Why is he shaving his head?

Matthew Morton, third year student at UEA, and proud owner of an impressive head of hair, is having it all shaved off to raise money for STOP THE TRAFFIK, a charity that campaigns against human trafficking.

How Matthew might look after his charity shave… (Photo credit: Ben Hammond)

The shave takes place on Monday, February 10 and yesterday Matthew exceeded his fundraising target of a whopping £3,500 and is now looking to hit £4,000. All the money raised will be donated to STOP THE TRAFFIK, you can check out the UEA branch’s Facebook group here.

Matthew’s hair and beard will be shaved on the 10th February

Speaking in his introductory video about why he is letting his hair, “my pride and joy”, be completely shaved off, Matthew talks about the shocking statistics behind human trafficking: “the latest statistics say that there are around 30 million people in slavery worldwide”. He also explains that human trafficking is likely to overtake drug trafficking as it gives a “higher profit, for lower risk”.

“Children can be found in all aspects of trafficking; sexual trafficking, domestic servitude, organ trafficking…The average age for a girl to be trafficked into the sex industry is twelve, average age for a boy is eleven, children as young as three are trafficked into the sex industry.”

So where will your donation go?

“STOP THE TRAFFIK provide lessons and assemblies in schools… educate and empower them to fight in their communities… as well as training front-line professionals, doctors, medical professionals etc to spot human trafficking in their line of work. They also produce and distribute resources to those vulnerable from trafficking, as well as lobbying large companies known to use trafficking to source their workforce in different ways.”

Matthew taking part in STOP THE TRAFFIK’s 2012 photo campaign.

Matthew first got involved with STOP THE TRAFFIK in first year when he was asked by a friend to take some photographs and he later went on to become a committee member and is now the President of the society. On his motivation and dedication to the cause, including sacrificing his hair, he said; “I’ve found the last couple of months that the greater the sacrifice you are prepared to make for a cause, the more people will sponsor you” . He is also motivated by his Christian faith and is hugely grateful for the support of various churches and Christian networks, as well as the overwhelming support of friends, family and other social media contacts.

The head shave will be done privately on Monday, though a video and before and after shots will be available. Matthew will also be making a special appearance in the Hive at 3pm.

If you would like to give a donation to STOP THE TRAFFIK and sponsor Matthew in shaving his lovely locks for a very worthy cause, click here

To watch his full video click here

For more information about the event click here