A 2016 survey showed that 87% of parents in the United States planned to give their children Easter baskets. If you will be putting together an Easter basket, consider doing something a little different this year.
Buy Fairly Traded Chocolate
If you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, you probably knew I was going to say that. It was my love of chocolate and my discovery that my buying habits could be supporting slavery that first started me down the path to becoming a modern-day abolitionist. That’s why I talk about buying fair-trade chocolate so much.
If you are concerned about slavery and chocolate, you will be happy to know that you can find fair-trade chocolate bunnies and eggs. Of course, you should expect to pay more than you would for many of the best-selling Easter treats from major candy companies. You can save money by checking Aldi before ordering chocolate online; I have found UTZ-certified chocolate Easter candy at Aldi in the past.
If you can’t get fairly traded chocolate at a local store, check these online retailers:
Divine Chocolate makes both milk and dark chocolate mini eggs and candy-coated milk chocolate eggs. We have purchased these in the past and enjoy the taste.
Lucky Chocolates has a variety of chocolate bunny offerings, including one with coconut nests. If you want to get really fancy, buy some Easter truffles.
Mama Ganache offers chocolate bunnies in three different sizes, as well as creme-filled eggs. If you prefer to buy complete Easter baskets, they also offer some of those, including a vegan option.
Lake Champlain Chocolates has a large variety of chocolate bunnies, eggs and even carrots, including some vegan chocolates. Like Mama Ganache, they offer complete Easter baskets.
Include a Charitable Gift
Consider swapping out or supplementing some of the contents of an Easter basket with a charitable gift. There are, of course, many different charities you could give to. I will focus on a couple of options related to animals traditionally associated with Easter: lambs, rabbits, and chicks.
(1) Donate livestock to people in need. Heifer International gives many different animals to families, including the animals I mentioned above. While these animals do provide for the families in all sorts of ways, including supplying wool, milk, pest control, and eggs, they are also sources of animal protein for the people who receive them. If this bothers you, you may want to consider my next suggestion.
(2) Make a donation to an organization that looks out for the welfare of animals. Your local animal shelter may very well receive some unloved bunnies soon after Easter, and at any time of year, they will need to provide space for pets waiting for adoption. You could also give to organizations that look out for the welfare of farm animals, such as the ASPCA.
When I planned this post, I was going to focus solely on Easter baskets. As so often happens, my plans changed the day before the post was to go live. I ran across #doctorsoverdresses on Twitter. The woman behind this hashtag, Holly Stallcup, is encouraging women to spend money on covering women’s medical bills rather than buying a new Easter dress. I don’t remember when I last bought an Easter dress for myself (for that matter, it’s been years since I bought one for my daughter), but since Americans spent approximately $3 billion on new clothes for Easter last year, I think this is a great idea! Holly is the executive director of a nonprofit called Mended Women, and she started this campaign in association with her nonprofit. But — and I hope she won’t mind my saying this — I think you can give to other charities if you prefer to do so. The important thing is to question your priorities this Easter.