Submitted by Brian Blackwell on
HOUMA – Fifth-grader Emma LeCompte recently was asked to sell World’s Finest Chocolate as a fundraiser for her elementary school band.
But she had learned last summer in Vacation Bible School at Mulberry Baptist Church about child slavery.
“Yes, slavery still exists,” wrote Church Secretary Haley Kraemer in an email to the Baptist Message. “In fact, it is so pervasive that it touches much of what we purchase. One example is on cocoa plantations in Africa.
“Many large chocolate-producing corporations knowingly use chocolate that comes from suppliers who participate in slavery,” Kraemer continued. “Why? Because it’s cheap. Why is it cheap? Because they use slave labor to keep production costs down. Why do they use slave labor? Because customers are paying so little for their product that [manufacturers] can’t afford to pay workers. And so goes the cycle.”
Emma was concerned that WFC may not use Fair Trade chocolate (not produced by slavery or unsafe standards) so she researched it, and when she checked out www.globalexchange.org/fairtrade/cocoa/worldsfinest, she found the company was part of that cycle.
“Emma knew immediately she could not sell that chocolate,” Kraemer wrote. “Emma is living out what she learned [in that Amazing Adventures VBS.]
“So she brought back the chocolate to her band director and explained why she could not sell it. Not wanting to be the weak link in the fundraisding chain, Emma decided to find another way to make up for the lost funds for her band. Her parents offered to write a check to the band to make up for this loss of funds, but Emma wanted to find a way to do it herself.
“She came up with a plan to hold a concert with some of her band buddies, who now have learned about child slavery and its connection to chocolate because Emma is living out what she believes,” Kraemer continued. “They are holding a short [hour-long] concert in Emma’s front yard this Sunday [Dec. 16] and charging $5 admission to raise the funds for their band. They are also selling treats. …
“We as her [church] family have an opportunity to support and encourage this young activist to stand up for what she believes, to educate ourselves about a serious problem, and to show our kids they too can step out of their comfort zone and make a difference.”