Tag: Little Black Dress

Little Black Dress Project 2016

Posted on by journalofsoles

Welcome to my Little Black Dress Project 2016!

 

What is the purpose of this again?

 

I, along with a group of team members, will be wearing the same article of clothing (black dress, black shirt, or something similar) every day for a month to raise awareness about the epidemic of human trafficking.  By doing this, we are experiencing a lack of freedom by not being able to choose our clothing for an entire month. This is an attempt to experience (on a very small scale) the lack of freedom and lack of choice victims of trafficking have. We plan on posting facts and stats on human trafficking to inform our friends and family about human trafficking. Along the way, we will make opportunities available to you to help stop these atrocities by financially supporting our chosen organization, Present Age Ministries. Present Age Ministries is a non-profit organization committed to fighting sexual exploitation and trafficking. They work to provide awareness events and directly help teen girls ages 12-18 who are survivors of sex trafficking. Please take the time to find out more about this organization at Present Age Ministries. 

 

Want to donate now?

Donate by contacting me personally or clicking here to visit our crowdrise fundraising  page.

Want to join us, but have some questions? See below to hopefully get some answers.

 

When does it start?

Our team in NC is going to wear their Little Black Dresses/Black Shirts beginning Feb. 1st until Feb. 29th.

 

What are the details of actually wearing the black dress? This sounds kind of weird and gross.

Rules/Guidelines for your wardrobe:

Wear the same article of clothing every day for the month to represent the lack of choice victims of human/sex trafficking have.
You may wash it as much as you want. (Meaning frequently….please)
You may accessorize as much as you want.
Please wear something different to work out in… we don’t want to stink.
If your kid snots or pukes on it…(not that this has happened to me in the past or anything)… improvise. You can just wear a black shirt the rest of the day if you choose.
If you have to wear a uniform for your job or volunteer work, ask for an exception if possible. If no exception is possible, see if you can wear the same accessory every day so people notice.
Other guidelines:
Learn more about human trafficking and be vocal! This Is an opportunity to make yourself more aware of the reality of human trafficking. Talk to people about it and about why you’re wearing the same clothes all the time. It’s uncomfortable sometimes, but people will surprise you. Post on FB, instagram, etc… whatever social media you can to bring the conversation to light. Post your link and facts about sex trafficking daily or frequently to try to raise money and awareness.

What if I missed the start date?

Please don’t let that stop you from joining us! You do have a couple of options though. Join us locally in NC for the rest of February or … if you want, you can join my friends at Average Advocate in March (see below).

 

The Other Little Black Dress Project

My group of friends with whom I have participated with in the past are going to do their project in March. Our local group chose February to support Present Age Ministries. Their staff will also be participating! If you aren’t ready to do February, join my friends in March at Average Advocate. Thanks, Average Advocate for helping to start this cool awareness event!!!

Where do I sign up?

Join my team by contacting me or clicking here. We would LOVE to have you!

Can I be honest?

Posted on by journalofsoles

2016-02-03 13.19.40This is my 3rd year of the Little Black Dress Project! What?!!??

So… if I’m completely honest, when my friend first started doing her little black dress project a few years ago, I was like, “Hmmm…. that’s weird.” I didn’t understand the purpose very much and I didn’t understand anything about human trafficking. So she would post stuff and I learned a few things about human trafficking and how local it was and just how prevalent it was in the Northern Virginia area where I used to live.

BUT…though I knew it was a valid cause, I also was thinking, “That’s great…that she is talking about this and all, but there are so many other problems in the world. Is this really happening that much? I don’t think so… and if it is, I don’t really want to think about that sort of thing.” Yes, that is a horrible line of thinking, but just keepin’ it real.

Am I going to do this every year? I have no idea. All I know is that it took me 3 years of my friend at Average Advocate doing her Little Black Dress Project for me to get it… to really get it and start listening for real. And what did I do in response to finally getting it? I donated $5. That was all I had at the time and all I did, and that’s perfectly alright. So I’m doing this Little Black Dress Project 2016 in case there are people out there like me who just take a while to hear the information and let it sink in. The first step to fixing a problem is being aware and admitting that there is one.

Quick facts about sex trafficking:

  • The average age of victims entering “the life” is 12-14 years of age
  • The life expectancy for a sex trafficking victim is 7 years.
  • There are fewer than 600 beds across the U.S. for rescued victims of sex trafficking.
  • At least 100,000 children are used in prostitution each year in the U.S.
  • Only 2 percent of victims of human trafficking are ever rescued.

Want to know more? There are several sites with more information. Polarisproject.org is a great place to start. Want to support our Little Black Dress Project and Present Age Ministries? Click here.