SI Poole

Purple Teardrop Campaign

Human trafficking has overtaken even drugs trafficking in terms of scale. It is a global issue and the consequences for its victims are dire.

The Poole club launched its Purple Teardrop Campaign against Human Trafficking to over 70 leading figures from Poole and Dorset and Soroptimists from across the South of England at a meeting in September 2008.

The teardrop represents the suffering of those women and children who are trafficked, exploited and abused throughout the world, including in our local communities. Why purple? The Purple Teardrop Campaign is a Soroptimist International initiative and follows the anti human trafficking work of European and Northern England Soroptimists whose campaign colours and ribbons are purple.

One of the cornerstones of Soroptimist International’s work is the objective to ‘end human trafficking and all forms of violence against women and girls’. This objective lies at the heart of the Purple Teardrop Campaign which in turn has four aims:

• Raise awareness among the general public of the plight of women and children who are trafficked
• Try to suppress the demand for trafficked women by making men who use prostitutes aware that they could be contributing to this trade
• Provide a hotline number so that members of the public can give confidential information on locations where they think trafficked women are being exploited
• Support the safe houses which provide support and practical care for victims who have been freed from trafficking

The club's aim is to spread the Purple Teardrop message as far and as wide as they can. They invite Soroptimists to hold workshops and seminars, distribute posters and sell Purple Teardrop pin-badges in their local communities so as to raise awareness and much needed victim support funds.

For more information on the work of this club, visit their website