Update on William and Mary Campus Chapter

William and Mary no longer has a campus chapter of International Justice Mission. If you are interested in starting one, please visit this page for more information. Thank you, and keep up the good fight!

Anti-Slavery Campaign

William & Mary's chapter of IJM is hosting an anti-slavery campaign March 28th - April 1st. Throughout the week, we will focus on different aspects of modern day slavery, but for those just learning about the issue, here are some introductory videos:

Kevin Bales on Modern Day Slavery

Top 10 Facts about the "S" Word

Reply with reactions or your own educational resources!

Alternative Gift Fair!

This Wednesday, December 1st, International Justice Mission is hosting the 6th Alternative Gift Fair, a gathering featuring a number of service-minded campus groups and outside vendors. At each table you'll find unique gifts supporting groups' particular causes and projects. Come by Sadler Center, Tidewater A between 3pm and 7, and browse jewelry, bags, cards, photographs, chocolate, art and more. This is a great opportunity to shop for friends and family while knowing that your purchases support innovative outreach, advocacy and community partnerships where they're needed most.

The Sadler Center is located next to Zable Stadium, off of Richmond Road and across from the Hospitality House. Tidewater A is on the 3rd and top-most floor of the Sadler Center (SC).

POSTPONED: LessFest: November 11th

We're sorry!

LessFest '10 has been postponed due to rain, until November 11th, 2010
Crim Dell Meadow, 1pm - 6pm
(rain location: Trinkle Hall, Campus Center)

We just figured the rain wouldn't be great for our awesome clothing donations, or for mending clothes. But as a teaser: we've got some great material for patching up those hole-y jeans... Come by next week!

LessFest 2010!

William & Mary students, staff and faculty:

Wondering what you should wear today?

Maybe we have too many choices...

LESS-FEST is returning on Thursday, November 4th, 2010!

IJM will be in the CRIM DELL MEADOW from 1pm - 6pm passing out bookmarks w/ facts on consumerism and verses dealing with simplicity. We'll also be collecting clothing donations for FISH clothing bank in Williamsburg, and encourage all to bring other well-worn clothes to be mended! We'll have needles, thread and patches at the ready!



They did fine with just a few leaves...

Sex Trafficking in the US

We've been talking a lot in leadership meetings about topics for next semester, and a number of interrelated issues have floated up time and again: modern-day slavery, human trafficking, and sex trafficking. All of these occur in staggering numbers both within the United States and abroad. Below is an important article chronicling the struggle of sex trafficking victims in the US, and an overview of this issue in the US.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/OPINION/11/25/carr.human.trafficking/

For international information, check out www.ijm.org

We know it exists, now let's spread the word.

LessFest '09

Friday, October 16

Crim Dell Meadow

9:30 a.m. - 2:30 p.m.

International Justice Mission is hosting the second annual Less Fest all day Friday, October 16, in the Crim Dell Meadow to celebrate simple living and give members of the campus community an opportunity to share some of our excess with those in need. All next week, when we first get back from Fall Break, students, staff, faculty, and community members will be able to drop off clothing donations in boxes in most residence halls, the Sadler Center, the Campus Center and other spots around campus.

Then, Friday, October 16, IJM will bring all the donated clothing to the Crim Dell Meadow in order to show (1) how much excess our community possesses and (2) the redistributive power we can achieve when we unite as a community. We'd appreciate your support of the clothing drive and event, so be looking through your closets now and over Fall Break! The clothes will be donated to local non-profits and sent to the Philippines in the wake of their recent natural disaster. We hope that this will be a starting point toward greater simplicity in our lives and on our campus. Questions? Contact Kristen Marshall at kemars@wm.edu .

"HOMELESS FOR A NIGHT"

sponsored by Hillel

Sat-Sun October 3-4

Sunken Gardens

~starting @ 7pm~

On October 3-4, Hillel, is sleeping outside in a Sukkah (a temporary thatched-roof structure) on the Sunken Gardens to observe the Jewish holiday of Sukkot, and to raise awareness and money for the homeless in Williamsburg.

Hillel would like to invite all IJM members to participate in our event, which seeks to educate the William and Mary community about a population that your organization cares about as well. Participants will experience being "Homeless for a Night" on Saturday October 3, and learn about the homeless in Williamsburg from local activists and organizations to spark discussion and spread awareness of this issue on campus. Information about the homeless in Williamsburg will be displayed and distributed for participants and casual observers to become more aware of the Williamsburg homeless, and hopefully compel them to act on that knowledge.

We are also asking for support from local residents and businesses so that at the end of the event, we can donate the contributions to an organization serving the local homeless population. In the spirit of inter-faith education, we'd like to explain the Jewish holiday of Sukkot to IJM members and other non-Jews, and how it is connected with homelessness.

New Semester

To avoid any confusion, the William and Mary chapter of IJM is meeting on Tuesdays at 7:30 p.m. in Blair 201 during the spring 2009 semester. If you have any questions or would like more information, please contact Nik Belanger at nik.belanger@gmail.com or Anna Dausman at acdausman@wm.edu.

Alternative Gift Fair

Thursday, December 4

Lodge 1 3-7 p.m.

This Thursday, International Justice Mission is hosting the fourth annual Alternative Gift Fair. Student organizations and outside vendors will be selling jewelry, bags, cards, chocolate, and more--all for great causes. Stop by, take care of all your holiday shopping and know that your purchases support programs you care about! Check out the Facebook event for more information: http://www.facebook.com/inbox/readmessage.php?t=1005421870487&f=1&e=-12#/event.php?eid=46799891163 . Other questions? Email jalesh@wm.edu .

Another Victim of American Greed

This Friday, American greed claimed another victim at a New York Wal-Mart. A worker was trampled to death by a crowd of "eager bargain-hunters," who then complained when told that the store was closing for a few hours due to the man's death.

Here's the New York Times article about what happened.

Wherever the blame lies--be it with the mob that trampled the man, the national economy that's thinning working people's pocketbooks to the point that desperation overpowers good judgment, Wal-Mart for failing to provide appropriate security to its workers or the unfair economic system of the world in which we live--, this tragedy speaks to the miserable hierarchy in our society today. Profits supersede people. Money makes men and women seem meaningless in others' eyes. However you choose to understand what happened yesterday morning, please respond. Do not accept the devaluation of human life. Stand up for what you believe in. Change what you buy, where you buy... HOW you buy.

Our hearts go out to the man's family and to those shoppers who've reached the point that human life means so little. We all pray for an end to greed and a renewed care for our fellow human beings, here in the United States and abroad.

Living Simply

This post is intended to be a jumping point for those looking to get more involved in simple living and the fight against economic injustice on the national and global scale. You can see where the injustice exists and maybe think up some creative ways of tearing it down -- or just make yourself more informed of the world outside our own community. Check out the links and don't be afraid to comment if you have any questions or concerns with what you're reading.


The following information is from the World Centric site. Please visit the page and support the group's work.

Rich Man, Poor Man

• The amount of money that the richest 1 percent of the world's people make each year equals what the poorest 57 percent make.
• World's 358 billionaires have assets exceeding the combined annual incomes of countries with 45 percent of the world's people
• The richest 5 percent of the world's people have incomes 114 times that of the poorest 5 percent
• The combined wealth of the world's 200 richest people hit $1 trillion in 1999; the combined incomes of the 582 million people living in the 43 least developed countries is $146 billion
• The GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of the poorest 48 nations (i.e. a quarter of the world's countries) is less than the wealth of the world's three richest people combined
• A few hundred millionaires now own as much wealth as the world's poorest 2.5 billion people

Rich Nations, Poor Nations

• 20% of the population in the developed nations, consume 86% of the worlds goods
• A mere 12 percent of the world's population uses 85 percent of its water, and these 12 percent do not live in the Third World.
• Globally, the 20% of the world's people in the highest-income countries account for 86% of total private consumption expenditures - the poorest 20% a minuscule 1.3%. More specifically, the richest fifth:
• Consume 45% of all meat and fish, the poorest fifth 5%.
• Consume 58% of total energy, the poorest fifth less than 4%.
• Have 74% of all telephone lines, the poorest fifth 1.5%.
• Consume 84% of all paper, the poorest fifth 1.1%.
• Own 87% of the world's vehicle fleet, the poorest fifth less than 1%.
• An analysis of long-term trends shows the distance between the richest and poorest countries was about :
• 5 to 1 in 1820
• 11 to 1 in 1913
• 35 to 1 in 195-
• 44 to 1 in 1973
• 72 to 1 in 1992
• The cost of providing basic health care and nutrition for all in the world would be less than is spent in Europe and the US on pet food

Rich Corporations, Poor Nations

• The annual revenue of Motorola is almost equal to the annual income of Nigeria, Africa's second largest economy, almost the size of Europe and with a population of 118 million people.

Poverty, Hunger

• More than 840 million people in the world are malnourished—799 million of them are from the developing world. More than 153 million of them are under the age of 5.
• Hunger kills. Every day, 34,000 children under five die of hunger or preventable diseases resulting from hunger or 6 million in a year
• Of the 6.2 billion people in today's world, 1.2 billion live on less than $1 per day. Nearly 3 billion people live on less than $2 a day
• 1.2 billion lack access to clean water; 2.4 billion live without decent sanitation; and 4 billion without wastewater disposal.
• 12 million people die each year from lack of water, including 3 million children from waterborne disease: More than 113 million children in the developing world are without access to basic education; 60 percent of them are girls.

The following information comes from the World Revolution page.

The assets of the 200 richest people in 1998 were more than the total annual income of 41% of the world's people.

UNDP Human Development Report 1999

The richest 20% of the world population now receives 150 times the income of the poorest 20%.

UNDP Human Development Report 1992

The richest one-fifth of the world:

- Consume 45 percent of all meat and fish, the poorest fifth 5 percent

- Consume 58 percent of total energy, the poorest fifth less than 4 percent

- Have 74 percent of all telephone lines, the poorest fifth 1.5 percent

- Consume 84 percent of all paper, the poorest fifth 1.1 percent

- Own 87 percent of the world's vehicle fleet, the poorest fifth less than 1 percent.

UNDP Human Development Report 1998

The richest 20 percent of the population now receives 150 times the income of the poorest 20 percent.

UNDP Human Development Report 1992

The bottom line for poverty and incomes: The share of the poorest 20 percent of the world's people in global income now stands at a miserable 1.1 percent, down from 1.4 percent in 1991 and 2.3 percent in 1960. It continues to shrink. And the ratio of the income of the top 20 percent to that of the poorest 20 percent rose from 30 to 1 in 1960, to 61 to 1 in 1991 - and to startling new high of 78 to 1 in 1994.

UNDP Human Development Report 1997

The income gap between the richest fifth of the world's people and the poorest fifth, measured by average national income per head, increased from 30 to one in 1960, to 74 to one in 1997.

Human Development Report, United Nations Development Program, 1999.

Within nations, the income gap has been growing as well. Russia now has the world's greatest inequality, with the richest 20 percent having 11 times the income of the bottom 20 percent. Income inequalities have also grown dramatically in China, Indonesia, Thailand, other East and South-East Asian countries, and in the industrialized countries, especially Sweden, Britain, and the United States.

"The State of the World," Stephen R. Shalom

Want to learn more about living simply? Visit http://www.simpleliving.net or check out our reading list for some suggestions.

LessFest '08

Friday, October 17

Crim Dell Meadow

9 a.m. - 3 p.m.

International Justice Mission is hosting the first annual Less Fest all day Friday, October 17, in the Crim Dell Meadow to celebrate simple living and give members of the campus community an opportunity to share some of our excess with those in need. Starting Monday, October 6 through Thursday, October 16, students, staff, faculty, and community members will be able to drop off clothing donations in boxes in most residence halls, the Sadler Center, the Campus Center and other spots around campus.

Then, Friday, October 17, IJM will bring all the donated clothing to the Crim Dell Meadow in order to show (1) how much excess our community possesses and (2) the redistributive power we can achieve when we unite as a community. We'd appreciate your support of the clothing drive and event, so be looking through your closets now and over Fall Break! The clothes will be donated to local non-profits and departments of social services in Williamsburg and Newport News. We hope that this will be a starting point toward greater simplicity in our lives and on our campus. Questions? Contact Kristen Marshall at kemars@wm.edu .

In Transit: End Vaginal Fistula

More About In Transit from Directors and Producers Bent Jorgen Perlmutt, Nelson Walker III and Louis Abelman (From MediaThatMattersFest.com) :

The Goma Film Project came about when Doctors on Call for Service (DOCS—now called HEAL Africa), a teaching hospital and nonprofit organization located in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), enlisted filmmakers Louis Abelman, Bent-Jorgen Perlmutt, and Nelson Walker III to produce assorted informational videos. The first of our assignments was to create a small series of surgical training videos documenting vesico-vaginal fistula (VVF) repair, the most common procedure performed at DOCS on any given day.

A vesico-vaginal fistula is a tear in the vaginal wall that opens into the urethra. In the first world, fistulas are rare; in most parts of the third world, they are caused by complications during childbirth. In the eastern Congo, they are primarily caused by an epidemic of violent rape and torture taking place in the war-ravaged countryside. Marauding armies and militias, some responsible for the Rwandan genocide of 1994, continue to stalk the forests and villages of the region. Women and girls of multiple tribal and ethnic backgrounds have increasingly become victims of plunder, rape, and slavery by the many armed groups involved in the ongoing conflict. At least 40,000 rape cases have been documented in the past several years, with some estimates of up to a million additional undocumented cases. DOCS/HEAL Africa is the only hospital in the region that offers a comprehensive rehabilitation program for women who have acquired fistula from rape.

Overwhelmed by the magnitude of the (for us, previously unheard of) situation, we decided to make a feature film about these women and their rehabilitation program, In Transit. After two months of filming in the Congo in late 2004, we spent much of the following year editing. We decided to return to Congo again in fall of 2005, and enlisted Lynn True, an editor who had worked previously with Nelson, to come along. It was a true experiment in on-site editing made possible by advances in technology. After another amazing few months in the Congo, we returned and have since continued editing. We expect to finish a full-length (80 min.) version of the film in April 2006.

Conflict continues in eastern Congo, and we hope to use our completed film to raise awareness of this massive, yet unheralded, humanitarian catastrophe. With the guidance of counselors (many of whom were former VVF patients themselves), the women we filmed go through an intensive rehabilitation program through which they receive physical therapy, counseling and training in micro-finance projects that aim to help them become self-sufficient after their treatment. As a result, many of these women leave the program not only physically healed, but with a new sense of dignity and awareness that they will be able to resume their lives. Unfortunately, the homes they have to return to are all too often sites of continuing armed conflict and danger — putting their recoveries at risk.

Media That Matters Film Festival

Thursday, October 2

Crim Dell Meadow 8 p.m.

Thursday, October 2, the Meddia That Matters Film Festival is coming to the W&M campus. UCAB, NAACP, AID and IJM are working together to make this event a reality. To learn more about the Festival, check out their Web site here. More information on what films will be shown will be made available in the near future.

At IJM's weekly meetings for the month of September, we'll explore some of the issues raised by the films. Last week, we screened Esmeraldas: Petroleum and Poverty and wrote letters to the CEO of Chevron about the tragedy addressed in the film.

We hope to see you at our next meeting, this Tuesday at 7:15 p.m. in Blair 221.

Class of 2012!

International Justice Mission will host our first meeting of the semester this Tuesday, September 2, at 7:15 p.m. in Blair 221. This is an open interest meeting, so invite others to come and hear what we're all about. We'll talk a little bit about what we've done in the past, what we're thinking of doing this semester, and what's going on in the world today that needs our attention. And, of course, we're open to new ideas; so if there's something you're passionate about, this would be a great time to let us know.

Everyone is welcome, and we'd love to see all of you there. I hope you had a great first few days of classes and are having a great weekend. See you Tuesday!

W&M Fundraising Efforts Help Make Change in Guatemala

Dear College of William & Mary Chapter,

Thank you for your hard work and commitment to making the SANE training possible in Guatemala! I am very pleased to update you on their exciting plans for this training.

Our Guatemala office will host a number of local forensic experts for five days this fall. A Forensic Nurse Consultant will travel to Guatemala and lead various lectures and practicums, teaching on the following topics and more: medical findings in sexual assault, male sexual assault, investigating a case, identifying injuries using photographs, documentation of sexual crimes, crime lab role and evidence collection.

As you can imagine, this training will be invaluable to the clients we serve and would not be possible without your financial support and prayers. On behalf of the Guatemala office, our Field Director, Pablo Villeda, would like to personally thank you. Click here to download video. Feel free to share this email and video with your Campus Chapter.

Lastly, to have a more specific idea of who this training will benefit, I would like to share Kiara*’s story with you. Click here to download her story. Through this story I hope you are able to see how we believe this training will help obtain justice for more children like Kiara*. The SANE trainings will benefit child victims of sexual assault in Guatemala by enabling Guatemala’s forensic doctors to provide a response to sexual violence that is both sensitive to the victim’s needs and will document the type of evidence necessary to pursue accountability under the law for their perpetrators.

Please feel free to contact me if you need anything at all. Thank you again for making this possible!

Warmest regards,
Alicia

* In order to protect the individuals IJM serves and safeguard ongoing IJM casework, a pseudonym has been used, though the account is real.

Affordable Housing
in Williamsburg
w/ Mayor Zeidler and Vice-Mayor Haulman
Wednesday, March 26
7-8 p.m. Tyler 336

Mayor Jeanne Zeidler and Vice-Mayor Clyde Haulman will join us to discuss the issue of affordable housing and let the student body know what the Williamsburg City Council is doing about it.h

Check out this VOP publication for more information.

The average selling price of a home in Williamsburg/James City County is over $350,000. For the average area worker, living here is nearly impossible. We believe that people should be able to live in the places they work. With affordable housing options becoming more and more scarce, the city is heading down a road not only to complete homogeneity but also to a severe labor shortage. Commuting itself has costs, and low-wage workers are most affected. The city's lack of affordable housing presents both economic and social problems that must be addressed. We recognize that there are ways to make change for the better and are glad that Mayor Zeidler and Vice-Mayor Haulman are coming to discuss those possibilities with us.

Please visit our Facebook event and RSVP. We hope to see you there!

Steve Gillard '07

Young Adult Volunteer (YAV) in Tuscon, AZ

on Extreme Poverty in the U.S.

Wednesday, February 20

7:30 p.m. Blair 2nd

This week, Steve Gillard will join us from Tuscon, Arizona, to share his experiences working with extreme poverty in the United States. Since graduating last May, Steve has been spending the year working in Tuscon through the Presbyterian Church's Young Adult Volunteer program, living in a community house and connecting with the people he serves. Come hear what he's done, the problems he's faced and his thoughts on domestic poverty.

We'll meet on WEDNESDAY at 7.30 p.m. in Blair 2nd. Look for other group members, and we'll find a room from there. Our first choice will be Blair 221, but it may be occupied. Just keep your eyes open.

Northern Illinois University Shooting

Dear friends,

In a time when our campus is feeling torn apart, another campus has experienced a much greater pain than the resignation of a president. Five students were killed at Northern Illinois University by a single gunman, and many more were wounded. Please keep this school in your thoughts and prayers.

Here's a NY Times article about what happened: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/15/us/15shoot.html?hp.

Let this serve as a reminder that, while some of us might feel hurt by recent events here at the College, our problems are small in comparison with those of others--even those of other US universities. We can continue fighting for what we believe in here in Williamsburg, as we should, but we must never forget how numerous the pains in this world really are--and how we are all called to bind up the brokenhearted and serve as comforts for those who mourn. Let's answer that call.

If you need anything during what could be a difficult time for many, please don't hesitate to let me know.

Peace,
Nik Belanger
njbela@wm.edu