Freedom for the Weekend: Legal Aid of North Carolina

by Amanda Kloer · 2009-01-30 12:00:00 UTC
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Well, it's Friday afternoon, and that means the weekend is almost here!  W00t! Perhaps you're reading this blog because you're bored at work or school and you're thinking about what you want to do this weekend.  How about spending part of your weekend fighting slavery?  Each week I'll profile a different anti-trafficking nonprofit who you can connect with to help free slaves and prevent slavery around the world.  So, spend a couple hours this weekend getting to know this nonprofit through their website, and then get involved!

This Week's Profile: Legal Aid of North Carolina:Farmworkers Unit

The Bottom Line:The Farmworker Unit of Legal Aid of North Carolina was established to meet the special legal needs of migrant and seasonal farmworkers in North Carolina, many of whom are victims of worker exploitation and human trafficking.

What They Do:Legal Aid of North Carolina works to ensure farm workers in North Carolina receive equal protection under the law and provide legal services to those who cannot afford them.  They have represented trafficking victims enslaved in agriculture in law suits to help get the victims wages due to them.

What Can I Do?: If you are a lawyer or law student, you can volunteer pro bono services to help represent victims of trafficking in court (or if you're not a lawyer or law student, find one and convince her or him to participate).  You can also help out with their local North Carolina events and donate to help cover legal fees.

Why They Rock: Workers who have been trafficked are often desperately in need of legal help they can't afford.  They need a lawyer to get money from their trafficker, immigration papers, public benefits and a whole host of other services.  Legal Aid makes it possible for trafficked workers to move on with their lives.

So now that you've got some basic information on Legal Aid of North Carolina, visit their website this weekend and get involved.  And on Monday morning when everyone else is talking about sleeping in and watching tv over the weekend, you can say, "What did I do this weekend?  Oh, just the usual- abolition of slavery."

Do you have a favorite nonprofit you'd like to see featured here?  If so, let me know!

Amanda Kloer is a Change.org Editor and has been a full-time abolitionist in several capacities for seven years. Follow her on Twitter @endhumantraffic
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