A note from David …
I don’t know many people as brave as Sarah or Monique.*
After being brutally attacked with a knife by the woman who had enslaved her, Sarah, who was only 11-years-old at the time, ran away without knowing where she could find anyone to care for her or take her in.
Thankfully, Sarah found herself in a neighborhood where Beyond Borders’ Adult Survivors of Child Slavery Network has an active presence.
Seeing Sarah’s state, someone contacted Monique, one of the leaders in the neighborhood chapter of the survivor network. Monique was uniquely prepared to understand what Sarah was feeling. She too was 11 when she ran away from her captor after a violent encounter.
Sadly, though, the man who took Monique in off the street the night that she ran away raped her, leaving her doubly traumatized.
Together Sarah and Monique are now playing leading roles in a collective effort to compel the Haitian government to begin enforcing the law against child domestic servitude.
In fact, Sarah’s case may end up becoming the first instance in Haiti’s history of a perpetrator being prosecuted not just for child abuse but specifically for exploiting a child for their labor.
Our Fall newsletter tells Sarah’s story in greater detail.
You can click on the image of the newsletter to download a PDF copy of it now.
It’s a story of courage, ingenuity, determination, and ultimately freedom — Sarah’s and the freedom of so many more girls and boys like her who — up to now — had no one like Monique to defend and protect them.
Of course, Sarah and Monique wouldn’t even know each other if it weren’t for the generosity and concern of caring Beyond Borders’ supporters who make the work of adult survivors possible.
I don’t like to think about how things could have ended up so tragically different for Sarah had it not been for Monique and her fellow survivors.
The reality though is that there are thousands of other children who are still trapped in servitude in neighborhoods that don’t have a local survivor chapter or anyone like Monique to defend them.
We need to raise $360,000 before the end of the year to allow us to expand this work to protect vulnerable children into new neighborhoods and communities in 2020.
These funds will also allow us to continue making progress in the campaign to get the Haitian government to begin enforcing the law to protect these children.
On behalf of children like Sarah and their brave allies like Monique, please take a moment to consider whether you can help now before things become so much busier this holiday season. You can click on this link to make a gift now: https://beyondborders.net/donate/.
With deep gratitude,
David Diggs
Director and Co-Founder
PS – The courage of Monique and Sarah encourages us to be audaciously ambitious with our plans for expanding this work. Please join us in matching their courage by giving bravely. Thank you.
* We’ve changed their names to protect their identities.
