It's being called the "Silent Tsunami." In three years, prices for the basic staples that feed the world—wheat, rice and corn—have risen by a staggering 83%. For people in the developing world, affording enough food to eat is becoming a daily struggle for survival.

The New York Times is reporting that in Haiti, people are eating cakes made of mud mixed with a little sugar and oil to try and beat the hunger pangs. Without action to stop the upward spiral of food prices, 100 million people around the world will face deeper poverty and hunger, and hundreds of thousands will confront famine and starvation.

In the face of this suffering, we cannot be silent.

Last week, I asked you to send a message to President Bush and urge him to make solving this hunger crisis a priority on the G8's poverty-fighting agenda at its summit this July in Japan. Your response matched the urgency of the moment, and we smashed through our initial goal of 30,000 petition signers.

On Monday, we learned that Japanese Prime Minister Fukuda has sent a letter to the other seven leaders of G8 nations adding the hunger crisis on the agenda for the G8 summit. It's a critical first step and shows that our concern is being heard. Now we need to hear from President Bush and work to keep the focus on this ongoing crisis.

Thank you for signed the petition last week. You can still help us reach our new goal of 100,000 signers. Click the link below to ask your friends to sign the petition and join the tens of thousands of ONE members urging President Bush to go to the G8 summit ready to take emergency action against hunger and to invest in agricultural productivity in the developing world.

http://www.one.org/hungercrisis/letter.html?id=300-3707840-xdZF4f&t=2

Why are we asking the G8—the leaders of the world's eight wealthiest nations—to take action? We ask because a global crisis demands a global response, and recent history shows these leaders are in the best position to take action.

In 2005, ONE members joined millions of people from around the world in demanding that the G8 make poverty a priority at its meeting in Gleneagles, Scotland. The results were historic. A year of grassroots organizing culminated in the Gleneagles Declaration, in which the G8 committed to double development assistance to Africa by 2010.

We can recapture that energy. We've already won a critical victory by getting rising food prices and their impact on global poverty on to the summit agenda. We have the momentum and now it's time to turn that momentum into action to prevent this crisis from turning into a tragedy.

Follow the link below to send this petition to friends, and keep the pressure on.

http://www.one.org/hungercrisis/letter.html?id=300-3707840-xdZF4f&t=3

The G8 can do so much good and we're holding their feet to the fire. We're asking them to keep their promise to increase development assistance to poor countries, double aid to Africa, build better health systems, fight deadly diseases, and support universal education and economic growth initiatives in agriculture and infrastructure.

But rising food prices threatens to roll-back progress in all these areas. U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and World Bank President Robert Zoellick are sounding the warning that if immediate action isn't taken, global food shortages could set the world back seven years in the fight against extreme poverty. The developing world can't afford to lose that time.

That's why we're taking your petitions directly to the White House next week. We'll get your message to the President, but there's only one more week to make our voice as loud as possible.

Send this petition to people you know who care about fighting poverty and ending this crisis.

http://www.one.org/hungercrisis/letter.html?id=300-3707840-xdZF4f&t=4

Solving this crisis requires increased resources for all types of food assistance, as well as a comprehensive plan to boost agricultural productivity in long-neglected parts of the world. When the leaders of the G8 sit down to meet this July, they'll represent the resources and technology needed to do just that. Together, we can show them that we also have the will.

Thank you,

David Lane, ONE.org

Often times we hear things like, “How can I change anything with a letter?” Or what about “What difference can I possibly make?”

Well, if we look to history, we’ll see that all it takes is a determined and obedient person to make a difference in the world for God.

I want to highlight three examples in which a small group of people saw a need, had a vision, put that vision into action and, as a result, great change was accomplished.

The first is the disciples. Jesus just had commanded them to go and make disciples of all nations and then he returned to the Father. Then the Holy Spirit was poured out on them, and then the church began and expanded. They are a wonderful example to us of how if we go in the strength of the Lord and are obedient to Him, then He will accomplish great things. There were thousands being added to the church daily, and the disciples were committed to their cause, the cause of Jesus Christ. They were praying for one another, serving each other, fellowshipping, looking after the widows and orphans, giving to the needy among them, etc. They saw the needs of the people, they received a great vision, they took action and they impacted the world like nothing else had.

That’s inspirational!

Yet another example is one very dear to our hearts: The Salvation Army! Many of us know that the founders of The Salvation Army, William and Catherine Booth, chose to serve the poor in the East End of London. And thus the reason they fall into this category of change agents, is because they were revolutionary in the way they thought. They saw the need around them, and chose to change the bad circumstances men, women and children found themselves in. And, because of their obedience and faithfulness, we find ourselves in the Army 143 years later.

That’s inspirational!

Some of you have heard of and participated in events organized by Invisible Children. The reason that hundreds of families have been helped and children have been able to attend school is because three young college dudes took a trip, saw a need, took action and brought change to a population of people that most of us never knew of before. There were only three of them to begin with, yet if you joined Invisible Children in their Displace Me event last year, you saw that in Chicago alone there were over 5,000 people sleeping outside! That’s radical!

That’s inspirational!

Here is a more personal example of how seemingly small things bring big change (from the One Campaign):

Dear ONE Member,

My name is Agnes Nyamayarwo. I'm a nurse, a mother and an activist living with HIV/AIDS in Uganda.

It has been more than a decade since I lost my husband, Augustine, and youngest child, Christopher, to AIDS; another son, Charles, ran away from home to escape the stigma of this disease.

Now I honor their memory through my work with an organization called TASO (The AIDS Support Organization) here in Kampala, Uganda. At TASO, I work with HIV/AIDS patients, orphans and mothers to try and save others from experiencing the pain I have.

I am also a member of the TASO Board of Trustees, representing the views of people living with HIV/AIDS in all the 11 centers of TASO across the country. You can learn more about TASO here.

Your work at ONE to make global AIDS an American priority has touched my heart. Last week, you asked your members of Congress to support the reauthorization of PEPFAR and fund the fight against AIDS, TB, and malaria and you won.

Great Job everybody with your Change In Change Out jugs! You should be proud of yourselves and know that you have already started to make the change by collecting your change. Now it is time to go put that change to good use and make a difference in the lives of the people in your own communities. Keep up the good work!

On Monday, April 28th from 7pm-9pm, The Salvation Army will be hosting CAASE and the Center on Halsted's performance of "Body and Sold".

"Each year, thousands of American children run away from home and become trapped in cycles of drugs, prostitution and violence.

Their childhood stops.

'Body and Sold' tells their stories."

After the show, there will be a talk-back about sexual exploitation with experts, the cast of the show and community advocates.

The cost is only $10 for adults, and it's free for those under 18. That's a sweet deal! Take advantage of it!

Click here to download a flyer for the event.

Honoring MLK by Changing the Wind (by Troy Jackson)

Wilberforce Can Free Again
Protecting trafficking victims

By Donna M. Hughes

The nation’s most recent political sex scandal — New York governor Eliot Spitzer’s involvement with a high-end call-girl ring — will doubtless provide much fodder for the late-night comedy shows. But American prostitution is no laughing matter: The victimization of women and girls, and sometimes men and boys, by pimps has been widely recognized throughout U.S. history.

In the mid-1800s, Congress passed a law criminalizing the importation of aliens for prostitution. In the early 1900s as part of the first international movement against sex trafficking, Congress passed the Mann Act, a law criminalizing the act of transporting persons across state lines for the purpose of prostitution.

In 2000, Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), making the pimping of persons under the age of 18, or pimping by means of fraud, force, or coercion, a serious federal felony. (“Pimping” is an informal term for what the TVPA 2000 calls “sex trafficking”: “The recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act.”) And in 2006, the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act created new federal anti-trafficking crimes and enhanced the penalties of the Mann Act.

In December, the House of Representatives passed the William Wilberforce Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act by a vote of 405 to 2. The legislation modernizes and harmonizes existing federal laws against pimping to create a new set of criminal statutes, which will make the prosecution of sex-trafficking offenses easier and more efficient. It also creates a new international standard as a model for other countries.

THE ANTI- ANTI-TRAFFICKING MOVEMENT
Now the bill is in the Senate, where the same groups who opposed its passage in the House are rallying forces to derail it. Critics of the House-passed Wilberforce Act allege that it will “federalize” anti-trafficking efforts.

The Washington Post claims it will send FBI agents on the “trail of pimps,” and sources in the story claim it will cause all prostitutes to be considered victims of trafficking. Laurence E. Rothenberg, deputy assistant attorney general at the Office of Legal Policy, made a related charge before the House Judiciary Committee: “The federal government cannot prosecute every prostitution case.” None of these objections holds water.

In fact, FBI agents have been on the trail of pimps for decades, bringing down major prostitution rings and arresting sexual predators, particularly those that exploit children or work in organized networks. Last year, through the Department of Justice’s Innocence Lost Initiative, which targets perpetrators of child sex trafficking, the FBI carried out 125 investigations that resulted in 308 arrests, 55 indictments, and 106 convictions of sex traffickers who exploited children. Most of these perpetrators were American pimps.

Also, the reforms do not conflate pimping with prostitution. They target sexual predators — the recruiters and organizers of prostitution/sex trafficking operations who routinely brutalize and destroy the lives of young women and corrupt local communities. The proposed bill does not involve the federal government in non-pimping prostitution offenses.

Sex-worker-rights groups and pimps, not surprisingly, also oppose the act. The Sex Workers Outreach Project and the Erotic Service Providers Union held a demonstration against the bill outside the office of Rep. Tom Lantos, the prime sponsor of the bill in the House before his death earlier this year.

Most of the debate and misunderstanding of the Wilberforce Act is centered on the requirement of proving that “force, fraud, and coercion” compelled victims to engage in commercial sex acts. The TVPA “severe form of trafficking” statute requires the use of force, fraud, or coercion on an adult victim, while the Mann Act (the federal law against transporting a person across states lines for purposes of prostitution) does not require that the perpetrator to use force, fraud, or coercion. These statutes will be brought together in the criminal code to create two levels of sex trafficking: sex trafficking (without force, fraud, and coercion) and aggravated sex trafficking (with force, fraud, and coercion).

Also, the Wilberforce Act will change the older Mann Act statute by eliminating its transportation-of-victims requirement — and substituting in the TVPA’s “in or affecting interstate or foreign commerce” requirement. When transportation across state lines is not provable, prosecutors will no longer need to show brutality or acts of fraud, force, or coercion — such acts will increase the punishment of a pimp rather than being the sole basis of conviction.

In addition, one of the biggest challenges to prosecuting cases of sex trafficking is getting victims to cooperate or testify against brutal pimps. These reforms will make it possible to bring multi-defendant cases against pimps.

THE MESSAGE WE SEND
When sex trafficking is a federal crime only when there is proof of force, fraud, coercion, or the exploitation of a minor, this encourages states in the U.S. and foreign governments to require high standards of proof for trafficking convictions. This type of law is supported by those favoring the legalization of prostitution. Currently, the TVPA sex-trafficking statute would be acceptable in the Netherlands, where prostitution is legal, because recruiting and exploiting women and men in prostitution is allowed as long as the victim can’t prove that force, fraud, or coercion was used or the victim is not underage. By defining prostitute recruitment as sex trafficking, the Wilberforce Act will send a message that all pimping-related activities are illegal.

In addition, the Wilberforce Act will create a new standard for the evaluation of countries’ performance in combating sex trafficking. Called the “demand standard,” countries will be assessed on whether they are making efforts to reduce the demand for commercial sexual activities.

The Wilberforce Act doesn’t introduce radical new laws, but rather pulls together a century and a half of laws and approaches. It sets a new standard for the U.S. and a model for the world to oppose all forms of pimping.

A broad coalition of groups recognizes the historic importance of this bill. In November, they organized a lobby day in the House that conveyed to members of Congress the passion and commitment with which they supported these measures. They are now preparing to campaign in the Senate to ensure the passage of this important bill.

— Donna M. Hughes is a professor and Carlson Endowed Chair at the University of Rhode Island.

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As of now, Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2007 is stuck in the senate - it needs to be pushed through. With your help, it can be. Why not write your senator, encouraging him/her to get on board.