MONEY, SHE DID NOT GET OUT OF IT. DEBT, SHE DID!!!

By Frits Rouvoet on May 10, 2020 08:51 pm

In the previous week we heard that sex workers are most likely allowed to work again as of September 1 st. As of June 1ste, the income supplement will be extended, and even though you need to comply with
more requirements now, most women will be able to keep the supplement.

The women are happy with this governmental compensation, but it isn’t enough to cover all their costs due to their high
rents. This is on top of the other costs like health insurance, price of living and for many care for
children and/or family in their home country. The latter was often the reason they came to the West for work and eventually ended up in prostitution, because there simply was no other work for them. In the past weeks and especially the past week, more and more women expressed that they would like to find another job and, if possible, want to stay out of prostitution. This is why we as Bright Fame are busy with writing their resumes, providing trainings given by professionals, collecting large numbers of vacancies and contacting companies, so that many women are able to apply for new jobs. It is special to notice how people are thinking along with us.

All of us know that, once the Red Light will open up again, there will not be a run of customers
immediately, but this will come slowly. This means that, especially in the first period, income will be low. This is also caused by the new flow of Eastern European young girls who want to make money in the West, because this is hard in their home country. We already expressed this problem to the local, national and European politics. In one of the Eastern European countries, preventive action will already be taken.
It is extraordinary that we as Bright Fame are able to actively help out these women during these
hard times. I am very aware of the fact that it is not only these women who are struggling, but also many Dutch people who fear to lose their jobs or see their businesses getting destroyed. This is something that is close to my heart, too, when I read or hear their stories.

Still, there is something that really touched me while I was writing resumes. Many women did not finish their education and there were no other jobs we could put on their resumes. Some couldn’t name any hobbies and never did any volunteer work. It was also hard for them to come up with their dream and what they would like to do. One of the women ended up in prostitution due to human trafficking. For a long period of time she was pressured by her violent pimp to work in prostitution. Money, she did not get out of it. Debt, she did. At that time, Bright Fame helped her to report him. He is in jail now, but she did not see any other option than to go back to prostitution, then. Now, we are straightening out her administration and looking into filing a damage compensation from her pimp. Then, the lawyer unfortunately neglected this. On the one hand, she is dealing with the same consequences of the corona crisis as many other people. On the other hand, there is a large difference when we look at her past. Life brought her to places she never chose for herself. She is stuck with debts from her past as a victim of human trafficking and now her debts are increasing due to an expensive apartment. The story of this woman is one out of three similar ones I am closely involved with at the moment.

Now we have the possibility to help these three and many other women to find a different future. As always, they want to find another job, but now they do not have the stress of having to make money behind a futureless window. Now, they have the time and peace to think about their future. Now, they have the time to sit down with us and make up a plan. If there is nothing else again, they will simply go back to the windows, because they have to. Then, the time and peace will be gone and they will be back to surviving.

We as Bright Fame are doing our best to make this change in their life a successful one. Among
others by a team member who is full time working on collecting vacancies and advising on the
application process. Of course there are more people, apart from her, active to get this job done. Iwould like to ask you if you would stand shoulder to shoulder with us so that we can do this. Apart from the emergency fund, to which many donated, that allowed us to hand out €6000,- of food vouchers to those that needed it, there is another amount needed to make the change in the lives of these women possible. You can donate by indicating “Omwenteling”

Donations can be transferred to:

NL53 INGB 0004 1039 12 in the name of Stichting Bright Fame, indicating ‘Omwenteling’

The windows and red light are empty now due to this situation!
Let’s keep them as empty as possible after this corona period.

Will you pray and carry with us?
Bright Fame is an ANBI acknowledge foundation.