Transcending Borders: Two Fellows Helping U.S. Trafficking Survivors Become Financially Literate
Two community activists, Jill Langhus-Griffin, the Founder of Liluye from Arizona, and Tarun Masapeta, the Founder of Project Educate India Financially (EIFL), from India, first met virtually in June, during the first weekly roundtable of the 2023 Goldin Global Fellowship. With other peers from around the world, during the Fellowship, they discussed their own communities' most emergent needs and ways they can play an active role in establishing and maintaining community-driven social changes. These discussions and utilizing the GATHER platform brought them closer to their shared goals for a better society.
After a joint meeting in August, Jill and Tarun met in person in Phoenix, Arizona, to dig deeper into a possible partnership between their two organizations to create a financial literacy program for trafficking survivors in the U.S. With a plan to tailor it to other areas of the world who could benefit from this training afterward, Jill and Tarun have forged a collaboration to empower trafficking survivors in the U.S.
Through this collaboration Project EIFL X Liluye was born to address the unique financial challenges faced by trafficking survivors in the U.S. The project spans an 8–10-week timeframe for approximately 8-10 participants. It features up to eight financial topics taught in 45-minute, separate Zoom workshops. Their endeavors in this joint initiative reflect the power of community-driven initiatives in tackling such issues.
Joining Forces to Help Trafficking Survivors Become Financially Literate
At the beginning of our conversation, they shared why the creation of this program was essential. From her experience and activism, Jill knew that survivors, especially those she knew in the U.S., have challenges around re-establishing their credit and becoming financially independent. “When Tarun and I first met and chatted online in July, and I found out that he had been offering other organizations education in financial literacy and other things, I realized there was an opportunity for collaboration.” Jill says. "To continue the mission of my project, it felt like a good intersection to integrate our ideas and bring the EIFL curriculum to trafficking survivors in the U.S. Jill gave me a little insight into how a lot of trafficking survivors usually end up losing most of their assets if they have any and their belief in themselves." Tarun says. Jill elaborates that traffickers often taint survivors' credit, thus making it hard for them to become economically empowered. “Providing a basic course on personal financing would be a good start to help these survivors get back on their own feet.” Tarun adds.
Goldin Global Fellowship as the Meeting Place
Jill and Tarun shed light on how their participation in the Global Goldin Fellowship played a role in the development of this program, considering one of them is from the U.S. and the other from India.
"If I had not been part of the Goldin Fellowship and had not been reaching out and interviewing other Gather fellows in our cohort, such as Tarun, I would not have known that there was an opportunity for collaboration on this financial literacy program."
- Jill Langhus-Griffin
She adds: “When Tarun and I were talking about Liluye and what my vision, plan, and goals were for it, and Tarun was talking about his organization, Project EIFL, it occurred to both of us almost simultaneously that there was an opportunity to collaborate and make more impact together.” Tarun also acknowledges they would not have joined hands in this collaboration if it had not been for the Goldin Global Fellowship: "Jill and I connected right before I left for the U.S. on a Zoom call where we discussed our work and how we felt there was a lot of scope to collaborate. We also met in person in Phoenix, Arizona, to discuss our expectations and set the ball rolling by laying out a blueprint." Even before this Zoom meeting, Jill was impressed by Tarun’s ambition, likable personality, and enthusiasm for impacting and helping others. “So, when we met on Zoom, it was not strange to me to ask him if he would be interested in collaborating on a financial literacy project/program together.” Jill says.
What does the project cover? What's its impact?
The Project EIFL X Liluye program will cover these areas that survivor colleagues and team members identified as being essential topics:
- How to open a bank account (step by step)
- How to calculate taxes (where to set them aside, where to put them, how to reinvest them, how to do balance sheets, and what is taxable)
- How to invest
- How to reinvest in their business (how to start anew as an individual and/or business)
- Organizational financial literacy (when given a lump sum and financing their own organization)
- How do they pay themself (not out of a business account)
- Where to put their money (what to budget in, what to spend on, and what percentage to take out)
- Financial Aid (for anyone considering going back to school).
Conclusively, they share what impact they strive to achieve through this project, both for the survivors and the broader community. Tarun says the project aims to teach financial literacy basics, allowing individuals to make learned decisions.
"Our goal collectively is to ensure that all attendees have a good understanding of topics we would discuss and that they are being in practice."
- Tarun Masapeta
He highlights that this marks EIFL's first project in the U.S., making it the 5th country outside India to facilitate financial literacy workshops. Jill, who is always looking for the best, most impactful ways to serve and help survivors, shares her thoughts on what this project means for the survivors. “It occurred to me that all survivors I know share a common concern about lack of funding. With this training, they potentially would not need to struggle anymore in this area, and they could become more empowered by having control over their finances and, in turn, their lives.”She hopes that all the survivors that attend the program will gain clarity in all the topics covered, that they will feel confident and empowered to take control of their finances or more so than they were before the program, and to build the organizations that they are planning to or feel more confident in controlling their organization’s finances after taking it.
Jill and Tarun are among 20 community activists who participated in the 2023 Goldin Global Fellowship, living and working in Albania, Bangladesh, Burundi, Cameroon, Ethiopia, India, Kosovo, Malawi, Mali, Nepal, Nigeria, the Philippines, Senegal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, the United States and Zimbabwe.For five months, this diverse group of fellows worked together as a Community of Practice, building on their neighbors' talents and their communities' assets to make real and lasting change around the world.
Preventing Human Trafficking in the Philippines
By Andy Alegre, Global Fellow from the Philippines
In the Philippines, we commemorated the International Day of Prayer and Awareness Against Human Trafficking through a nationwide campaign that included a series of actions. The Philippine Interfaith Movement Against Human Trafficking (PIMAHT) together with Talitha Kum Philippines (TKP) usually promote and observe this day on February 8th in the Philippines every year. This day is also known in the Catholic faith tradition as the Feast Day or Memorial of St. Josephine Bakhita, a victim and survivor of slavery, freed later on and found faith.
"No to trafficking! We promote an economy of care, which breaks down inequalities. We invite the global network to join us in raising awareness and taking action. Please raise your vioce and share on social media using the hashtag #PrayAgainstTrafficking and #thePowerOfCare." -- Andy Alegre
To commemorate this day, we held an online prayer session together with churches and various organizations using a special vigil of prayer prepared specifically for this year’s event. Together, we prayed for freedom, healing and restoration of human trafficking victims and survivors and the protection of advocates.
We also had an opportunity to participate in a global, live-streamed youtube conversation and dialogue about Human Dignity and Human Rights. In this virtual setting, we interacted with speakers and participants on key topics as they related to the issue of Human Trafficking. This online event series had also included creative ways such as a live global marathon of prayer and reflection against human trafficking. It was a great honor to be joined by the PIMAHT secretariat members and other organizations.
Between 8:30 pm and 9:30 pm Philippine Time, we also participated in the global storm of awareness messaging via Twitter! Using the hashtag #PrayAgainstTrafficking, we spent the full hour tweeting and re-tweeting messages to raise awareness and inspire actions from churches and faith communities. Below is one example of the tweets we shared:
"On Bakhita's Day, we participate in the global online prayer marathon against trafficking. The theme: “The power of care. Women, the economy, human trafficking."
I would always participate every year in this campaign through prayer, awareness, and prevention sessions against human trafficking either in churches or in vulnerable communities. I also utilize my social media in the Twitter storm which just started two years ago.
Hopefully that next year, PIMAHT can do another campaign that is wider in scope. I will share next year's plan with Goldin Fellows so that we can participate together.
*Andy Alegre also serves as a Secretariat member of PIMAHT, a national faith-based movement formed in 2013 that is composed of representatives from the 3 largest Christian church councils together with other partner organizations united in the fight against all forms of human trafficking.
SHYNE On You Crazy Diamond
For two weeks starting on January 17, Shyne San Diego—founded and led by Global Gather alumnus Cynthia Austin—partnered with area organizations in the San Diego and Orange County area to mount a first-of-its-kind exhibition on sexual and human trafficking entitled, “Behold Her: Portraits of Survivors of Human Trafficking” at You Belong Here, a co-working and community events space in San Diego.
An exhibit of photographic portraits of trafficking survivors by Amari DixonPhotography, “Behold Her” is the first photo exhibition undertaken by SHYNE. More than 100 people attended the premiere evening, and Cynthia said the highly successful endeavor was the culmination of a long-held dream.
Cynthia supporting Women in Business at the #linkedinlocalsd kick off 2020 event in San Diego hosted on January 31, 2020.
“I knew from the beginning that the survivors’ voices were the key to reshaping the public’s view of then,” she explained.
“The message I believe people took away from the show is hope. Each image represents 1000 victims of trafficking in San Diego every year. These women give hope to those victims as examples of what is possible with community support and a desire for change. Each image also represents a woman giving back to other victims by providing services, work opportunities and resources to assist with healing.
One of the survivors, Jessica, said it best:
"Nothing that has happened to me in the past will hold me back. I am here. I am empowered. I am a new person. I am breaking all stereotypes...Something that somebody else did to me is going to put a label on me? I don't think so! That’s not going to happen. That's not who I am.’”
The city of San Diego, California, ranks eighth-highest in the United States for intensity of Commercial and Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) and drives an estimated $810 million in the underground sex economy.
“My vision for SHYNE in 2020 [is to] continue building the Survivors Business Network, where survivors and businesses with NGOs (non-governmental organizations) work collaboratively to support the women, girls and children who survive trafficking.”
Two days after the exhibit opening, a Survivor Business Pop-Up Boutique was held at You Are Here. The timing of the show was not coincidental, as National Human Trafficking Awareness Month is observed annually each January in the United States.
Cynthia participates in the January 24th Media Symposium: Changing the Narrative/Media Impact on the Human Trafficking Movement hosted by the South Bay Coalition to End Human Trafficking with Amy McClelland Bril and Ana Mony.
Cynthia and SHYNE’s journey began a little over a year ago, and she remains steadfast in her desire to not only provide holistic support to survivors, but also to let “people know that [survivors] get caught in a life of exploitation due to their upbringing, where some form of abuse occurred making them vulnerable to predators.
"When a victim can feel their inherent value and understand it wasn't their fault, that there's nothing wrong with them, there is a turning point in their lives. I hope this work will perhaps help society to stop blaming victims for the suffering they've endured. I hope it gives people empathy, compassion and understanding about exploitation, it's nature and what we are up against with sex trafficking.”
After the show, “Keelin,” a pseudonym for one of the women whose portraits was hung as part of the exhibition, wrote to Cynthia. Eerily, the exhibition was on the same street where she’d been first sold for sex by the individual who trafficked her. "You have helped me share my voice and my story and it means the world to me,” Keelin wrote to Cynthia. “I will always cherish our friendship and will support you in any way I can."
