Back in 1990 when future husband Will Smith was starring in “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air,” Jada Pinkett Smith tried out for the role of his girlfriend, Lisa. She didn’t get the role. The reason? She was too short. Standing 5-feet tall, she may have missed out on the role, but she ended up marrying Smith in 1997 and being a towering force when it comes to taking a stand for causes.
Not one to shy away from touchy subjects like her own own past addiction to porn, she “is passionate about fighting human trafficking, advocating for survivors and creating awareness in communities.”
On Friday, October 11, Jada will show her support for those victims of human trafficking at the New Friends New Life Luncheon at the Omni Dallas Hotel.
The actress “was first inspired to advocate for those impacted by sex trafficking in 2011, when her then-pre-teen daughter Willow [Smith} watched a documentary at school and told her [mother] that there were children her age being sold for sex in the United States. Pinkett Smith did not believe it until completing her own research, making her an immediate advocate against the practice.”
According to Jada, “When I realized it was such a huge problem for women and children all over the world, I really wanted to be a voice to let people know that human trafficking exists.”
One way she brought to light the practice was being featured in CNN’s “Children for Sale: The Fight to End Human Trafficking” in 2015, as well as being “an advocate for Don’t Sell Bodies, an organization that focuses on education and preventing the spread of child sex slavery in America.”
Jada added, “Every last one of us has a job to do regarding combating human trafficking — whether it’s looking at our own attitudes toward young women and men who get into these circumstances, how we label things or how we love our children.”
According to New Friends New Life CEO Kim Robinson, “Jada is a resounding voice against sex trafficking, and her passion and commitment inspires those she encounters to join the fight to eradicate this horrific crime from our communities. She gracefully and skillfully utilizes the platform of her extraordinary 30-year career to sound the alarm about this issue, and our luncheon audience will, without question, be inspired to do the same.”
Event sponsorships start at $2,500 and are available now. The limited number of individual tickets will be going for $250, but will not be available until September.
* Photo credit: Don Flood