The Most Reverend & Right Honourable Stephen Cottrell kickstarts The Clewer Initiative's "Do One Thing" campaign.
The Archbishop of York is encouraging churches and individuals to get behind The Clewer Initiative's new campaign, "Do One Thing" and think about one concrete step they can take to fight modern slavery in their communities. He urges people to see Anti-Slavery Day (Wednesday 18th October) as an opportunity to reflect and commit to "Do One Thing."
Archbishop Stephen explains: "Anti-Slavery Day is an annual opportunity for churches, businesses, charities, and individuals to consider afresh what they can do to eliminate modern slavery in their communities.
"However, when we hear the numbers of people trapped in slavery in the UK and beyond, it can be easy to feel overwhelmed and powerless. That’s where The Clewer Initiative’s “Do One Thing” campaign is so helpful! It encourages us to see that any action, no matter how small, could change or save the life of somebody in desperate circumstances. Small steps can lead to more significant changes and working towards slavery-free communities is not something we can do on our own or overnight.
"I would like to commend the “Do One Thing” campaign to you and encourage you to think about one step you can take this week to fight modern slavery. It could be as simple as signing up for a modern slavery seminar to learn more about the issue; putting up helpline posters around your church buildings or downloading the Safe Car Wash App and using it whenever you go to a hand car wash.
Archbishop Stephen also shared his personal commitment to fighting modern slavery: "This year, I am going to encourage all the clergy in my diocese to sign up for Modern Slavery Safeguarding training so they have the tools and knowledge to recognise modern slavery in their parishes.”
As Anti-Slavery Day approaches, join us in the fight against modern slavery and exploitation. Now is the time to:
- think about one step you can take to fight modern slavery
- film yourself or your church describing your pledge, upload to your socials and tag The Clewer Initiative. Use the hashtags #DOT4ASD #AntiSlaveryDay
- look out for our short films on your socials and share them widely!
