Our initiatives
“Set Beautiful Free works towards the prevention of sex trafficking through various campaigns, advocacy initiatives, sustainable opportunities for empowerment and shelter. We do not merely hope to temporarily relieve the suffering of women and children by placing them in a home with no means to empower themselves, but our vision is to help put an end to this form of slavery forever.”
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Our outreach team is an example of the conviction that to transform lives, we must walk in their lives. They are on the streets day after day living among those suffering in the red light districts, counseling them through their individual circumstances, convincing them that they are not alone. With a team comprising ex-pimps, ex- prostitutes and ex- brothel owners who were once trapped in these same conditions, those still living in the brothels are able to relate, identify and find hope in their transformed lives. The team’s daily presence and their willingness to enter into the lives of the suffering, to walk into their rooms and sit next to them on their beds as they cry and share their pain begins the process towards rescue and recovery. One of our initiatives through the outreach team was a Christmas Rally in 2016 where we had almost 50,000 people and children in attendance. With the support of the police and local leadership, it became possible for hundreds of our BTC staff members to bring the message of Christmas to one of the darkest places on Earth. Most in these areas had never celebrated Christmas, sung carols and adorned themselves with Santa hats before. In 2016 alone, our outreach team worked with 3,837 people and fed 3,742 widows and patients in the districts.
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Most victims of sex trafficking are deprived of a proper education and find themselves completely disadvantaged because of their circumstances. Our focus on education begins in the very places that disadvantages its’ victims. With a literacy program in Turbhe, our staff is able to not only teach children but create relationships with them that hopefully result in rescue. We offer those rescued the option to join a school in the area, or participate in our on campus open classroom system which allows individuals from different age groups to pursue their studies at various levels. Our hope is to provide them with world class education so that they realize the worth and value of each of their lives. Set Beautiful Free has partnered with education consultants from various parts of the world to build an education center that will have a computer laboratory, science laboratories, an art studio, a music studio, a multi functional recreation hall and classrooms equipped with state of the art learning tools. We hope our children will dream big and empower themselves with these opportunities at their fingertips.
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Over 90% of those trapped in these red light areas suffer from some type of sexually transmitted disease and thousands more from diseases like tuberculosis, typhoid and malaria. With a clear need for medical attention, we built two medical clinics in Turbhe and Kamathipura that offer women & children living here free medical advice and treatment in their current living quarters. With the ability to walk in without appointments, our doctors and nurses on staff can reach out to these women and children who do not have the opportunity to leave their ongoing circumstances yet. We continuously work with specialists like gynecologists, dermatologists and physicians who set up medical camps in these districts through our clinic. Open 5 days a week with a female doctor on staff, we are able to bring expert medical advice to women who are otherwise at a major disadvantage
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With a vision to literally Set the Beautiful Free, we realized the dire need to create an avenue for the women to be trained vocationally and create opportunities that could provide sustainable incomes for the independence of these women. We are privileged to have the right people brought in at the right time to guide and train the ladies on creating high quality apparel, jewelry and leather goods that is being sold to local markets and abroad. This training is an empowering tool that not only provides healing to participants but also brings about a sense of self-confidence to support oneself with dignity and skill. Through the training center, our girls have learnt the discipline of hard work and the results that come with it with various counselors and motivational speakers encourage the women to soar high and reach for the stars- a concept they could have not imagined prior to their rescue and recovery.
Survivor care
All our homes are characterized by efforts to keep those rescued safe and well cared for, inspire hopes and dreams, effect healing process that restores and empowers, encourages growth and development, facilitates the release of potential individuals, and enable all our survivors to come full circle, freed from the traumas and suffering that once engulfed them, to realize their innate worth and dignity.
JEEVAN JYOTI
Our first project in the Red Light District, Jeevan Jyoti was started as a night shelter for the children of the women trapped in Kamathipura to remove them from the brothels and the sights around them. Jeevan Jyoti is now home to 49 children, some orphans, some fatherless and some who’s mothers are not ready to leave their current living situation. We are able to provide these children with a clean, safe home, education and every other need to live comfortably.
JUBILEE 1, 2 AND 4
All three of these homes are located outside the city limits and near our education and vocational training center. In order to provide an environment that is non threatening and safe, we believe removing them from the harsh realities of the Red Light District is necessary for recovery. Jubilee 1 and 2 remain as a shelter for our 74 girls, all of whom are pursuing education at different stages. Jubilee 4 is the care home for 40 of our precious young children, all of whom are in school and learning about the opportunities available for them.
ASHAGRAM.
Ashagram offers healing and preparation to 67 young men and 55 young women who are ready to reintegrate into larger society. Spread over acres and acres of land, our model behind this campus is a holistic one that offers shelter, recreation, arts and vocational training. Ashagram was built to promote reflection that comes with counseling, a sense of peace, freedom, dignity and self-esteem, as well as a recreational area so these young men and women can experience fun that they’ve never had the chance to before.
