By Meghan Mathias, Staff Writer
There is a way to take action, stand up, and use your voice for those who cannot by being part of a movement that is appropriately named End It.
The End It movement is one that promises to “shine a light on slavery” by having “no more bondage, no more sex trafficking, no more child laborers, starting now.”
There are currently estimated to be about 27 million (more than at any other time in history) men, woman, and children who are in bondage and are forced to partake in horrendous actions that one cannot even begin to imagine. Slavery is thought to be a notion of the past. Something that only occurred during the era of the Civil War, but the reality is that modern day slavery still exists in 161 countries, including America.
End It is a campaign whose specific mission is to bring awareness to all people about modern day slavery. They are a hub that can connect people from all locations, learn the astounding facts that make up the surface of slavery, and give them an opportunity to learn how they can give to seven organizations. The focus is to help with the freedom and restoration of slaves.
End It encourages people to use their voice for others’ freedom by using popular forms of social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google Plus, Pinterest, Tumblr and email. Though money is an important component of this campaign (and 100 percent of all money given to End It is given to the coalition partners), using one’s voice can be considered just as important.
End It is a movement that first originated at Passion 2013, a Christian conference that took place in Atlanta, GA. Passion is a conference meant for people who are between the ages of 18-25 and focuses on worship and justice. This year 60,000 college-aged students united and had the opportunity to learn about the great injustice of slavery and how we have the power to be the generation that ends it.
Gary Haugen, President of International Justice Mission (IJM), said, “Awareness is doing the work.”
It is one of the reasons why IJM is one of the seven coalition partners that is associated with the End It campaign. The campaign is meant to bring awareness to an issue that no one even knows exists today.
Chelsea DeVries, a senior said she “wasn’t aware of the fact that slavery still existed.” But now that she knows she wants to “use social media to get the word out and end all types of slavery.” Awareness is the first step to action, and action then turns into slaves experiencing the genuine joy that comes with finally being brought into freedom.
The University has an IJM chapter and their purpose is to tell the students of about these injustices and how college students have the ability to make an impact if they desire.
According to Ally Vincent, the president of Saint Leo’s IJM chapter, Saint Leo is having their first Justice Week from Feb. 3 to Feb. 7. There will be events such as taking a trip to the Holocaust museum, handing out ribbons and factual information, having a panel discussion with a small meal, doing Global graffiti, having a 5K on campus and a candlelight vigil, and ending the week by having everyone declare the social justice they are passionate about through social media. For more information about IJM and how one can become more involved, contact Ally Vincent at Alexandria.vincent@email.saintleo.edu or come to the meetings on Wednesdays at 5:30 in Lewis 113.
The End It campaign is one that is designed to be interactive for everyone who is involved and this is fulfilled in a variety of ways. They have merchandise such as a shirt and hats with the logo on. People are bound to ask you what your shirt or hat means and it is an easy way to start a conversation about something that is often hard to bring up because of the nature of the subject and all of the desolation that it brings. End It also strives to let people really say that they are ‘in it to end it’ by letting them sign a pledge that states so by having people enter their e-mail addresses and then contacting them later with more information about what they can do to get involved. If one is interested in signing the pledge to End It and getting more information about this movement, then go to www.enditmovement.com.
End it is a campaign that has its official launch on Feb. 1, but it is a movement that is meant for so much more than just the launch of another campaign. It is meant to inspire all people to be collective in saying that now that they know there are currently 27 million people in the world who are slaves, that they want to bring awareness, action, and hope to those who are enslaved. They want to be people who can say that they fight for freedom and justice for those who cannot fight for themselves and that they are truly in it to end it.
