The Junior League’s Anti-Human Trafficking Committee and Wellhouse have shared the following information in the hopes of helping a local young victim (name has been changed) of human trafficking. Please read below and donate if you can.

Since April, there have been several juvenile sex trafficking cases opened in the Jefferson county area. One of the local cases involves a 14-year-old girl who was first trafficked in the Atlanta area at the age of 11.  Ashley’s pimp is an adult male she was introduced to by a classmate. When Ashley’s mother discovered her daughter was being sexually exploited, she moved her family back home to the Birmingham area. A few months after the move, Ashley’s pimp showed up in Birmingham and contacted her through social media and the exploitation continued. At this time, there has been an arrest of an adult male that Ashley was found with, but the pimp has still not been identified or caught. This exploitation has taken a toll on Ashley, and she has been hospitalized several times at Children’s Hospital for depression and suicidal thoughts. Also, Ashley’s mother has had incidents of males stalking her family and she is terrified this pimp is still after Ashley.

Ashley desperately needs a residential treatment program with specialized intensive trauma services for juvenile victims. Since none are available in Alabama, Ashley’s Juvenile Probation Officer (JPO) has identified the Freedom Place in Houston, Texas – an out-of-state comprehensive program for juvenile sex trafficking victims that can help Ashley.  Once Ashley has been at the facility for 1 month, she can apply for Texas Medicaid assistance, which would pick up the charges for the long-term stay she desperately needs.  However, Ashley requires immediate financial assistance to help with travel to the facility as well as the first month of treatment.

The JPO is partnering with the Wellhouse to raise $10,000 to help with Ashley’s treatment costs.  The Wellhouse is an Alabama non-profit whose mission is to rescue and restore female victims of human trafficking that have been sexually exploited.  However, the Wellhouse is only equipped to serve adult victims (age 18 or older) at this time.

Please consider making a donation to the Wellhouse on Ashley’s behalf.  Even small donations ($20, $50, $100) will go a long way and increase her chances of surviving the trauma she has lived through.  You can donate online directly to the WellHouse (in honor of Ashley – Freedom Place), or send a check payable to the WellHouse to P.O. Box 868, Odenville, AL 35120 (subject line Ashley – Freedom Place).  Your donation is also tax-deductible.

Human trafficking is a terrible crime, and it is happening all over the state of Alabama.  It’s hard to measure because it is a hidden crime, but we do know that it is the second largest criminal activity in the US, second only to drug trafficking.  Data shows that human trafficking is a $150 billion per year industry and that 40% of human trafficking in the U.S. is in the Southeast. Major human trafficking corridors are: I-20, I-59, I-65, and I-95. Locations include hotels, truck stops, rest stops, strip clubs, parking lots and massage parlors.  Researchers also discovered 641,000 online ads escort ads placed in prominent websites known for exploiting victims in Alabama in 2017.

Sunday, August 25, 2019
3:00 – 5:00 p.m.
Levite JCC of Birmingham
(3960 Montclair Rd, Birmingham, AL 35213)

H.I.V.E. is teaming up with Moms Demand Action Alabama and Hadassah Birmingham to read and discuss the book Fight Like a Mother: How a Grassroots Movement Took on the Gun Lobby and Why Women Will Change the World by Moms founder Shannon Watts.  There will be a special appearance by Shannon Watts via Skype!

The JCMP: Jefferson County Memorial Project’s Homewood Coalition invites you to join us for a community meeting on Thursday, 8/22 at 6 p.m. at the Lee Community Center in Rosedale (1828 25th Ct S, Homewood, AL 35209).

JCMP is a county-wide grassroots coalition with over 35 community partners and a multi-racial, multi-faith, multi-sector, and multi-generational group of volunteers poised to memorialize victims of racial terror violence and expand our county’s understanding of past and present issues of racial injustice.

This summer the Jefferson County Memorial Project is leading city-wide book discussions around five books.

H.I.V.E. has chosen to read Homegoing by Yaa Gyasi. Please join us on Monday, July 22, 2019 from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. at Acapulco Mexican Restaurant (430 Greensprings Hwy, Birmingham, AL 35209) for a special discussion on this amazing book.

Other great selections for the Jefferson County Memorial Project Book Club this summer include:

• The Cross and the Lynching Tree by James H. Cone
• Legacies of Lynching by Jonathan Markovitz
• Strange Fruit by Lillian Smith
• Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson

H.I.V.E. is partnering with our friends at Edgewood Presbyterian Church and their “More Light (Pride) Sunday” on June 9th to collect snack donations for the marvelous Magic City Acceptance Center. Snack suggestions include:

• Individually wrapped chips/cookies/granola bars/crackers/fruit snacks/etc.
• Microwave popcorn
• Pop tarts
• Individual servings of mac n’ cheese/chef boyardee/etc.
• Fridge packs of soda
• Water
• Sports drinks

H.I.V.E. is thrilled to welcome poet extraordinaire Ashley M. Jones to chat with us about her latest book “dark // thing” on Saturday, June 22, 2019 from 9:30 – 11:00 a.m. at Seeds Coffee (174 Oxmoor Rd).  Ashley will have copies of her book to purchase ($17.95) and she’ll sign them too! All are welcome.

Join us for our next H.I.V.E. Books/Gathering this Saturday, 5/18 at 9:30 a.m. at Seeds Coffee (174 Oxmoor Rd, 35209) for good coffee and conversation. We are reading/read/didn’t read at all “Bending Toward Justice: The Birmingham Church Bombing That Changed the Course of Civil Rights” by Doug Jones. All are welcome (even if you don’t read the book).

H.I.V.E. is teaming up with the JCMP: Jefferson County Memorial Project (JCMP) to organize a Homewood Coalition. Join us for our initial meeting on Thursday, May 9th from 6:00-8:00 p.m. at Edgewood Presbyterian Church (850 Oxmoor Rd) to learn more about JCMP’s mission and to brainstorm ways Homewood residents can advocate for change.

JCMP is a grassroots coalition currently composed of over 35 community partners and a multi-racial, multi-faith, multi-sector, and multi-generational group of committed volunteers. Together, we will complete the four goals of JCMP:

H.I.V.E. Brown Bag:
Lunch/Tour of WE Cafe at Urban Ministry
Wednesday, March 20th
11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
1229 Cotton Ave, SW, Birmingham, AL 35211
WE Cafe is a wonderful pay-what-you-can program of Urban Ministry that provides delicious locally grown and sourced meals to the community. We will be having lunch together and then getting a tour of the facilities and garden with Community Relations Director Rebecca Wadley.

Please feel free to meet us at 11 a.m. at 304 Woodland Dr. to carpool together or meet us at Urban Ministry at 11:30 a.m. Lunch is a donation to Urban Ministry by cash or credit card. Please email us if you need more info or have any questions.

H.I.V.E. Brown Bag:
Let’s Grow BHM! Stronger Communities through Viable Transportation
Thursday, April 11th
11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
304 Woodland Dr, Homewood, AL 35209

Our transit system allows:

• Retirees access to volunteer opportunities?
• Direct routes to local colleges?
• Access to Sunday Church services?

The answer is no to all of the above! Birmingham and the surrounding communities are sadly behind in viable and reliable public transportation options for its citizens. Join activist and Transit Citizens Advisory Board (TCAB) member Marva V. Douglas and Alabama Arise’s Stan John as they explain the system’s challenges and the current work being done by our state legislature and groups to build our community! Click here to learn more about this issue.

Alabama the Beautiful: Taking Care of our State
Monday, April 29th
6:30 a.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Homewood Library (1721 Oxmoor Rd, Homewood, AL 35209)

H.I.V.E., Forward Alabama and MAD? Make a Difference Alabama present Alabama the Beautiful: Taking Care of our State on Monday, April 29, 2019 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Homewood Public Library (1721 Oxmoor Rd). Hear from the amazing organizations working hard to protect, preserve and advocate locally for our waters and air, and learn how we can be good stewards of our great state’s resources. Speakers include:

• Michelle Blackwood & Henry Hughes, Friends of Shades Creek
• Kirsten Bryant , Outreach Director, GASP
• Mollie Erickson, Precious Plastics Alabama
• Cindy Lowry, Executive Director, Alabama Rivers Alliance
• John Northrop, Citizens’ Climate Lobby
• Beth Stewart, Executive Director, Cahaba River Society

H.I.V.E. Books
Saturday, April 13, 2019
9:30 – 11:00 a.m.
Seeds Coffee, 174 Oxmoor Rd
Join us for our next H.I.V.E. Books/Gathering for good coffee and conversation. We are reading Give a Sh*t: Do Good. Live Better. Save the Planet by Ashlee Piper. All are welcome (even if you don’t read the book).