Beulah have designed two limited edition sweatshirts featuring slogans ‘Liberte’ and ‘Love’ in aid of Empowerment Collective, in association with international human rights group Walk Free. 10% of proceeds from the sale of the sweatshirts will be donated to the Empowerment Collective Beulah have designed two limited edition sweatshirts featuring slogans ‘Liberte’ and ‘Love’ in aid of Empowerment Collective, in association with international human rights group Walk Free. 10% of proceeds from the sale of the sweatshirts will be donated to the Empowerment Collective, and each sweatshirt wold will provide a week of skills training to a woman from disadvantaged backgrounds. 

With an ethical and fully traceable supply chain the sweatshirts are made from 100% organic Indian cotton, using an eco-responsible production process that meets high environmental standards and in accordance with the latest version of Gots. The embroidery has been hand stitched by women in Senegal, via Csao, an organisation which creates jobs and provides artisan workers with sustainable incomes. 

Walk Free, founded by Grace Forrest, is an international human rights group focussed on accelerating the end of modern slavery and producer of the Global Slavery Index which identifies fashion as one of the highest risk industries for modern slavery. The Empowerment Collective, founded by Nasreen Sheikh, is a survivor-led frontline organisation fighting to eradicate modern slavery in Nepal. Grace and Nasreen work together to shine a light on the prevalence of modern slavery in the world today and to fight for the rights of all people. 

Watch Nasrin and Grace's interview about modern slavery below. 

The circumstances of my birth make it an absolute miracle that I am alive, and connecting with you Natasha Rufus Isaacs. My name is Nasreen Sheikh, I escaped forced marriage, child labour, and extreme poverty.

I come from a dusty undocumented village not found on any bookor map. A village where children are born on the floors of their familyhomes, and neither birth or death records are kept.

This is where I was born and began my journey as an undocumented person. In my village every girl is forced into marriage. When my older sister's marriage was arranged at 12 years old, my mom told me I would be next. 

My life seemed destined for the sameoppressive path, I became a child labourer between theage of 9 or 10. Six of us lived, worked, and slept in a 10 by 10 room,without a bathroom or access to clean water. 

I remember splashing cold water on my face to stay awake. There were moments when I felt my little fingers were working as fast as the machines. If we didn’t meet our deadline we wouldn’t get paid at all. We were forced to work 7 days a week for 10 to 12 hours a day, getting paid less than $2 a day. My only bed was thelarge pile of clothes I toiled over every day. At night I fell asleep on these clothes, wondering where they were going to, and who would wear them. I hatedthose clothes. They were woven with the energy of my suffering. 

Help came to me in the form of a dog that led me to his kind guardian. Leslie John became my mentor and taught me how to read and write. His educational support allowed me to understand my own rights as a human being. In Kathmandu I saw women with deep trauma in their eyes, and emptiness in their malnourished bodies. I was determined to empower them. I founded a social enterprise Local Women’s Handicrafts in the same city where I was a former child labourer.

We are extremely grateful for choosing to donate 10% proceeds to our small nonprofit organization all donation will go towards creative and economic empowerment for women. The fast fashion industry supports in humane working conditions. The majority of those affected are women, who labor for long hours without a fair wage. In sweatshops, women are limited to sewing only one part of a garment, when they are capable of so much more.

We provide marginalized women with education and creative skills training to become professional fashion designers, seamstresses, embroiderers, weavers, and jewelry designers. After program completion, the women have the choice to obtain a loan and open their own business, or negotiate a fair salary with potential employers. Through our program, women are gaining creative skills and financial independence. They are creating sustainable fashion that is life affirming and supports a healthy environment.