On 4 May 2024, I will be taking part in the womens solo event at Hyrox London– an intense fitness event- to raise money for The Strongtower Foundation. The Strongtower Foundation is a human rights organisation with a mission to support victims of modern slavery and human trafficking. These often go under the radar and are hidden in society, but right now almost 50 million people are in slavery worldwide. In the UK, the current recorded estimate is 136,000 but the figure is likely to be far higher.

I came across The Strongtower Foundation thanks to my current involvement with the We Rise In Reverse Mentoring Programme (www.werisein.co.uk- an amazing company providing mentorship and leadership programmes for black professionals alongside Reverse mentoring- a programme for senior leaders with the aim of increasing awareness and understanding of the challeneges faced by ethnically underrepresented professionals within the workplace).

So what actually is human trafficking and modern slavery?

Modern Slavery and human trafficking is the movement of people for the purpose of exploiting them. People are trafficked into modern slavery using force, fraud, coercion, trickery and deception. Victims are often vulnerable, coming from areas where there is little work, fractured families or poverty. Traffickers steal the autonomy, voice and freedom of their victims – they abuse them for financial gain and personal profit. It can take many forms- sexual exploitation, forced criminality, forced labour, domestic servitude and organ harvesting. Modern slavery may be hidden, but it exists and it is controlling the lives of so many people.

How are The Strongtower Foundation helping?

They care for survivors of modern slavery and protect vulnerable people by offering them safe housing and holistic support. Their housing programme supports survivors by helping them build their tools for independent living.

- Provision of safe accommodation for victims to call “home”

- A befriending support network

- Life skills training (including finance and budgeting training)

- Mental wellbeing and counselling sessions

- Education and employability opportunities

- Self discovery and development tools

This resonates with me - in my opinion, we all have a moral obligation to stand up to issues like this and do what we can in our position of privilege to help. Through the work I am doing with We Rise In, I have a greater understanding of the wide range of challenges faced by minoritised groups. Human trafficking primarily affects the most vulnerable members of society which includes the racial, ethnic, gender, and/or social groups most impacted by discrimination, inequity, and inequality in a given community.

So please give what you can to this worthwhile charity. The money will be going directly towards their current housing project in London– towards furnishings, welcome packs and refurbishment costs to make their houses into homes.

As for Hyrox itself

- yes I had my arm twisted to do it

- yes I am training (when I can)

- yes I sometimes have doubts because I’m now a mum of two, over 40 and not as fit as I used to be

- no, crop tops are not mandatory ( i had to check!)

- no I am not in my cover photo…

but yes I will give it my best shot and share, the no doubt, horrendous after photos.

Thank you for taking the time to read this and donate!