Made By Survivors at Home

 

Welcome! 

Thanks for taking the time to visit my site - By doing so, you have already taken the first step to bring hope and empowerment to women worldwide!

From this site, you can peruse the gorgeous handcrafted jewelry, bags, and gifts that survivors of slavery around the world are making as a means to build safe and beautiful lives for themselves and their children.  Many are using their jobs to literally transform and slavery-proof their communities from within!  And you can help by making a purchase, by hosting a party, or by telling your friends.

Below, you can also read my own story of how and why I got involved with this cause and updates on my personal and team efforts to change the world, one adorable handbag at a time! You can also learn more about the issue of human trafficking and our organization's work at www.madebysurvivors.com'

Thank you for visiting -  I look forward to working for freedom with you!

 

A Brief History of the MBS Jewelry Centers

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Tue, 11/08/2011 - 12:29

For those of you that are new to our work, here is some background info on Made By Survivors and on our Jewelry Centers in Calcutta, Mumbai and, coming soon – Darjeeling.

A Lesson in Human Trafficking - Border Towns

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Wed, 10/05/2011 - 12:16

india nepal borderUS Mexico BorderLiving in or near an international border town greatly increases the likelihood of a person becoming a victim of human trafficking, for a variety of reasons:

New Way to Grow for Survivor Scholars

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Thu, 09/22/2011 - 10:25

Girls who were denied their childhood need all the tools and enrichments we can offer them,  in order to become strong, independent adults.  This spring we launched a new program in partnership with Senhoa and Womens Interlink Foundation, offering jewelry training – for therapeutic purposes rather than employment – and an innovative life skills curriculum for school-going survivors, addressing such issues as relationships, hygiene, self-esteem, health and women’s rights . Because education is our number one priority for younger survivors,

If you Call and No One Answers

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Tue, 04/26/2011 - 13:51

“If you call and no one answers, go anyway”    Ravindranath Tagore


While visiting tribal village prevention programs this past February, the volunteers also toured the town of Shantineketan, which is the birthplace of Ravindranath Tagore, renowned Bengali poet and advocate for social change.

Several of the volunteers commented on the fact that it is a refreshing change for them to be in the company of others who share their passion for fighting slavery, and to be able to speak freely about all aspects of the issue.  Back home, slavery and human trafficking are often difficult topics for their friends to discuss.  ‘It’s not exactly popular dinner conversation,’ the volunteers agree.  As Becky Bavinger (former India Program Director) used to say, ‘talking about my work is  a real game-killer!’

Healing Touch

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Wed, 02/02/2011 - 00:46

Tuesday I spent the day at the Nijoloy shelter outside Calcutta, drawing and playing and sketching in a mural map of the world. The children look forward to our twice-yearly volunteer visits with tremendous enthusiasm. Unlike the busy and heroic shelter housemothers, the volunteers have nothing more important to do right now than to hug the girls, to hold their hands and dance around the courtyard, Growing up in a shelter home, or raised by mothers who are beaten down by a life spent in forced prostitution, the children are very hungry for affection.

Good to be back!

Submitted by Becky Mallory on Mon, 01/31/2011 - 20:31

Today we spent the morning with the children at Child Care Home, which is a shelter located in the city with about 70 children in it. It was so nice to see the children again and I am grateful to be back! The wonderful progress of the programs and obvious heart that is put into them is wonderful to see. 

Small Things

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Sun, 01/30/2011 - 01:17

January, 2011: Back in India to check on the progress of the two new jewelry programs in Calcutta and Mumbai, our school- sponsored kids from the Kidderpore red light area and the WIF shelter home, the boarding school sponsored kids, and our partner programs in Calcutta.  We have also brought a small group of volunteers to do therapeutic arts projects with rescued survivors and born into brothels children. It's a lot to do in two weekd.

That's what it's all about!

Submitted by Becky Mallory on Wed, 01/12/2011 - 15:18

It is hard to believe that in just a week and a half I’ll be back in India. The images of big smiles and bright eyes that have filled my world since I left will again be real and joined with sounds of laughter and songs like the “Hokey Pokey” which was a huge hit the last time I was there. 

In Their Own Words

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Thu, 12/09/2010 - 16:01

All year long I've shared - in my blog, newsletters, and on our website - how I feel about slavery and about our girls' incredible potential.  Now you can hear what the survivors themselves have to say.   The quotes below come from women and children in our jobs and school sponsorship programs, and members of communities hardest hit by slavery.  Learn what matters to former slaves, and what they want you to know about them, their dreams, and how we should go about ending slavery forever:

What About the Boys?

Submitted by Sarah Symons on Fri, 11/19/2010 - 07:50

SO, WHAT ABOUT THE BOYS?

When Ajay was 15, he came to Calcutta to take a 6 month carpentry course at our partner agency Apne Aap.  When the course ended, Ajay refused to return home.  "If I go back there, I will be forced to sell my sisters and my mother," he stated frankly.  "I will sleep on this agency's doorstep if I have to.  But I can't go back there".  Ajay comes from a region in Northern India where intergenerational slavery has been practiced for hundreds of years.  The Nutt community was a courtesan caste and circus performers in the 1800s.  Now they struggle with desperate poverty, trafficking, and crime in India's poorest state - Bihar.  Almost every girl is trafficked into prostitution at a young age.  Having seen another way of life, Ajay knew he could no longer bear this injustice.  He was given temporary housing in Apne Aap's office and drop in center.  Now 18, he works there as a security guard - I was so happy to see this young man thriving when I visited in August.  Ajay's refusal to perpetuate the cycle of slavery and abuse illustrates one of the problems facing boys in slavery - without intervention, they face both the risk of exploitation, and the risk of being forced to become traffickers themselves.