India is a hub for sex trafficking, with an estimated three million females in forced prostitution throughout the country. Kolkata is at once a trafficking destination, a transit area for women being trafficked from Bangladesh and Nepal to the rest of India, and a source area.  Girls living in poverty in rural India face significant risk factors for being trafficked for labor or for sex.

 

When under-aged victims of sex trafficking are rescued, they are placed in the aftercare system. At the age of 18, they age out of the system. Young women aging out of aftercare are left with even greater risk for re-trafficking or are left without a choice but to voluntarily re-enter the trade out of economic necessity.

A fair-wage job in a restorative environment can provide these young women with the means to economic stability, healthy recovery, and dignity-affirming reintegration into society.

Sari Bari is Laying a Foundation for Heroes 

Since 2006, Sari Bari has provided a safe place of employment for women who have been exploited in the commercial sex trade and for women who are vulnerable to being trafficked. In the past ten years, Sari Bari has laid a foundation for more than 120 women to find freedom and economic empowerment through employment.

At Sari Bari, women who have been exploited and marginalized continue to rediscover and reclaim their dignity, identity, and value as women. These courageous women are truly the heroes among us.

In 2015, Sari Bari is deepening its commitment to freedom and prevention by laying a foundation for a new generation of heroes. As Sari Bari opens the doors to a new unit, young women who are aging out of aftercare and vulnerable to re-trafficking will find opportunities for economic security and continued trauma recovery.

We believe that through dignity-affirming employment in a restorative environment, young women who have survived trafficking can:

·     Reduce their vulnerability to being re-trafficked

·     Build financial security


·     Find social empowerment

·     Engage in holistic restoration 


·     Reintegrate themselves into society 


·     Create lasting change in their 
families and communities

At Sari Bari, women who have survived human trafficking become heroes. 

 

LAYING A FOUNDATION FOR HEROES means:

·     Securing a new building and production equipment for a safe work environment

·     Providing job training to vulnerable young women for sustainable employment

·     Ensuring the women are supported through social service programming

Budgeting for this project includes:

Building Purchase & Fees                                   $174,075

Building Set-up/Equipment                                 $17,418

Social Worker/Support Programming                  $18,000

You can be a part of Laying a Foundation for Heroes. Your partnership and giving will provide:

      $25   1 week of training for 1 girl

      $42   1 square foot of space for freedom

    $100   1 month of training for 1 girl

    $190   1 week of group therapy/support for up to 68 women

    $200   1 water filter for safe drinking for water for the women

    $210   5 sq. ft. of space for freedom

    $380   2 weeks of group therapy/support for up to 68 women

    $420  10 sq. ft. of space for freedom

    $675   Replace asbestos on the roof for a safe work environment

    $700   1 water pump and fittings

    $750   1 month of group therapy/support for up to 68 women

  $1500   2 months of group therapy/support for up to 68 women

  $1700   Fresh paint for the entire unit for a clean work environment

  $1900   Complete training costs for 5 girls

  $3800   Complete training costs for 10 girls

  $4500   6 months of group therapy/support for up to 68 women

  $9000   1 year of group therapy/support for up to 68 women

$37,800   1 entire floor of the new building

 

For more information please visit saribari.info

 

“I can be a hero because of my inner strength. I can help others become heroes too.”

Samiya came to Sari Bari 8½ years ago. She decided at that time that there were many different roads she could take in life, and she could choose to take the road of freedom and peace. Samiya says it was a difficult path to choose but that it was the right path, it was the path the led her to stand on her own feet.

Samiya says that in the beginning, she didn’t know how to sew, and she was scared. She wasn’t strong, and she didn’t know how to find freedom. Slowly she received strength from the people around her, and she found courage to let go of the past, to let go of the difficult memories, to let go of the defeating thoughts. She says,

“I couldn’t hold my past and my freedom at the same time. The things from the past bound up my hands and made feel discouraged. I found the strength to let go and leave it all behind. Then I found peace and freedom.”  Read more...

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