20 Pence per Day Could Save a Life

Get ready to Give. ( a specific Standing Order form will be available for Download soon)

January 5^th 2010 it's my birthday. The snow is falling thick and fast and blizzards were blowing hard. The Met Office were predicting the coldest night of the winter.

I'd just had my shower and was getting dressed to go for my birthday tea at a local Italian (I'd even decided what I was going to eat). The phone rang. It was my mate. He had found out that a friend who had been on his Law Course at Uni had fallen on hard times was sleeping rough in Southport.

I went looking for him - he was sleeping under bushes by the Marine Lake. I brought him home. My wife and I gave him a good meal, a bath and bed, did his laundry and provided him with warm, winter gear. The next day after breakfast I went to Southport with him to find out what emergency services were available for him in such dire situations.

In short, because of his circumstances he falls out of the remit of the DHSS and as such outside the system (he is awaiting asylum), nothing, literally nothing was available to him through the “legitimate” routes. He was therefore destined and forced to stay on the streets. Fortunately, I was however personally able to help him find a safe place and fund him in it for a few weeks.

Don't Stay Silent - An Emergency Fund

That night my 15 year old son who had been very touched by the situation was shocked that there was no provision for him or people in similar emergency situations.

So between us, we decided to create a fund and some simple maths proved that £5 per month could help save a life (if we get 1000 £5 donations we can begin a charity) The £5 further divides into 20 pence per day! In my sons words - “ it's a no brainer”

How The Fund will Work

The monies we raise can be directed to fund partners to identify true emergency cases where people are truly at risk and who cannot access the “system” at that given time and to put them into specified B&B's or hotels who will provide the service as I did for our friend. The Don't Stay Silent Fund will pick up the Tab. Its as simple as that.

It's a one night arrangement to get them out of immediate danger and off the streets. The next day the partner / organisation that have helped them will undertake to help point them in the right direction in terms of social services, shelters or major expert organisations etc. Its simple. The funds will also enable us to train our partners further in the identification of potential victims of violence or trafficking.

The Don't Stay Silent Fund will truly allows us to educate and empower, but above all help people in need in desperate times and devastating situations.

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The Bigger Picture

People like our friend are extremely vulnerable. Not just to the devastation of the situation and the elements. Those sleeping rough often become pray to organised gangs who with either friendly coercion (a “loan” for food or to get them out of trouble), threats or force who then manipulate and exploit the unfortunate person into a life of virtual slavery. Some of the activities that people are forced into include prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour (including selling drugs and illicit goods) or services. These gangs are often linked with highly organised Human Trafficking organisations.

What is an emergency?

In terms of Don't Stay Silent we classify an emergency as a person who is;

• Fleeing from potential human trafficking *

• Fleeing from “honour killings” or contracts on their life **

• Fleeing from domestic abuse (physical, sexual, psychological or financial violence)***

• Fleeing from control or servitude by a pimp or gang master (see Human Trafficking)

• Fleeing from the elements – extreme or severe weather.

Definitions:

* Human Trafficking is defined by the UN.GIFT thus:

"Trafficking in persons" shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs.

Trafficking invariably involves forcible movement of a person from one place to another and forcible utilization of their services with the intention of inducting them into trade for commercial gains. The word 'forcible' signifies that the action is against the person's will or that consensus has been obtained by making deceptive claims and false allurements. In some cases, consensus is obtained because of the victim's social conditioning, where the victim is not even aware that s/he is being exploited. - www.ungift.org/ungift/en/humantrafficking

** Honour Killings. The BBC Ethics Guide defines Honour Killings thus:

Honour killing is the murder of a person accused of "bringing shame" upon their family.

Victims have been killed for refusing to enter a marriage, committing adultery or being in a relationship that displeased their relatives.

In many instances, the crimes are committed by family members against a female relative.

More cases have reached the UK courts in recent years but a number of crimes still remain unresolved or undetected.

In some parts of the world, women who have been raped have also been murdered for the 'dishonour' of being a victim and the 'disgrace' it brings to their family.

Honour killing is believed to have originated from tribal customs where an allegation against a woman can be enough to defile a family's reputation - 'a life without honour is not worth living.'  www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/honourcrimes/crimesofhonour_1.shtml

*** The Government defines domestic violence as:

‘Any incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological, physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between adults who are or have been intimate partners or family members, regardless of gender or sexuality." This includes issues of concern to black and minority ethnic (BME) communities such as so called 'honour killings’.

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"Its not about Charity – It's about Justice”

However!

In isolation justice, can be harsh and can ignore the immediate needs of people. We do NEED to address immediate needs. We do need charitable giving.

But, in isolation charity has the potential to become a “band-aid” solution, never really getting to or addressing the root of the problem.Neither charity nor justice can stand alone.

The campaign, “Don't Stay Silent”, intends in a very simple and effective way to address both the charitable and justice issues.

Many of us are interested and concerned about charity and justice in some meaningful ways. But, sometimes we forget the difference and the importance of each in the midst of our own very busy lives.

It’s easy to be numbed to the real issues that are going on in the world – the earthquake in Haiti this year, the tsunami in Indonesia in 2004. But tragedy and destitution is happening our own street corners today.

Don't Stay Silent will assist in helping Charitably in terms of meeting the immediate needs of those in truly emergency situations. Be they, the housewife in fear of another beating for her and her children when her husband comes home drunk again; or the girls forced into working the streets as prostitutes for fear that their family abroad will be murdered by the same people who trafficked them into the UK.

Don't Stay Silent will meet the needs of those in desperate situations by empowering organisations to offer a safe place to stay for the night. To provide, food, clothes and toiletries to allow some personal dignity and comfort.

Equally, Don't Stay Silent will equip and empower their partner organisations to assist in specialist areas relevant to the individual. This may be simple instruction to attend the Citizens Advice Centre or perhaps a direct referral to the UK Human Trafficking Centre when someone falls outside of the system through Trafficking or immigration and asylum.

Importantly we want to make it easy for people to help.   Soon we'll be able to allow for you to contribute to the fund (watch this space)

20p per Day Can Save a Life. This translates to approximately £5 per month. Our aim is to raise sufficient funds as to provide an Emergency Service and Referral Service. We need 1000 regular givers of £5 per month so that we can achieve charitable status and be able to access the funds available to assist us in our campaign to fight the injustices happening to people on our doorsteps.

No one should have to sleep under a hedge, no one should risk dying of hypothermia, no one should fear being beaten or repeatedly raped.

20p per Day can help vulnerable and desperate people to take a step towards safety.

£5 per Month – 20p per day as calculated by a 15 year old lad is a “no brainer” as he put it.   It's less than a daily Latte, its far less than a days sweets allowance if a class room of children were to work together. Everyone can afford it.

All of us if we personalise the story will be able to understand that cliché that “it's somebody's daughter or it's somebody's son” and to echo the lyric from the Band-Aid Song “tonight thank God it's them instead of you”!

Don't Stay Silent. 20p per Day Can Save a Life.

Get ready to Give. ( a specific Standing Order form will be available for Download soon).