5 Lessons on Slow Fashion From A Dressember Advocate
This year marked my third consecutive year of donning a dress every day in December and advocating with Dressember to combat human trafficking. On the eve of the style challenge each year, I grapple with doubts about the impact of my advocacy. What if my voice and choice to advocate don’t really matter? Can I actually make a difference in the huge fight against human trafficking?
The answer, every year, is yes.
As we head into the new year, I encourage you to reflect on your Dressember experience and know this: the valuable lessons learned through your advocacy can extend well beyond December. Read more for five key takeaways on slow fashion that I learned from participating in the Dressember campaign.
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5 Tips for Conscious Gift-Giving
The gift-giving season is upon us, and while it is a time to celebrate and cherish our loved ones, it’s crucial to consider the trust cost of our spending. The holiday season often sees a surge of over-consumption, leading to increased waste and overworked laborers. A recent study by the Center for Biological Diversity revealed that Americans generate 23% more waste in December than in other months of the year, and 33% who received a gift they didn’t like threw it away.
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Hot Tip: You Don't Need 31 Dresses for the Dressember Style Challenge
Don’t have a closet full of dresses to participate in the Dressember Style Challenge? The good news is—you don’t need 31 dresses to make a meaningful impact in the fight against human trafficking. In fact, you can spark conversations about this injustice with just one dress or tie. With our sustainable fashion tips, you can confidently step into December with a complete guide of ideas to make your dresses and ties last all month!
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Malone's Story: Surviving OSEC
“[I am] a brave person. [I am] very courageous despite all that has happened to [me]. ”
This is how Malone* describes himself, and we agree. With the support of advocates like you, Malone is now on a journey of healing and restoration. But Malone’s bravery comes at a heavy cost.
Malone is a survivor of the Online Sexual Exploitation of Children (OSEC). OSEC is the virtual creation, processing, and distribution of child sexual abuse to offenders all over the world.
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Why I Advocate for Dressember: 5 Reasons to Join the Fight
Have you ever felt like an issue was too overwhelming for your voice to make an impact? That’s precisely what I used to think about human trafficking. It’s an immense injustice that often feels abstract and beyond our reach. I believed that there were more qualified people who should handle the issue, and I wasn’t equipped for the task. However, I couldn’t have been more mistaken. The fight against human trafficking isn’t just within my reach; it’s a cause I can wholeheartedly champion with Dressember.
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Self-Care Tips for Sustainable Advocacy
Talking about human trafficking can take a heavy toll on our spirits. And yet, speaking up and supporting the voices of survivors is not only empowering but vital to ensuring the respect and dignity of all people. Still, the constant emotional labor required on a daily basis for Dressember advocates and the need to regularly share triggering content with our communities can be so overwhelming.
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We’ve Got Your Back: Check Out Our 2021 Fundraising Resources
Welcome, friend. We’re glad you’re here. Whether it’s your first time advocating with Dressember or you’re a seasoned dress-or-tie wearing veteran, we’re here to help you fundraise for your Dressember campaign from this moment until the day you put your jeans back on (and then some). We put together a 2021 Fundraising Toolkit with fundraising guides, social media resources, and blog posts to set you up for your best campaign season yet. Be on the lookout for email templates as well!
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How Dressember Works: From Advocates to Tangible Impact
When Blythe Hill started wearing dresses every day in December (hence, Dressember), she had no idea it would grow to a global movement with over 35,000 advocates worldwide. By year three, people Blythe didn’t even know wanted to take part in this quirky style challenge. Blythe realized there was potential to make a real positive impact with Dressember, so she decided to launch a fundraising campaign to support anti-trafficking programs. Within days, the group hit its first goal. Blythe was shocked and humbled; she had no idea Dressember would soon become a global community with exponential impact.
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4 Truths About Trafficking on World Day Against Trafficking 2021
As we commemorate World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, it is important to promote a true, authentic narrative about trafficking and who it impacts most. Human trafficking is a grave injustice and a growing $150 billion dollar industry, but it does not happen inside a bubble. This issue intersects with various other system injustices and inequities. Trafficking disproportionately impacts marginalized groups, and it happens around the world as well as in our own cities. Human trafficking is illegal in every country, yet it happens everywhere.
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How to Fundraise for Dressember All Year Long
Those familiar with the Dressember Style Challenge know that December is when the bulk of the action happens for fundraising. For our advocates, it’s a month jam-packed with Instagram posts,unique fundraisers and heightened awareness surrounding human trafficking. But what about the other eleven months of the year? In the last year, advocacy has had to evolve with all the challenges COVID-19 has presented. However, we can still work together to fight human trafficking!
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Hannah and Sarah: Inspiring a Generation of Advocates
Our global Dressember advocates never fail to give their all each year. We’d like you to meet the Canadian sister advocate duo—Hannah Lee, an ambitious 1st-grade teacher, and Sarah Chin, a spontaneous stay-at-home mom. These two inspiring advocates were on the 2020 advocate team called “Making Freedom the New Normal.”
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What We Know About Trafficking Overseas and At Home, and What We Can Do About It
Why allocate resources to fight inequalities and injustice overseas, they ask, when it’s right here at home? One common and well meaning, but deeply problematic, answer to this question is that when we allow issues abroad to escalate and multiply, we’re allowing them to spread to our own country’s borders.
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Announcement: Dressember’s Survivor Scholarship Program
At Dressember, we believe in empowering survivors long-term by providing the resources necessary to sustain freedom and achieve financial security.
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Human Trafficking is an Everyone Issue
In my four years of advocating against human trafficking, I’ve noticed that men are sometimes hesitant to get involved in the fight. Whether this hesitancy stems from intimidation of the topic itself, or the misconception that this majority female-led cause has no room for men, Dressember is here to say that anyone can be an advocate.
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How To Research Responsibly and Truly Understand Data
Much of the time, there are valid and logical points on both sides and it is important to consider many perspectives before deciding your own opinion. We have seen the harm that silence and neutrality cause and how there are fewer and fewer excuses for abstaining from politics, as the personal is almost always political. In the digital age, we have access to more data and information than at any point in history. It is up to us to learn how to navigate the slew of data and identify credible sources amidst the outpouring of opinions and information.
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Nonprofits and Trafficking: Why Your Impact Matters
The truth is that human trafficking is illegal in every country. In 2003 Washington was the first to criminalize human trafficking. Soon after other states followed, implementing fines and charging felonies against businesses. Though there is work to be done to provide more protective policies for survivors of trafficking, there are some laws and protective measures in place. However, what role do nonprofits play in the fight against trafficking and why are they important?
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5 Resources for Foster Parents and Future Foster Parents
As we close out National Foster Care Month, we remain committed to supporting foster youth and former foster youth. Whether you are a foster parent or want to be a foster parent, there are resources available to help you find your way and care for children well.
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What's Left Unaddressed: Injustices LGBTQ+ Youth Face in the Foster System
LGBTQ+ youth in foster care, however, are frequently denied essential health care (namely, mental health services such as individual and group therapy and psychiatric medications) as a result of discriminatory policies at the regional, state or federal level.
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Sarah and Caroline: Stories of Independence from Olive Crest
In many cases, youth have limited resources when aging out of foster care, often no secure housing placement or substantial support. Olive Crest, a member of the Dressember Network, has established a program called Operation Independence through the founders of Dr. Donald and Mrs. Lois Verluer. Sarah and Caroline are two young women that have been a part of this program.
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Dismantling Myths About Foster Care
There are a number of myths floating around the internet regarding the foster system. Did you know that the goal of foster care is to provide a safe, stable and nurturing environment for a child until they are able to be united with their biological family? This goal is often miscommunicated, adding to the plethora of misinformation surrounding the foster care system. Here are six common myths about foster care.
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