated in agricultural, construction, and service jobs in Bulgaria, other European countries, and the Middle East. Some traffickers have been arrested for participating in organized crime networks that recruit Bulgarian employees. Thousands of labor law violations were found at other employers from 2016 to early 2018.

DressemberOctober 2, 2018dressember, human trafficking, Grant Partners, a21, bulgaria

Introducing our Newest Grant Partner: McMahon/Ryan Child Advocacy Center

Many advocates are aware that the Dressember campaign raises funds for renown international anti-trafficking organizations: International Justice Mission and A21, but you may not have heard of another well-deserving benefactor of this beautiful campaign. The McMahon/Ryan Child Advocacy Center, based in Syracuse, New York, is a non-profit organization serving its local community since doors opened in 2002. Operating out of a 30,000 square foot building and co-existing with 60+ like-minded professionals, this team works together to advocate for upwards of 700 abuse victims each year, specifically children.

DressemberNovember 15, 2017Trafficking Awareness, Grant Partners

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