The other day, Melinda saw a girl in the market whom she’d recognized from our street. Aside from being filthy, she had bruising over her eye and a large gash on her face. Melinda asked her who did that to her and prodded her about her living situation. It turned out that she was “given” to a family because her family couldn't afford to take care of her. That family basically turned her into their slave. She did not go to school, was not fed well, and was beaten twice a day for not getting her work done quickly enough. Her mom had tried to come visit her on several occasions and the family hid the child away and wouldn’t let her see her. Melinda told the girl that she cared about her and if she wanted to get out that she could help her. They parted ways and Melinda freaked out for a day and a half thinking about her, wondering why she didn’t just get her to come with her right then and there. Thankfully, Ninotte found her in the market the next day and urged her to come back to our house. We fed her and talked to her about her care and her life, assuring her that she deserved better. Then Gwen, a friend of Melinda’s who has taken in 8 Haitian children, came to pick her up. They went to the police station to make a report against the girl’s former “owners” and then the girl went to live at Gwen's, where she will have a loving family, will be able to see her mom whenever they want (or return home if possible), will be fed well, and will play instead of work. Yay!!
Unfortunately human trafficking is a reality here as well as in the US and around the world...I'm glad we could at least help free one person from it...
In other news, tomorrow is Election Day, and I can’t wait to see what happens! Ex President Aristide is back and most people are really happy to have his presence.
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