F.I.G.H.T. Club: Fighting Injustice and Giving Hope for Tomorrow

It is lunch time at a local high school. With prom only a few weeks away, students shuffle into Mrs. Anya Harrison’s classroom to plan and organize for the big event. After unveiling the fabric and hearing the instructions the students take to the floor and begin folding and cutting organza. Similar meetings take place at schools across the country this time of year but this gathering of students is not what you would typically expect. They are here, not to work on party décor for the big social event, but to craft their school’s first ever “Flowerless Prom” as a means of combating social injustice. Through the sales of their handmade boutonnières and corsages, the members of F.I.G.H.T. Club (Fighting Injustice and Giving Hope for Tomorrow), hope to raise funds and awareness to benefit the children of history’s largest standing oppressed people – the Dalits of India.

The Dalits, also known as “the untouchables” and most recently “slumdogs,” are one of the most enslaved and trafficked people in the world. Comprising a population of 250 million, nearly one quarter of Indian society, they are, by self definition, “those who have been broken and ground down deliberately by those above them in a social hierarchy.” For 3,000 years, this Hindu sanctioned hierarchy has classified them at birth within a caste system which defines purity and impurity. The main groupings, or varnas, are attributed to a legendary primordial being. From the mouth comes the Brahmans who are the priests and teachers. From the arms derive the Kshatriyas who are the rulers and soldiers. From its thighs come the Vaisyas who are the merchants and traders. Lastly, from its feet derive the Sudras who encompass the laborers. Within these castes are hundreds of subcastes designating a person’s position and value within Indian culture. The Dalits do not even have their place at the bottom of this hierarchal being. Their lot in life is so low that they are regarded as the outcasts - not even being created by their own god. They are outside of creation, polluted and impure, not even holding the value of worthy human beings. This status denies them the economic, social, spiritual and educational human rights granted to the other castes. As a result, their life is replete with prejudice and abuse making them easy targets for human trafficking. In 2002, Dr. Joseph D’souza founded the Dalit Freedom Network (DFN) to advocate for their human rights and help bring an end to the oppression and bondage of the Dalit.

Teaming together with the Dalit Freedom Network, Calvary Christian Academy’s F.I.G.H.T. Club, has been working for two years to raise the funds to build a school for the Dalit children. Their goal of $40,000 will help build Phase 2 of the Dalit Education Center of Mysore, India. These funds will furnish the school, train teachers, provide vocational training programs, afford start up costs for 300 first year students, vaccinate and feed them. To date, DFN, has built over 100 of these schools in India. Through the education and empowerment of these “at risk” children, F.I.G.H.T. Club hopes to end the cycle of slavery and bring freedom and opportunity to a new generation of this long oppressed people group.

Showing tremendous resolve, F.I.G.H.T. Club students have held many fundraising projects. From catalog sales merchandising “fair-trade” items to organizing a benefit concert and hosting chocolate fondue parties, every little bit has added up to nearly $30,000. One of the more touching donations came from the fourth grade class at the school. After learning about the Dalits in chapel, the students embarked on a challenge given to them by their teachers. Akin to the parable of the talents, as told in Matthew 25, the teachers gifted each student with one dollar and were asked if they could invest it and raise money for the Dalit school. “One student from my class,” said fourth grade teacher Cindy Sumner, “sold tickets for a brunch at her house. Others made baked goods, sold candy canes, and did chores around the house.” In the end the resourceful fourth graders presented F.I.G.H.T. Club with a generous donation of almost $5,000. “It was such a blessing to get that donation from the fourth graders,” remarks Club president Macie Sweet, “it really put the parable of talents into perspective and showed what God can do with the little that we are given.

Perhaps more important than the money raised is how F.I.G.H.T. Club has taught the students about compassion and the importance of being aware of the plight of the voiceless. Educating themselves through films such as The Dark Side of Chocolate, reading books about trafficking, and hearing guest speakers from ministries such as Hagar International, the students gain insight into the harsh realities of the oppressed. Student Brianna Schieffer summed up its impact best, “F.I.G.H.T. club is a way I can use my time, gifts, and incredible passion that God has given me to help defeat injustice and make a difference in the lives of others. It is fulfilling God’s command to be a disciple of Christ.” For a child on the other side of globe, the gift on an education sends a vital message that there is a God that cares for them and sees their value even when those around them do not.

Published in The Good News of South Florida, June 2011
www.Goodnewsfl.org
http://goodnewsfl.org/dv/0611/The%20Good%20News%20Newspaper%20Broward%20June%202011/June%202011%20Master%20Grif_Broward%200211/index.html#/4/

Ordinary People Doing Extraordinary Things

For her 40th birthday, Lucy McCann wanted nothing more than to take a vacation to her native homeland of Cartagena, Colombia with her husband Oliver. Amidst the historical charm that lures many tourists to the balmy South American port, the couple took notice of a young girl in the distance. Dark skinned, dirty and clad only in torn underwear, her demeanor was downtrodden and her haunting image one of despair. She was one of the “disposables,” as labeled by the natives there, isolated and imprisoned in a world of heinous atrocity. Not only due to her poverty but because at the tender age of 7 Renee was a sexual slave. Sold by her mother years before, she has no memory of a time that she wasn’t prostituted. Although Lucy and Oliver did not know her story then, God had a plan for Renee’s future and for children like her.

“I can’t forget the children lurking in the corners and in the shadows,” Oliver confided to his wife when they were safely back home. From then on God placed a burden for these children in their hearts. Lucy, a social worker, was no stranger to helping children in the worst of circumstances. Yet this would be a bigger undertaking than she felt equipped for. “God pushed us way out of our comfort zone,” she said. Indeed, the challenges were great, but the calling assured. Together with Lucy’s childhood friend, Arlena Hoyos, they began expanding their ministry “Dones de Misericordia” (Gifts of Mercy) five years ago and have witnessed God’s provision ever since.

Child sex tourism is increasing at an alarming rate around the world. The internet has facilitated this lurid business, connecting tourists to impoverished countries where children are easily exploited. While, Asian countries have long been prime destinations, Cartagena, Colombia has become an attraction in recent years. Police and government turn a blind eye to the problem, unwilling to inhibit the money that tourism brings to their economy. Visitors are readily propositioned by those serving the tourism trade. Tragically, some request children as young as three years old. “The life and purity of a child has little value there,” says Lucy. Perhaps nothing is more of an indicator of that spiritual darkness than a mother who would prostitute her own child. Although poverty is its driving force, isolation and ignorance binds and imprisons them. “We help them open their eyes to what they can fight for – hope for,” Lucy proclaims.

At its core, the desire for the ministry was to conduct outreach where most of these exploited children live. Every week a team visits Tierra Bomba, an island fifteen minutes offshore from Cartagena. During those visits, the children witness God’s love and compassion first hand; for many it’s the only kindness and hope they have ever known. As the ministry grew, a generous benefactor contributed towards the land and a new building for their Christian school, “La Gloria.” For now, the existing school is a safe haven for 165 of these children, including little Renee who is now 11.

While waiting for the new school to be built Oliver, Lucy and Arlena meet the ministry’s needs as best they can through donations and their own financial sacrifice. They hope to grow the school further, to build a community center, and for a local church to take root. Perhaps, one day, even see adoptions take place and expand their ministry throughout Colombia. Last year the ministry began teaming with local churches to better serve the needs of the children. Organizing groups to Cartagena every few months, Lucy’s passion and direction are clear. “God puts his army together one by one to fight for His cause,” she boldly declares.

As Lucy and Oliver continue to see God’s promise unveil before their eyes, their reward is evident in the eyes of one of their children, Johny age 8. From an exploited, “disposable” to one set free in Christ his face shines with brilliance and peace that surpasses all understanding. “The Lord erases everything that is very bad,” he beams, “and turns it into very good.” And what of little Renee “the dirty one,” “the outcast” according to the natives? One can’t help but think of her in light of the lyrics to the song “You are More” by the band Tenth Avenue North. She was:

“the girl in the corner with a shame she can’t hide…crippled by the fear that she has fallen too far to love”.

But God’s love spoke volumes to Lucy and Oliver on that fateful day. Their calling made clear to go out and do for the “least of these”, Matthew 25:40. To show them that they are not

“the sum of past mistakes but have been set free...they have been remade”.

To learn more about the ministry Dones de Misericordia visit www.ddmcolombia.org

Published in The Good News in South Florida, June 2011
www.Goodnewsfl.org
http://goodnewsfl.org/dv/0611/The%20Good%20News%20Newspaper%20Broward%20June%202011/June%202011%20Master%20Grif_Broward%200211/index.html#/34/