24 July 2009 - Singer, songwriter Eric Proffitt will soon trade his music for his new endeavour - he is about to embark on a 500 mile journey to raise awareness on the issue of human trafficking.
On August 1, chained from head to toe, Eric will begin his 42 day quest and will run through major cities in the United States and United Kingdom. From the Statue of Liberty in New York to the graveside of abolitionist hero Williamberforce in London, Eric will not only carry heavy chains but a message of hope to fight modern day slavery.
"At least 27 millions people are already victims of human trafficking, they are suffering on a magnitude too staggering to comprehend" said Eric. The songwriter who attended the Vienna Forum to Fight Human Trafficking in February last year said he was inspired to take action by the work of the UN to combat human trafficking . At the conference, Eric realized the severity of the crime. Nearly 60% of people in slavery are children and over 80% of people living in slavery are used as sexual slaves.
"A drug can only be sold once, but a person can be sold over and over again in the same night, that is why human trafficking has become the second most profitable illegal activity in the world. People are not aware that this crime happens around us, it's a global problem and actions need to be taken, this is clearly slavery" he added.
Entitled Run4 the Rescue, this walk hopes to raise US$1 for each of the 27 million people living in slavery, and to awaken the world to the reality of this crime in every major city across the globe. Proceeds from the race will be used by non-profit organizations to rescue and rehabilitate trafficked victims and to find and prosecute the perpetrators of human trafficking.
Eric chose this concept as raising awareness nowadays requires some thinking outside of the box. As so much already takes place virtually, walking 500 miles with chains would definitely draw some attention which he will use to shed light on the topic.
The father of five daughters wants to inspire people to take action and show the world that ordinary people can do extraordinary things and that each individual has a role to play if we want to abolish slavery and eradicate human trafficking.
To donate and for more information please visit: http://www.run4therescue.com/
This Saturday at 9 a.m., Eric Proffitt is going to go for a run. The Canadian-American singer-songwriter will drape himself with 10 pounds of chains, climb the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, and then set off on a 15-day sprint to New York, his chains lapping his sides. Then he’ll fly to London and run to Hull. Why is he doing this, you ask?
At a Starbucks in Chevy Chase, D.C., Proffitt and his wife, Rebecca, corral their five daughters into some window seats and get them noncaffeinated frappuccinos. The plan to run 500 miles, they explain, dates back to February of last year, when Eric performed at a United Nations conference about human trafficking. He’d never given much thought to human trafficking before. “We were horrified,” he says. “I wondered, if it was my kids, what would I not do to rescue them?”
“It kind of ignited a fire,” says Rebecca. They decided they had to do something to publicize the issue. So Eric’s gonna run in chains. “They’re painful,” he says. “I don’t recommend them.” But he says they’re an “easy symbol” for the problem.
Eric says he hopes his run will be a “tipping point.” They want to raise a dollar for every victim of human trafficking—27 million, he says.
I ask about the safety of all this. “Aren’t you worried you’ll break something?” I ask. Proffitt’s been working with a running trainer. “He’s not a runner,” says Rebecca. “He’s a singer.” (He’s remade the Proclaimers’ “500 Miles” with running-in-chains-appropriate lyrics; you can buy a copy here.) She and the kids will be following him in a van.
Eric’s got special running socks, plus padding for his legs. The chains beat against him while he runs. “In a bizarre way it sets a rhythm,” he says. “I try to run with the chains rather than fighting them.”
