Help Julian to Change Life.
Donation protected
I'm outraged! I really am.
That's why I’m asking you to make this a very special holiday season for Julian.
Julian is Colombian and is a smart and resilient 18 years old young man. I ran into Julian and his story because of my longstanding commitment as an ethnographer and activist in Colombia.
Julian is trapped in a sad situation — one that I am committed to change with your help. In fact, he was lured into modeling for online sex — and he wants to set himself free.
I decided to stand with him. I am asking you to stand with Julian as well.
Let me tell you briefly Julian’s story. He was born in a poor and violent neighborhood of a major city in Colombia. He grew up without a father and with a young mother who was not able to provide for him neither to give him the necessary love.
Thus, for a while, he was a foster child, and since the age of 12, he has worked to be able to provide for his mom and his little sister. He always got jobs that exploited him, working very long hours, with no day off, no benefits and very little pay.
A few months ago, someone contacted him on Facebook and told him he could work as a model. He was promised real money. And Julian thought it was the chance of his life.
But it turned out that the modeling job was to perform sexually on a webcam platform, where clients can look at him and tip him to make him do whatever they sexually want him to do.
For his social and economic condition, the money is good. It’s a quantity he never saw in his life. And yet it’s a small fraction of what the owners of the platform make.
Also, recently, his owners offered him to live in the studio where he works, and charges him exhuberant money for rent and food (I did some math, and basically because of Julian his owners can pay the rent and the services in a good neighborhood in the city).
But the exploitation is not only economical. Julian can’t share with none of his friends and acquaintance the work he is doing, and recently he told me, “when I am with my friends and my family, I feel inferior because of what I am doing.”
Julian wants to leave the webcam studio. He understands that though he gets money (that for him is significant), his current position doesn't build the life that he dreams.
I have started working with Julian, helping him to become more aware of his current condition and to the exploitation he is subject. I also started probing the dreams he has for his life.
What impressed me is his capacity to be concrete and to move to action. He is also very responsible with the money. Also, what I found extraordinary, is that despite all the difficulty and exploitation, he kept going to school in the evenings and on weekends, and thus this December 18, he will graduate from high school. This is a huge accomplishment!
I then put him in touch with several trusted friends of mine, and little by little we are building a small village around Julian and his life project.
And things start to happening: there is an English teacher who is giving him private lessons twice a week. The director of a renown acting academy met with Julian, recognized his talent, and accepted him in his academy starting in January. A very serious and successful talent manager has agreed to give a serious look at Julian and to help him explore the possibility of a career as an actor (which is something that motivates Julian a lot).
We are also looking into job options. Julian has now a CV and with a friend of mine went to buy clothing for when job interviews will be available.
I have been helping him so far economically and especially emotionally so that he stays motivated and doesn’t feel alone.
I invite you to join me in supporting Julian’s life project.
For this, I am committed to raising the amount of money that will allow him to leave the webcam studio immediately, find a place where to live with his mom and sister (recently evicted from their small apartment) and focus on his studies and personal development. In fact, we would like that 2017 is the year where he can make his life project his primary job.
As I tell Julian almost every day, “our focus right now is to build the foundations on which you can build the life that you want and that you deserve.”
For this reason, I am committed to raising USD 10,000
Here is how you can make a specific contribution.
One year housing, USD 4,200
Six months housing, USD 2,100
Three months housing USD 1,050
On month housing, USD 400
One semester Acting Academy, USD 750
One month eating, USD 150
One month transportation, USD 100
Clothing contribution, USD 80
I want to help Julian, USD 50
Here is a necessary drop in the ocean, USD 25
I want to be a part of this, USD 10
Every dollar counts. Every dollar is a step towards Julian's freedom and the possibility he has to reclaim his life.
Here is how Julian will get the money:
The educational money will be sent directly to the Acting school he will begin in January, while living costs will be sent to him on a monthly basis through Western Union.
Here is my commitment to you: to everyone who will contribute, Julian will send a picture and a personal note. Also, for the next 12 months, I will send you a monthly update on his progress and challenges.
Thank you for your generous help!
Aldo Civico
That's why I’m asking you to make this a very special holiday season for Julian.
Julian is Colombian and is a smart and resilient 18 years old young man. I ran into Julian and his story because of my longstanding commitment as an ethnographer and activist in Colombia.
Julian is trapped in a sad situation — one that I am committed to change with your help. In fact, he was lured into modeling for online sex — and he wants to set himself free.
I decided to stand with him. I am asking you to stand with Julian as well.
Let me tell you briefly Julian’s story. He was born in a poor and violent neighborhood of a major city in Colombia. He grew up without a father and with a young mother who was not able to provide for him neither to give him the necessary love.
Thus, for a while, he was a foster child, and since the age of 12, he has worked to be able to provide for his mom and his little sister. He always got jobs that exploited him, working very long hours, with no day off, no benefits and very little pay.
A few months ago, someone contacted him on Facebook and told him he could work as a model. He was promised real money. And Julian thought it was the chance of his life.
But it turned out that the modeling job was to perform sexually on a webcam platform, where clients can look at him and tip him to make him do whatever they sexually want him to do.
For his social and economic condition, the money is good. It’s a quantity he never saw in his life. And yet it’s a small fraction of what the owners of the platform make.
Also, recently, his owners offered him to live in the studio where he works, and charges him exhuberant money for rent and food (I did some math, and basically because of Julian his owners can pay the rent and the services in a good neighborhood in the city).
But the exploitation is not only economical. Julian can’t share with none of his friends and acquaintance the work he is doing, and recently he told me, “when I am with my friends and my family, I feel inferior because of what I am doing.”
Julian wants to leave the webcam studio. He understands that though he gets money (that for him is significant), his current position doesn't build the life that he dreams.
I have started working with Julian, helping him to become more aware of his current condition and to the exploitation he is subject. I also started probing the dreams he has for his life.
What impressed me is his capacity to be concrete and to move to action. He is also very responsible with the money. Also, what I found extraordinary, is that despite all the difficulty and exploitation, he kept going to school in the evenings and on weekends, and thus this December 18, he will graduate from high school. This is a huge accomplishment!
I then put him in touch with several trusted friends of mine, and little by little we are building a small village around Julian and his life project.
And things start to happening: there is an English teacher who is giving him private lessons twice a week. The director of a renown acting academy met with Julian, recognized his talent, and accepted him in his academy starting in January. A very serious and successful talent manager has agreed to give a serious look at Julian and to help him explore the possibility of a career as an actor (which is something that motivates Julian a lot).
We are also looking into job options. Julian has now a CV and with a friend of mine went to buy clothing for when job interviews will be available.
I have been helping him so far economically and especially emotionally so that he stays motivated and doesn’t feel alone.
I invite you to join me in supporting Julian’s life project.
For this, I am committed to raising the amount of money that will allow him to leave the webcam studio immediately, find a place where to live with his mom and sister (recently evicted from their small apartment) and focus on his studies and personal development. In fact, we would like that 2017 is the year where he can make his life project his primary job.
As I tell Julian almost every day, “our focus right now is to build the foundations on which you can build the life that you want and that you deserve.”
For this reason, I am committed to raising USD 10,000
Here is how you can make a specific contribution.
One year housing, USD 4,200
Six months housing, USD 2,100
Three months housing USD 1,050
On month housing, USD 400
One semester Acting Academy, USD 750
One month eating, USD 150
One month transportation, USD 100
Clothing contribution, USD 80
I want to help Julian, USD 50
Here is a necessary drop in the ocean, USD 25
I want to be a part of this, USD 10
Every dollar counts. Every dollar is a step towards Julian's freedom and the possibility he has to reclaim his life.
Here is how Julian will get the money:
The educational money will be sent directly to the Acting school he will begin in January, while living costs will be sent to him on a monthly basis through Western Union.
Here is my commitment to you: to everyone who will contribute, Julian will send a picture and a personal note. Also, for the next 12 months, I will send you a monthly update on his progress and challenges.
Thank you for your generous help!
Aldo Civico
Organizer
Aldo Civico
Organizer
Hoboken, NJ