Teen Dating Violence Awareness Poster Contest

February is National Teen Dating Violence Awareness Month. To get the word out about this very serious subject, the domestic violence help center, A Better Way in Victorville, CA, is hosting it’s second annual poster contest!

The Black Voice News says:

The poster contest is open to all high school students. The theme is “Teen Dating Violence”. The Grand Prize is $300, 2nd place is $200 and 3rd place is $100. All entries must be received by January 31, 2013.

All of the contest forms and guidelines are available online. For more information call A Better Way at (760) 955-8010.

A bit about teen dating violence from A Better Way:

NOW FOR SOME STATS…

Dating Violence iscontrolling, abusive, and aggressive behaviourin a “romantic” relationship. It occurs in both heterosexual AND homosexual relationships and can includeVERBAL,EMOTIONAL, PHYSICAL OR SEXUAL ABUSE, OR A COMBINATION OF THESE BEHAVIOURS.

ONE OF FIVE TEENS IN A SERIOUS RELATIONSHIP REPORTS HAVING BEEN HIT, SLAPPED, OR PUSHED BY A PARTNER

YOUNG WOMEN, AGES 16-24, EXPERIENCE THE HIGHEST RATES OF RELATIONSHIP VIOLENCE

ROUGHLY ONE IN 10 (9%) OF TEENS HAS BEEN VERBALLY OR PHYSICALLY ABUSED BY A BOYFRIEND OR GIRLFRIEND WHO WAS DRUNK OR HIGH

FOURTEEN PERCENT OF TEENS REPORT HAVING BEEN THREATENED WITH PHYSICAL HARM–EITHER TO THEM ORSELF-INFLICTED BY THEIR PARTNER TO AVOID A BREAKUP

You Are Probably Contributing to Slavery

You can help stop modern day slavery. Small changes make a big difference.

I just read an article about forced labor in agriculture in Florida on the website for The Nation. I’m sure you know that I was disgusted. It turns out that there are farms in FL, and I would suspect other states, that hold workers hostage, beat them, and keep them in inhumane conditions so that they can harvest the fruits and veggies that we eat every day. Here are a few of the examples noted in the article:

When the visitor steps out of the truck he sees a panel which gets to the heart of CIW’s analysis around modern slavery–that it’s not something that takes place in a vacuum, but it’s tied to the broader conditions in the agriculture industry–sub-poverty wages and substandard working conditions; from the earliest days of slavery through today, farmworkers in Florida are among the least paid and least protected workers in the nation.

On the panel are two artifacts to drive home that message: the bloody shirt of a 17-year old boy who was beaten in 1996 for stopping to take a drink of water while working in Immokalee. In response, there was a nighttime march by 400 workers to the crew leader’s house. This was a significant moment in CIW’s history because that kind of violence was routine and never received a widespread organized response.

You won’t even believe this quote

In the southeast, that means Publix. When asked whether the supermarket continues to purchase from farms that were recently found to use slave labor a Publix spokesperson “said the chain does purchase tomatoes from the two farms but pays a fair market price.”

So now it’s okay to use people as slaves as long as those that are working those in slavery are compensated with a fair market price? Come on, that’s ridiculous. I’m glad that the Coalition for Immokalee Workers has put together a traveling museum to highlight the cases of abuse and help put a stop to forced labor.

What does this have to do with personal finance? Everything! We all say that we want access to affordable goods so that we can keep our families in a measurable state of comfort, however too often we don’t think about what’s being done to provide those services and products at that low price. Are you willing to contribute to the enslavement of others in order to have tacos and burritos that are a few cents cheaper?

Write to Publix, Chipotle, etc. and tell them that we WILL NOT contribute to the enslavement of any people.

In solidarity.

Sticks and Stones DO Hurt

I just watched a video that shares how an 11 year old boy took his own life after being mistreated at school. When I heard it, I had to pause…. 11 years old.

This is something is totally preventable. If your child is being mistreated or is mistreating others please take a moment to talk with them about their world view. That may sound strange: kids and world view, however it’s imperative that adults are taking the time to find out what’s really going on in the lives of their children.

We know our kids and we know when there is problem. For those of us that have strong personalities it may be difficult to accept that your child is being mistreated. For those of us with a belief that it’s better to be a bully than be bulied, it maybe hard to tell your child that teasing, poking, and being mean in general isn’t right.

If you are noticing something going on, but are having a hard time talking to your child about it think about your emotions and experiences first. Sometimes the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.