This International Women’s Day at The Freedom Hub, we took time to celebrate our success stories so far. And we took time to think about our vision for the future.
The Freedom Hub supports 37 women who escaped modern slavery. It is the only charity in Australia focused on the long term and rebuilding of the lives, of victims of modern slavery.
But there’s more to be done.
Thousands of people are living in slavery in Australia right now. And the majority of them are women.
A staggering 71% of victims of modern slavery in the world are women.
There are very few services available to assist victims. The Freedom Hub’s aim is to keep growing and increasing support to victims all around Australia.
At times, this vision seems overwhelming. But it starts with supporting just one more woman, and then another.
Each woman’s story is important.
A Survivor Story
Alice moved to Australia for the hope of a better life. She was offered a free plane ticket, free accommodation and the opportunity of Australian residency. The condition was, she had to work for the family who funded the journey. This was an exciting opportunity for her to escape her poverty and discover a new country. We could all easily think working overseas is a great opportunity, especially if we could get free board for our work.
But for 4 years, Alice worked as a housekeeper and nanny and received no pay. She was trapped. She couldn’t contact anyone she knew, she was abused, she had no money to escape.
For protection purposes, Alice is not the real name of the victim depicted in this story. But stories like hers are far more common than you would think in Australia.
These women are faced with many obstacles. These include overcoming trauma, limited employment opportunities and language barriers.
Thankfully, The Freedom Hub demonstrates that it is possible to not only rebuild, but thrive, with the right support networks in place.
The Freedom Hub Survivor School
The women at The Freedom Hub’s Survivor School have an opportunity to develop skills. They also form connections with other survivors and community members. There is opportunity of a different kind and they can reclaim their freedom to live independently in Australia.
As a woman passionate about human rights, Sally Irwin, founder of The Freedom Hub, has worked hard to support other women in this journey.
The incredible work and ethos of The Freedom Hub is what attracted WomanPower to have their International Women’s Day breakfast event at The Freedom Hub cafe. WomanPower is another Australian organisation that works to empower, enable and educate women. They focus on leadership development and training for Jewish women.
The Freedom Hub’s founder, Sally Irwin, was the guest speaker at the event. The room was filled with many inspiring women working together to support and empower women in our community.
Events like this give us hope for the future. So making connections with other organisations that share similar values is a crucial step towards bettering women’s lives.
Taking the time to reflect on the work of The Freedom Hub this International Women’s Day has reaffirmed our goals and vision for women.
You can help support survivors of slavery. You can donate or buy a friend and ethical gift. 100% of profits from our shop and from our cafe supports victims of slavery in our survivor school.
We look forward to celebrating again next International Women’s Day!