Monday, October 8, 2007

HUMAN TRAFFICKING 10/07

So I am on a mission: to continue my work against human trafficking/sex slavery. In the past few months, I have coordinated a benefit to raise money for women in Nepal. Now I am working on organizing the NGOs to form a spiderweb: start to finish help for victims.



PREVENTION & AWAREMESS ARE OUR BEST TOOLS:::



From the Gotham Gazette - http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/crime/20071001/4/2304
A Modern Slaveryby Aubrey Fox01 Oct 2007
A Poster from VietAct
It took 12 years for Martina Okeke to break free. After moving from Nigeria to New York in 1988, she cooked, cleaned and took care of a Staten Island couple's children on the promise of a $300 monthly wage and tuition help for her kids back home. She never received a penny.
Friends from Okeke's church finally convinced her to leave the family, but she refused to report them to the authorities. "I did not want to have a bad name," she told a reporter from the New York Times.
In June 2001, two Indonesian women, who paid $3,000 each for a falsified visa, airline tickets from Jakarta and the promise of a well-paying restaurant job in New York, escaped from a Brooklyn brothel. They had arrived in New York only to find that their "debt" had increased to $30,000. The men waiting for them at the airport also threatened to kill them if they refused to work as prostitutes, according to the Brooklyn Rail.
Human trafficking for labor or sex would seem to be something from another century — or at least another place. Stories like these, however, make clear that the practice exists in modern-day New York. Galvanized by such shocking anecdotes, an unlikely coalition of Bush administration officials, Christian conservatives and liberal activists have focused attention and money on human trafficking, passing landmark federal legislation and committing over $150 million to find and help domestic trafficking victims.
This June, New York joined the effort, becoming one of 29 states to pass state-specific human trafficking legislation. The law, designed to address some of the perceived gaps and shortcomings of the federal law, gives local law enforcement agencies new tools to prosecute traffickers and new services for victims. Scheduled to take effect on November 1, it was immediately hailed by a broad group of supporters, including victim and immigrant rights organizations as well as the editorial board of the New York Times.
Having set the legislative framework for anti-trafficking legislation, New York turns to the difficult task of implementation. Fighting trafficking is difficult, and the problem is complicated by the fact that no one can even agree on how many victims are currently in the United States.
The Scope of the Problem
By its very nature, human trafficking is a shadowy enterprise. Traffickers commonly say they will harm victims or their families if they attempt to leave. Language barriers and a suspicion of government rooted in their home countries often prevent victims from going to law enforcement or others who might help them. Traffickers may confiscate passports or warn victims that they will be deported if they approach authorities, according to Juhu Thikral, a lawyer who leads the Urban Justice Center's Sex Workers Project.
At the same time, the media, government officials and some advocates appear to inflate the number of people affected by human trafficking. For example, Congress enacted the Trafficking Victims Protections Act in 2000 on the basis of a State Department report that put the number of foreign-born victims entering the United States at 50,000 a year. According to a recent article in the Washington Post, the estimate was reached by a CIA analyst who relied on overseas news clippings. After the Government Accountability Office issued a report criticizing the methodology, a new estimate was created, essentially by using a more sophisticated version of the same methodology. A later calculation cut the figure by two thirds, resulting in an estimate of between 14,500 and 17,500 foreign-born trafficked victims per year. In 2006 former attorney general Alberto Gonzales told Congress that even that might have been overstated.
Determining the number of trafficked victims in New York presents even more problems. With its international airports and ethnic neighborhoods, New York is believed to be a major hub in the trafficking business, but no reliable data exists on the nature or extent of the problem.
A final complicating factor relates to how trafficking is defined. Under New York law, a trafficking victim does not have to be foreign-born. The definition includes anyone who is forced into sex work or other types of work, such as domestic labor. That means, for example, that a young woman born and brought up in New York City who is recruited as a sex worker under false pretenses can be counted as a victim of sex trafficking. The New York State Office of Children and Family Services estimates that over 2,500 children are forced into sex work every year in New York.
Perhaps wary of these problems, advocates and government officials would not offer an estimate of the total number of trafficking victims working in New York City. They all couched their answer in terms of broad ranges and were careful to note the unreliability of “official” totals. Whatever the numbers, though, experts believe that only a small number of human trafficking victims ever come to the attention of victim support agencies. For example, Crystal Deboise, the coordinator of Human Trafficking Programs at the New York Association of New Americans estimates only between 100 and 150 human trafficking victims are currently being served by the main victim support organizations in New York City, including the Association of New Americans and Safe Horizon.
Service for Victims
Whatever the numbers of victims, most need help. To encourage more victims to come forward and seek assistance, the New York State law seeks to fill gaps in victim services authorized by federal law.
Under the federal trafficking prevention, passed by Congress in 2000, victims can receive services if they are certified as victims by the Department of Health and Human Services. They are also eligible for so-called T-Visas, which allow foreign-born victims to stay in the United States while they help law enforcement agencies prosecute the case. Advocates say, though, that the benefits offered by federal law are often slow in coming. It can take 18 months for the federal government to issue a T-Visa. According to humantrafficking.org, in the first six years since their creation, only 500 T-Visas were issued.
To address this, the New York law will make “pre-certification” assistance available to victims. It authorizes the state’s Office of Temporary and Disability Assistance to enter into contracts with social service agencies to provide services immediately to victims who come forward. The goal is help address what Deboise calls the “first week problem”: meeting the immediate needs of trafficking victims for food and shelter. “People don’t (always) know they’re a victim of trafficking,” said Deboise. “They want to know, ‘am I allowed to leave?’ We’ll send a cab to pick them up, do a quick assessment and try to find them a place to sleep for the night.”
Even under the new law, victims, especially illegal immigrants, face a difficult choice: co-operate or face deportation. “We make it clear to people that if they’re over 18, in order to pursue services or legal status, they have to cooperate with law enforcement” said Thikral of the Urban Justice. For many individuals, that can be a difficult choice: Despite being beaten by her boss at a Suffolk County brothel, one Long Island immigrant who initially agreed to cooperate with police recanted, according to the New York Times. Now in federal custody, she is awaiting deportation.
Cracking Down on Traffickers
A second goal of the New York law is to crack down on the practice of trafficking itself. Three new felonies have been added to state law, including laws that specifically target the methods used in sex and labor trafficking, such as withholding passports and threatening deportation. A third felony targets New York businesses that knowingly promote “sex tourism” in other countries. Finally, a number of misdemeanor crimes were also added to the New York law, including increased penalties for patronizing a prostitute (the so-called “Johns” law).
Advocates hail most of these changes. “This is a strong definition of trafficking,” said Thikral. Under the law, prosecutors can now target specific techniques used by traffickers rather having to pursue trafficking cases on rape and kidnapping charges, which may be harder to prove.
The advocates do have some concerns however. Because the law makes sex trafficking a higher-level felony (punishable by up to 25 years in jail) than labor trafficking (up to 7 years), some fear labor trafficking will not be taken as seriously. Thikral disagreed with the legislature’s decision to increase the penalties for Johns because she worries it might keep the Johns from bringing trafficking cases to the attention of law enforcement.
Enforcing the Law
Whatever their qualms about specific aspects of the law, most experts believe the most important change is that it will encourage local law enforcement to be more aggressive in prosecuting trafficking. “If you don’t have state penalties, you have to go outside the state system,” said Mary B. Kavaney, the deputy commissioner of the New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services, said. “With three new felonies, you can bring [trafficking] to the forefront” of law enforcement efforts in New York.
This could result in increased prosecution of relatively small-scale traffickers. Federal law enforcement agencies tend to be more interested in cases with major traffickers and large numbers of victims. Under the new state law, local police can help pick up the slack by pursuing cases that involve a smaller number of victims.
For Kenneth Franzblau, the director of human trafficking at the New York State Office of Criminal Justice Services, the key to successful implementation of the new law is training: getting police officers to adopt a different perspective when they confront a potential trafficking situation. He cites the examples of raiding a brothel or investigating a domestic dispute between a nanny and her employer. In those examples, he would encourage the police to ask questions about the living situation of the people they find, whether they are free to leave or if they were forced to surrender passports or other identification to their employer.
Still, breaking up trafficking rings is difficult at any level of law enforcement. According to the Washington Post, 148 federal cases have been brought nationwide since 2000, despite the creation of 42 Justice Department task forces designed to bring representatives of law enforcement and social service agencies together.
While experts dispute the number, no one doubts that there are traffickers in the New York area. But more than a year after a Long Island Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force was organized, not one trafficker operating on Long Island has been arrested, and just one victim, a Chinese woman forced to work in a Wantagh brothel that was disguised as a massage parlor, has been freed from traffickers, according to a May 2006 New York Times report. Convincing the woman to cooperate was a painstaking process -- she had been arrested twice in four months, but it took the intervention of a prosecutor and a police detective to convince her that she wouldn’t be deported. Notwithstanding her testimony, the owner of the brothel has yet to be arrested, in large part because the police still need testimony.
After New York’s law takes effect on November 1, the Interagency Task Force on Human Trafficking will have the most responsibility for its implementation. Composed of multiple state agencies, the task force will coordinate training efforts for law enforcement agencies and evaluate the state’s progress in targeting trafficking efforts. It will tackle the issue of data collection in hopes of getting a more reliable handle on the problem. (The Vera Institute for Justice is also embarking on a similar research effort with funding from the federal government, using New York City as a test case.)
This is not a purely academic question. Officials at the state Division of Criminal Justice Services say it is key to their mission. “No one knows the numbers,” Kavaney said. “If we knew the numbers of victims, the ethnicity of victims and perpetrators and the types of businesses being used (by traffickers) as cover, we’d go a long way.”
Aubrey Fox is project director of Bronx Community Solutions, aimed at changing the Bronx court system’s approach to low-level crime.
Gotham Gazette - http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/crime/20071001/4/2304

Friday, April 13, 2007

sing it sister!

artist: corinne bailey rae
album: live in NY

Since I've Been Loving You (Live At Webster Hall) (great cover!!)

Choux Pastry Heart (Live At Webster Hall)

******************************

artist: jill scott
album: who is jill scott?

One Is The Magic # [Album]

Wednesday, April 11, 2007

anti- sex slavery event!



Friday 4/20 @ studio mezmor

As you may know, I have been working with some people to stop sex slavery/human trafficking. A group of us who are committed to this cause are putting on an event: April 20th, 9pm -12am @ Studio Mezmor.

If you have any interest in aiding the cause or want an event that has opportunity to check our art, listen to music, and eat & drink for bare minimum then please join us.

Please pass this info on. The more people that know, the more people we can help save from this horrific lifestyle.

http://www.dreamsfreedom.com/home.php

Oh my blonde redhead!

artist: blonde redhead
album: 23

23

The Dress

SW

Monday, April 2, 2007

Attention: I am looking for a career move ~

If you can help...PLease do!
Desire: creative field; art; photography; music; A& R; location scout; travel writer

K.Boldrini
kboldrini@gmail.com
______________________________________________________________________________
Education
Skidmore College Saratoga Springs, NY
Bachelor of Arts, Double Major: Psychology, Spanish May 2001
Thesis: The Complexity of Human Trafficking
Universidad de la Autonoma Madrid, Spain Jan 2000- June 2000
Spanish language & culture, Psychology, Art History
La Guardia College Queens, NY
Pre-Clinical Nursing Degree expected completion: June 2007

Work Experience
Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center-Bone Marrow Transplant Pediatric Dept. New York, NY
Research Data Manager Sept. 2005 – present
Responsible for managing, developing, editing, and organizing clinical research protocols. Assigned to meticulously administer patients' archives, patient calendars, and research billing. Collaborate with several outside institutions regarding restricted material. Delegated responsibility to prepare office files for external and FDA audits. Expected to manage multiple concurrent projects in different stages.

Luis Reyes, Photographer. New York, NY.
Freelance Casting and Art Director. Dec. 2005 – present.
Interview, audition, and select models for high fashion photography shoots. Lead creative role for projects: concept layout and storyboards. Experience with designer and photographer identity. Maintain production schedules and budgets.

Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center- Outpatient clinics (Gen Med/Pulm/Ortho/Endo/Pain mgmt/PT. New York, NY
Administrative and Clinical Session Assistant Oct. 2001 – Sept. 2005
Performed lead role in coordinating outpatient clinics. Served as a liaison between medical staff, the hospital's administration, patients, and families. Heavily contributed to promoting an innovative smoking cessation program. Led improvement projects for decreasing paper waste and improving recycling. In charge of training and supervising junior staff.

The Wine Gallery Saratoga Springs, NY
Assistant Manager/Buyer May 2001- Sept. 2001
Made executive decisions of wine purchases. Organized art openings. Assisted clientele with wine selections. Hosted tours of art gallery. Hosted "Uncork New York" Gala Event and assisted in silent auction.

WSPN 91.1 FM Saratoga Springs, NY
Associate Disc Jockey Sept. 2000 - May 2001
Developed the play list for a two-hour program that advanced world music, particularly from Latin America.

The Skidmore College Orchestra Saratoga Springs, NY
Orchestra Manager, Cello Player Jan. 1988 - May 2001
Assisted the director and conductor in selecting the music to be performed each semester. Designed a practical stage set-up. Wrote and sent out press releases to promote the orchestra.

Yorktown Parks and Recreation Yorktown, NY
Senior Summer Camp Counselor June 1996 - Aug. 2000
Cared for 20-plus grammar school-age campers at a time. Demonstrated good judgment and initiative by instilling leadership, participation, responsibility, and cooperation in campers and fellow counselors. Coordinated athletic and artistic activities.

Skills
- Able to work with Windows and OS systems
- ProWord, Excel, Power Point, Outlook, Health Care Information Management System, Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, etc.
- Professional, self-motivated, energetic, organized, detail oriented, good time management, excellent communication and telephone technique, problem-solver.

Affiliations
Co-Producer, ‘Dreams of Freedom’ Art & Music Event: April 2007
Member, Tiny Stars anti-Human Trafficking group (tinystars.org) June 2006 – present
Volunteer, Public Space 122 Theatre Group (ps122.org) Jan. 2003 - present
Captain, Amsterdam Billiard Club: Pool Tournament League 2003 - 2005 (3rd place in 2005)
Member, Skidmore College Orchestra, Black Box, and theatre productions, Cello. Sept. 1997- May 2001
Member, Skidmore College Dance Performances, Indian, African. Sept. 1997 – Dec. 2000

Tuesday, March 27, 2007

http://www.gbh.tv/music.videos/bondedorole/soltaofrangopage.html

* kick ass *

artist: para one

Midnight swim

artist: surkin
album: action replay

Midnight Swim (Surkin Drowning Mix)

________________________________
various peeps doing remixes of bjork's "army of me":::

Army of Me

Army of Me (Bersarinplatz Mix)

artist: mikhail karikis
Once More (In CoF Minor)

Thursday, March 22, 2007

artist: young love
album: too young to fight it

Find A New Way

artist: mute math
album: mute math

Plan B (Album Version)

artist: ashley simpson
album:

L.O.V.E.

Friday, February 16, 2007

stuck in my head!

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000E6TZLK/thehypemachin-20?creative=327641&camp=14573

Artist: Margot & The Nuclear So And So's
Album: The Dust Of Retreat
Year: 2006
Title: Jen Is Bringin' The Drugs

Jen is bringing the drugs.
She wants to get real fucked up.
She used to laugh and smile,
But the years of denial.
Have taken their toll on her dial.

But, me, I do as I please.
I caught you and set you free.
Cause I have been left alone by the people I've known.
And I don't know when they're coming home.

And Jen don't wanna be seen,
But I saw her in a swank magazine.
She had an airbrushed face,
But the lines of distaste
were crossed without crossing of legs.

And I don't wanna be found.
So when you get home,
I'm skipping town.
I'm leaving to go someplace
where nobody will have any clue where I am.

And Jen is bringing the drugs.
She's gonna get me fucked up.
Cause love is an inkless pen.
It's a tavern, it's sin.
It's a horrible way to begin

Friday, January 26, 2007

Sun Kil Moon

red house painters singer doing cover of modest mouse!!


Neverending Math Equation


Biography
After dissolving his previous band, Red House Painters, singer/songwriter Mark Kozelek resurfaced with Sun Kil Moon, refining and expanding the luminous acoustic balladry and harrowingly intimate lyricism that are the hallmarks of his career to date. Born in Massillon, OH, in 1967, Kozelek was addicted to drugs by the age of ten. After a stint in rehab he sought refuge in music, and formed his first band, God Forbid, while in his teens. Upon relocating to Atlanta, he struck up a friendship with drummer Anthony Koutsos, and together they formed the first incarnation of Red House Painters. A move to San Francisco followed, where guitarist Gorden Mack and bassist Jerry Vessel rounded out the group's roster. While performing on the Bay Area club circuit, the quartet came to the attention of American Music Club frontman Mark Eitzel, who often cited Red House Painters as his favorite band; through Eitzel, RHP's demo tape made its way to the London offices of 4AD Records, which signed the group and in 1992 issued the unvarnished demos -- a striking collection of spartan, atmospheric melodies lurking behind Kozelek's ghostly vocals -- as the LP Down Colorful Hill. Subsequent efforts, highlighted by a pair of eponymous albums released back to back in 1993, established Kozelek as a writer of stunning emotional depth, unflinchingly detailing his erratic, abusive nature and troubled background. But relations with 4AD grew strained, and when Kozelek began work on a long-rumored solo album in the wake of 1995's radiant Ocean Beach, the label terminated Red House Painters' contract. Although none of Kozelek's bandmates appeared on the completed LP, the solo disc Songs for a Blue Guitar was instead issued under the RHP banner when it appeared on Island's Supreme imprint in 1996. The group reunited in late 1997 for one final album, Old Ramon, but the Polygram/Universal merger spelled Supreme's end, and the completed LP was indefinitely shelved. Kozelek soon began work assembling and producing Take Me Home: A Tribute to John Denver, an all-star cover record celebrating the life and music of the late folkie, and in 2000 issued his first proper solo effort, Rock 'n' Roll Singer, a curious yet compelling patchwork highlighted by three Bon Scott-era AC/DC covers. Perhaps most surprising, Kozelek also co-starred in filmmaker Cameron Crowe's 2000 release Almost Famous, playing Larry Fellows, bassist for the fictional '70s hard rock band Stillwater. After securing the rights to Old Ramon, Kozelek licensed the album to Sub Pop for release in the spring of 2001. Later that same year, the label also issued his limited-edition solo set White Christmas Live. In early 2002, Kozelek assembled Sun Kil Moon with former Red House Painter Anthony Koutsos, Black Lab bassist Geoff Stanfield, and erstwhile American Music Club drummer Tim Mooney. Their debut LP, Ghosts of the Great Highway, appeared to wide critical acclaim in late 2003, and Kozelek assembled a new touring band to support its release, spending the better part of 2004 on the road. He also continued his film career, again playing a fictional musician in the 2005 big-screen adaptation of Steve Martin's comedic novella Shopgirl. That summer, Kozelek joined with Low's Alan Sparhawk in the classic-rock cover band the Retribution Gospel Choir, issuing a tour-only EP in advance of the second Sun Kil Moon album, the much maligned Tiny Cities, a collection of covers by indie rock band Modest Mouse. The album was the first released on Kozelek's own Caldo Verde label. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide

Thursday, January 25, 2007

Wednesday, January 24, 2007

the IT band

artist: fink
album: biscuits for breakfast

Pills In My Pocket

free me libertines!

perfect french new orleans alt rock sound!
artist: the libertines
album: the libertines

What Became of the Likely Lads

The Libertines joined the pop fray of 2002, competing with the likes of the Strokes, Hives, Vines, and Doves with their debut single, "What a Waster." The Bernard Butler-produced track entered the U.K.'s Top 40 in June, leaving NME to crown the Libertines as the best new band in Britain. The double-A-side song "I Get Along" earned Single of the Week on BBC Radio 1. The London-based band, who inked a deal with Rough Trade in December 2001, features Carl Barat (guitar/vocals), Pete Doherty (guitar/vocals), John Hassall (bass), and Gary Powell (drums). Up the Bracket was released stateside in March 2003 while the single Time for Heroes gained momentum on the U.K. charts.

The group's Coachella Festival appearance later that spring, meanwhile, introduced their kinetic live act to the States. In June 2003, the band's playfully volatile chemistry began to go awry when Doherty didn't show up for a tour of Europe. The rest of the Libertines went ahead with the dates while Doherty formed another group that he initially also called the Libertines before changing the name to Babyshambles.

The following month, while the remaining Libertines were on tour in Japan, Doherty was arrested for breaking into Barat's apartment and stealing items including a harmonica, laptop computer, and antique guitar. In August -- around the same time that the band's single Don't Look Back Into the Sun became one of their biggest hits -- Doherty pled guilty, and also confessed to addictions to heroin and crack cocaine; in September he was sentenced to six months in jail. However, his sentence was reduced to two months on appeal, and with time off for good behavior, he was released from jail in early October and the complete Libertines lineup performed at the Rough Trade 25th anniversary show later that month. In November, Doherty played two shows in his own apartment that featured a mix of Libertines and Babyshambles songs. The band closed out 2004 with a string of local dates, and began 2004 by writing and recording new songs in France.

Their first U.K. dates of that year, a three-night residency at London's Brixton Academy, unfolded in a typically chaotic fashion when Doherty smashed his guitar and left the stage in the middle of the band's final performance. As the band continued to record, Doherty and Barat also appeared on "For Lovers," a single by their friend Wolfman; it became a surprise hit and the biggest Libertines-related release yet. Meanwhile, in April 2004, Babyshambles released their self-titled, limited-edition debut single. Later that month, the band were joined on-stage by Peter Perrett of the legendary new wave band the Only Ones, and performed "Don't Look Back Into the Sun" and the Only Ones' classic "Another Girl, Another Planet" with them.

But by May the Libertines' future looked grim again: Doherty was in and out of rehab clinics, such as London's Priory, in rapid succession. His ongoing troubles led the Libertines to cancel their performance at the Love Music Hate Racism concert that June; the event was subsequently canceled altogether. The band's appearances that month at Glastonbury, the Isle of Wight, and Morrissey's Meltdown festivals were also canceled and Doherty went to the rehab program at the Thamkrabok Monastery in Thailand; after a few days there, he left for Bangkok. Just after returning to London in mid-June, Doherty was arrested by London police, who detained him for a traffic offense and found a switchblade in his possession. The rest of the band carried on with their obligations for July and onward, saying that Doherty was welcome to rejoin the band once he had his addictions under control.

The Libertines recruited guitarist/vocalist Anthony Rossomando for their upcoming gigs, which included a performance at the T in the Park Festival. Doherty, meanwhile, set up a string of solo shows and dates with Wolfman, but failed to appear at several of the performances in early August. "Can't Stand Me Now," the debut single from the Libertines' self-titled second album, entered the U.K. charts at number two; in mid-August, Doherty appeared in court and pleaded guilty to the charge of possession of an offensive weapon. The Libertines arrived late that month, and the band -- minus Doherty -- toured the U.K. and the U.S. that fall in support of it. Doherty, meanwhile, put his efforts into Babyshambles, touring the U.K. with the band throughout September and October. ~ Heather Phares and MacKenzie Wilson, All Music Guide

Friday, January 19, 2007

Odyssey
Fischerspooner
Released: 2005

Thursday, January 18, 2007

The more you fluctuate from one position to the other today, the more you will waste valuable time and energy. Take a decisive stance and be confident with your choice. Give it everything you've got, and if it doesn't work out, try a different approach. Don't become paralyzed by indecisive behavior. Things are moving too quickly. Take control of your life; otherwise you will become just another puppet in the act.
artist: zucchero
album: fly

Un Kilo

Cuba Libre

beautiful:: L'Amore E' nell'Aria


in other news: best cart in the city: 53rd & 6th ave http://www.53rdand6th.com/