This date was chosen as it’s the feast day of Saint Josephine Bakhita (1869-1947). She was born in Darfur (now in western Sudan) and lived in a loving family until, aged 7 or 8, she was seized by slave traders. Over the coming years she was sold multiple times, eventually ending up in Italy. There she encountered the Canossian religious sisters, became a Christian, and joined the Canossians. She was much loved by those who encountered her, and in 2000 she was canonized a saint. Today she is the patron saint of victims of human trafficking.

Inspired by St. Josephine Bakhita’s canonization, Catholic religious sisters and bishops started working with police forces and other groups to eradicate human trafficking and modern-day slavery. A group from the UK convened an international meeting of police chiefs and Church leaders at the Vatican in 2014. They stayed at the Vatican residence called Santa Marta, and the alliance that developed adopted the name The Santa Marta Group. The Group’s President is Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster.

To mark the feast of St. Josephine Bakhita and the International Day of Prayer and Awareness against Human Trafficking, the Santa Marta Group has prepared resources for dissemination in parishes and schools. Posters, bookmarks, parish newsletter inserts, and a bidding prayer encourage people to remember the 130,000 victims of human trafficking in the UK, and the 50 million victims worldwide. Pope Francis has denounced modern-day slavery as “a crime against humanity”. We are all called to combat this evil trade. Santa Marta Group seeks to equip people with the tools to do this, through online resources and rolling out awareness-raising sessions across the dioceses. Further information and resources and can be found at: https://santamartagroup.org/st-bakhita-day