Braiding for Freedom - January 24th

Braids for the twenty-fourth!!!

 

Tauriel hair

 

 

 Star hairstyle :)

 

(I even dressed up in the Tauriel costume I made because I did this hair style... I'm such a geek...)

 

Okay, so I'm gonna be a little nerdy today and do some comparing of "The Hobbit" to the real world.  In the new movie The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, the elves are fierce fighters who protect their lands and the forest from evil things; but sometimes they are blind to the evil, just as we are sometimes blind to ways that we need to be helping the people who need it most.  Just as the elves protect their land and people, we need to protect the "least of these" and, if we can, help them receive justice.  Please read the story of Nasimiyu below:

 

NAIROBI, KENYA – Nine-year-old Nasimiyu* was waiting patiently in an empty classroom for her aunt to pick her up after school, just like any normal afternoon.
But, on this day, a man who worked at the school as a guard saw the little girl waiting alone. He sent her to collect something from a storage closet, then followed her inside, locked the door and raped her. After the attack, he disappeared from town.

After this Nasimiyu's family was devastated, for they had no where else to turn.

But IJM proved that justice is possible.
For more than a year, IJM attorneys stood up for Nasimiyu in court and supported the state prosecutor in the case against her attacker. IJM social workers supported her family and made sure the little girl was offered all the support she needed to heal from the abuse. They also helped her prepare to share the truth about what happened in court.
On January 16, 2014, the judge found the man who assaulted Nasimiyu guilty and sentenced him to 20 years in prison.
Nasimiyu, now 11 years old, is studying safely at a boarding school with lots of support from her parents.  Read the whole story here.

 

IJM has helped Nasimiyu receive justice.  But there are still many others trapped in the grip of injustice.  

 

Children need a defender.  Will you stand up for them?

 

See Samantha, Savannah, Sophie, and Sadie's braids on Pinterest.

 

We are braiding our hair differently every day in January to raise funds and awareness of modern-day slavery.

 

Want to join us?

  Go here to read more about 'a month of braids'.  Sponsor and pray!  Donate to Campaign 1:17.  [sponsoring amount ideas: fifty cents a braid, one dollar a braid, etc...]  Donate here.  Then, pray for us this month so we can continue to stay strong in our challenge and continue to stand with those who stand alone.  You can also see all the 'freedom braids' on Pinterest.


"When did we let evil become stronger than us?"
-Tauriel, (The Hobbit: The desolation of Smaug)

Something to ponder...

-Blessings-
Grace