Helping the ‘untouchables'

Kirsten Green sets up her booth at the Wednesday evening farmers market downtown for her business, Freedom Stand. Green sells bags, blankets and journals made by women affected by the sex trade industry in Southeast Asia. (The Daily Triplicate/Rick Postal).

By Kelley Atherton

It all started with a trip to Nepal.

Kirsten Green, a local woman not far beyond her college days, decided to take it upon herself to bring awareness about human trafficking to Del Norte County.

She's done this with a simple business plan: buy products, sell them at farmers markets and then buy more. The products are made by the hands of now-gainfully employed women once enslaved in prostitution on the streets of far-flung places like Calcutta, India.

Cotton blankets with simple yet intricate designs that twist into a multitude of colors are made from old saris, the traditional clothing worn by women in India. The eco-friendly bags are made with jute, a vegetable fiber similar to cotton. Green also has a selection of soft, rustic-looking journals.

These gift or personal items can be found at the Wednesday and Saturday markets and Green plans to have them for sale at CANDeal on 3rd and H streets at the end of this week.

Little hope for ‘untouchables'

While attending George Fox University in Newberg, Ore., Green received a grant to conduct an independent study in Nepal in the summer of 2006. Her mission was to look at the issue of trafficking in Southeast Asia and what was being done to combat it, she said.

Tens of thousands of women and young girls are forced into prostitution. Many are among the poorest people in the world. Women in this part of the world are vulnerable to prostitution, Green said. Some are kidnapped; others don't have the skills or education to make a living wage.

"I knew it existed," Green said. "Nepal was off my radar. I came to realize that's the case for a lot of people."

In Nepal, she said, there's practically no sex district; instead women from there are often taken to India or the Philippines. She also spent time in India and Thailand.

As part of her research,

Green started looking at non-profit organizations and efforts to get women out of the sex trade.

"The common thread was that you can't just get women out of trafficking," she said. "They don't have an alternative."

It's hard for women to get out of prostitution — their families don't want them anymore, men won't marry them and they're uneducated.

"The culture doesn't value women," Green said; they become "dalites" or "untouchables."

In addition, most of these women have sexually transmitted diseases. HIV/AIDS is especially prevalent.

"They have no hope of getting out," she said, "because there is very little waiting on the outside."

Green came across several organizations, such as Freeset Bags and Sari Bari, that have become successful at helping these women get an education and giving them fair-wage jobs. They make bags, blankets and other goods from recycled material, including old saris, which are 100 percent cotton and machine washable.

Making these goods is a way for them to empower themselves, Green said. People in Asia wouldn't consider buying what former prostitutes have made. However, a bag or blanket from recycled material from halfway across the world becomes a luxury item for Westerners, Green said.

Acting on her knowledge

Two years later, after graduating and moving back to Crescent City, where she grew up, Green felt like it was time to take what she learned in Asia and do something.

"I wanted to put my money where my mouth is," Green said with a little laugh. "In June I was thinking about it a lot and got frustrated."

So, she started Freedom Stand. Green found a distributor online and bought a small selection of goods on her credit card to sell at the markets. Once the products are at CANDeal, they'll have a "permanent place in the community," she said.

"I'm stepping out in blind faith," she said. "But I'm young and I don't have a lot of expenses. If it doesn't work out, a few thousand dollars won't ruin my life."

So far, however, her venture has received a good response from the community. A lot of people want to give the bags, blankets and journals as gifts, she said.

"They're beautiful and unique, but have meaning," Green said. "They weren't made in a sweat shop — people appreciate that."

The response has been so good that she has already had to restock her inventory. Another benefit to buying Freedom Stand items is that proceeds go back to the non-profits. Green said she didn't start Freedom Stand to get rich (she's been breaking even) but to help women in Southeast Asia have a meaningful life outside of prostitution.

Green's also taken her venture online to Facebook. Anyone who is already a member of that online community can search for Freedom Stand and check out the products.

It's a side business right now, she said. Currently, Green is in training as the social enterprise director at the Community Assistance Network (CAN). She hopes to be in graduate school next year at the University of California, Berkeley, to work toward a master of business administration degree.

She's thought about setting up her own distributorship for Freeset or Sari Bari and selling the products around the world or possibly from a storefront.

"I'll see where I'm led and what opens up," she said.

Coming back to Crescent City after graduate school is an option, Green said, but she wants to do more traveling and make business connections worldwide.

For more information about any of the non-profit organizations or distributorships mentioned, visit www.freeset

bags.com, www.saribari.com or www.

ashaimports.com