A Grand Marais native is co-hosting a wine-tasting benefit at a very historic location for an excellent cause, and she would like to invite others to join her. On Saturday, May 14, Julie (Larsen) Zarzosa will be at the Pillsbury Mansion in Minneapolis with wine and hors d’oeuvres to raise awareness and support for Freedom Firm, an organization that helps rescue victims of the sex trade in India.
According to Freedom Firm’s website, “Freedom Firm is dedicated to the liberation of children enslaved in commercial sexual exploitation, to their effective rehabilitation, and to justice against those who have profited from their misery.
“…Currently, there are an estimated 500,000 minor girls in forced prostitution in India. These girls are tricked by false promises of a good job or sold by a relative into a brothel and then held as sexual slaves, who are then coerced into sex with many clients each day.
“Deeply wounded, these girls need counseling and a strong support network to avoid returning to prostitution. Uneducated and often considered ineligible for marriage because of their sexual exploitation, rescued girls are in desperate need of basic education, medical care, and vocational training.”
Freedom Firm finds the minor victims, documents the crimes, and hands information over to the police, who rescue the girls and arrest the perpetrators. The organization engages lawyers who monitor and help prepare cases. “Freedom Firm is fervently fighting to create systemic change in India through the consistent application of the laws against trafficking,” its website states.
Each rescued girl is initially placed in a government home pending inquiry into her background and family condition. Social workers provide counseling and facilitate medical care, education, and vocational training.
Freedom Firm operates an aftercare home that helps the girls rebuild trust in others, facilitates emotional, physical, and spiritual healing, and equips them with practical skills to help them become selfsufficient and independent. The 18-month program includes horse therapy that through nurture and challenge fosters selfworth and self-confidence. Upon graduation from the program, girls can further their education or work for Freedom Firm’s jewelry business, earning “a fair wage that enables them to become financially independent.”
The fundraiser will take place from 7:00 to 9:30 p.m. and will include a silent auction. Tickets are $30 at the door or online at atasteoffreedom.eventbrite.com. Zarzosa recommends that attendees purchase tickets ahead of time.
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