Can`t believe it`s already December! Where did time go, it`s almost 2014!
Let`s start off the last month of the year with a bang. Today it`s International Abolition Day. Which means that today, awareness is raised for the problem of human trafficking. And we webcomic artists do this the way we know best, through comics:
Thousands of people still live in modern slavery today, not free, being oppressed, forced into things you don`t want to be forced into. Three million of these people are children. Most of those have been put to “work” in the sex industry, some being as young as six years old. Their stories are heartbreaking. And this happens all over the world.
Hope for the victims and the people that are being preyed upon lies in the people willing to speak up for them, fight for them. Love 146 is one of the organisations doing that exact thing. Their aim is to free people from captivity, to care for the victims affected and to educate and raise awareness about this problem.
Here is where the Comic Creators for Freedom project comes in. A few years ago Lora Innes, known for her webcomic the Dreamer, heard the story of a student she was coaching, who was almost abducted in clear light of day, on her way to school. After hearing this story and learning more about the scope of human trafficking, Lora teamed up with webcomic artist Crystal Yates, known for the webcomic Earthsong. They started a project that would bring over 100 webcomic artists together to make a giant wallpaper that people can download when they donate money to the cause of fighting human trafficking. So, this year is no exception. Webcomic artists from around the globe, together with their readers aim to raise money for Love 146, specifically for after-care of survivors.
Even though I don`t have a comic online yet I could still submit my characters these past years, for which I`m very grateful. This year is the first year that we could send in male characters too, because sex trafficking affects boys as well. This years` theme was “awkward school photos”. I`ve seen the wallpaper and awkward they are! 😀 I love it!
You can read more about my entry in a blog post I did.
Our goal is to reach the 5000 dollar mark. If every creator (167 in total!) brings in 30 dollars, we will already make it! So, without further ado:
You can go and donate here.
The wallpaper you`ll receive features 167 awkward characters of 167 webcomics. I`ll put my money where my mouth is. I hope you`ll help out as well. Let`s make this a success!
I love the term Abolition Day, let`s kick this outrageous evil out of our world forever!
No question this time, just:
Action: Donate to this great cause and help survivors of sexual exploitation. Don`t have any money? You can help out tremendously with spreading the word as well. Share, Twitter and Tumblr away!