Slavery – breaking not rattlling the chains – Update

Amazing change website have amazingly changed! David McNeish, our guest blogger, had forwarded his article (that I have posted in the last two posts – part 1 and part 2) to them a couple of weeks ago, and yesterday he got an email from them saying they have ammended thier actions points to incorporate some of Dave’s suggestions. Here is what David said in this email to me:

As you might already know, a couple of months ago I got a bit miffed by the website that accompanies the film Amazing Grace – the story of Wilberforce and the abolition of slavery. The ten suggestions for action were, I felt, a bit limp. Thousands of folk will see the film and visit this website. What a missed opportunity! At the time I was preparing a sermon on consumerism and discovering for myself that slavery was, if anything, worse now than in Wilberforce’s day.

So I wrote a little pamphlet. Not something I’ve done before, but I thought – I’m no expert in this, but I know we could be doing so much more. So rather than moan I thought I’d do something about it. And having written it Iain Archibald encouraged me in my tentative suggestion to send it to the production company behind the film.

So I did. Within an hour I had a response saying they were grateful for the feedback. Good public relations I thought, but I wasn’t holding my breath for anything to change.

Today I found out that they have in fact changed the “10 things you can do” as a direct result of my feedback.

Specifically it now includes:

• encouraging sacrificial, sustained financial giving to help end slavery
• getting educated as a consumer, buying responsibly and communicating with corporations that you expect them to clean up their supply chain
• pray with perseverance until slavery is ended
• persevere – stay in this fight for the long haul
  

You can see the new list here.

I never imagined that one of my many rants at how things could be better would turn into tangible change! Slavery has not been abolished, but I am convinced that the changes help in a small way, to encourage people everywhere to do something more effective over the long term to eradicate this evil. One little person with limited understanding and a desire to be part of the solution…