Hi ____,

You’ve seen the hearts in store windows — shopping centres and neighbourhood stores are reminding us in the days leading up to Valentine’s Day that it’s time to shop for gifts for the people we love.

Unfortunately, many of these traditional tokens of love may be made with modern slavery:

- Chocolate may be tainted with child labour in the cocoa fields of West Africa1;
- Flowers like roses, tulips and orchids can come from fields where children and women work up to 20 hours a day for little or no pay2;
- Gold may be mined by men, women and children in the most dangerous of conditions — and, in the case of conflict mines in the DRC, often at gunpoint3;
- Gemstones like diamonds and rubies are often mined by slaves and can also end up polished and cut by children who sustain horrific injuries from working with gem-cutting tools and machinery4;
- Even the most innocent-looking plush toy may be produced in factories employing slave labour using cotton that may have been harvested by people forced to work as slaves5.

We’re sharing this with you because we believe you have the power to end slavery in these industries forever. If enough people speak up and ask their favourite stores to ensure their products are free of modern slavery, companies will feel consumer pressure to audit and act on forced labour in their supply chains.

Will you help? Click here to tell us which store you plan to visit for Valentine’s Day (or for any day this year!) that you expect them to sell products free of modern slavery.

In the next few days, companies will be paying attention, not only to the shopping choices their customers make, but also the questions and concerns raised during one of the top sales seasons of the year. Let’s make sure one of those questions is, “What are you doing to make sure there is no slavery in your products?”

Eliminating slavery in supply chains can be a complex process, but the first step is simple: Companies need to examine their supply chain for instances of forced labour and then make their findings public.

However you are planning to spend 14 February, will you join us in taking a few moments to make sure slavery isn’t hiding in gifts given in the name of love?

CLICK here to take action and send a message asking your favourite stores to ensure their products do not have slavery in their supply chain: http://www.walkfree.org/valentines-day/

This year, consumers are expected to spend $19 billion USD in Valentine's Day shopping6 — it’s appalling to think that any of that money may be going towards an industry that deprives people of their dignity and freedom.

Once you’ve taken action, please forward this message on to your friends who will be shopping for loved ones this Valentine’s Day.

In solidarity,

Debra, Mich, Jayde, Mika, Kate, Olly, Sarah, Kamini, Jess, Joanna & the Walk Free Team

P.S. Once you have delivered your message, can you click here to let us know how it went?

1 http://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.c ... le-normal/
2 http://www.theatlantic.com/internationa ... rs/253084/
3 http://www.raisehopeforcongo.org/conten ... t-minerals
4 http://campaign.worldvision.com.au/wp-c ... ery_LR.pdf
5 http://www.cottoncampaign.org/wp-conten ... report.pdf
6 http://www.marketwatch.com/story/valent ... 2014-01-29

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Walk Free is a movement of people everywhere, fighting to end one of the world's greatest evils: Modern slavery.