Monday, November 30, 2015

Invest in the Lives of Imprisoned Juveniles by Investing in Me

As I've been sharing on this blog, Zambia lacks a well-functioning juvenile justice system. Juveniles cannot afford lawyers or access legal aid. In court, they are undefended, which leads to absurd charges (trafficked children charged as traffickers) and one-sided trials (12 year olds cross-examining police). Juveniles committing petty crimes (stealing from a clothesline) end up in prison for years waiting for court dates (teens waiting since 2012 for a judge to sign their sentencing order). During these long detentions, juveniles are held in adult prisons in inhumane conditions leaving them vulnerable to physical and sexual violence with little or no access to healthcare, education, or other social services.


For the past year I have been joined by community volunteers to provide encouragement, activities, and basics such as food and clothing to imprisoned juveniles (ages 8-19) in Zambia's capital city Lusaka and other prisons around the country. While we have made a positive impact in the lives of these boys, as an attorney in both the USA and Zambia, I knew I could do more than just try to improve their imprisonment - I could help end it.

In August 2015, I and a few other local attorneys began looking at some of the boys' cases. We did what we could during our lunch hours, after work, and on the weekends, but it quickly became clear what that what most of these cases needed was lots and lots of time to unravel years of court delays.
In order to work for the freedom of these boys (and the few girls in system), I made the leap of faith to quit my corporate job here in Zambia in October 2015 to dedicate myself full time to juvenile legal cases and welfare. In these few months of having just one person 100% available, we have seen key partnerships built and 30+ boys are closer to their freedom.

I could have waited to start this until I had a big grant from a foreign government or had conducted a USA fundraising tour - in fact I hope both are in my near future. But seeing the tragedies of these young lives unfolding day after day, month after month, year after year, I knew in my heart I needed to start right away instead of first waiting to build my own security.

I am looking for people who also believe these young lives are worth saving and are willing to invest in my work for their freedom. I have been applying for grants and will be traveling to do fundraising as soon as I have made sufficient headway. But for now I need help to allow me to get through this start up phase (until mid-2016).  For me to be able to remain in Zambia during this crucial time I need to raise $20,000. An additional $10,000 is needed for a suitable vehicle to travel to remote prisons across Zambia, where we estimate up to 500 juveniles may be facing prolonged detention.

I made my decision to be "all in," trusting the Lord to use people all around the world to support this work and am looking forward to seeing a miracle first hand.  Do you want to be a part of our efforts to rescue these boys that everyone else has forgotten about?

"For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me...Whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me." Matthew 25:35,36,40

To invest in my life and work in Zambia, please consider supporting my CrowdRise Fundraiser [https://www.crowdrise.com/legalservicesforimpr1/fundraiser/saralarios] or contact me to contribute directly (avoiding crowd-funding admin fees).

If you have any additional questions about my work in Zambia, I would love to arrange a time to speak to you personally.

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