Sex Trafficking - Part 1

This afternoon three women from Grace Church, Chapel Hill www.gracelife.com left to travel to India to visit a ministry called Freedom Firm. Freedom Firm www.freedom.firm.in works with local police and governments to free underage girls from sex trafficking in India and also has a home for girls freed from trafficking. These young girls have had their childhood stolen and their innocence stripped away from them in the vilest manner. Some of them are so severely emotional damaged that they will never be able to function in normal society. In India, as well as many other countries, they can not go back to their families, sometimes because it was their families that sold them in the first place.  Their chances of being married and having a family are slim.

The stories the girls tell and the things that have been documented about their lives in trafficking are astounding. Many were 11 or 12 when they entered trafficking. In some cases they are forced to service multiple clients in a night's time. They are treated like property and if they become sick, pregnant or infected with STDs or AIDS they are kicked out and abandoned on the streets.

It is hard to hear about children in India being abused like this, but at least it is happening far away and is someone else's fault and another government's failure to protect the innocent, right?Well, in the US last year about 200,000 women and girls and boys were trafficked in the sex trade. Some statistics suggest that 80% of runaways are picked up by traffickers in bus stations or along the streets within 48 hours of running away. Women from other countries may be trafficked here because they are desperate to find work or sometimes to fill an appetite for a certain race or type of woman, others trafficked are the daughters of average American families who were enticed through the Internet or relationships at school or local hangouts. Many are minors. Like the girls in India some become so emotionally damaged that they can not function in society when they are discarded by their traffickers. Drug and alcohol abuse are almost a given as they seek to self medicate the pain they feel. 

Of course there would be no trafficking if there was no demand for the product. In sex trafficking the girls, women and sometimes boys are abused by both the trafficker who controls them and the man who buys them and demands their "services". 

Shared Hope International www.sharedhope.org works with victims of sex trafficking internationally and here in the states. They have started a campaign to educate the demand side of sex trafficking by creating a educational campaign and having men sign a defenders pledge http://thedefendersusa.org/.

A plug for The Stand a UK concert

This weekend The Stand a UK concert to raise awareness of human trafficking will be broadcast. Here's the report from Christian News Wire:

MEDIA ADVISORY, Jan. 27 /Christian Newswire/ -- Centuries after the abolition of slavery, there are now more slaves in the world through human trafficking than ever before - a modern day catastrophe, which many people and organizations are trying to stop. Now GOD TV is joining in the fight as it partners with Hope for Justice to air 'The Stand', a major event aimed at inspiring viewers to take action and see God restore broken lives.

 

Recorded in Birmingham, UK, in November last year, 'The Stand - Freedom to Reign' comprises three programs with performances from leading musicians as well as an address by UN.GIFT Special Advisor on Community Action against Human Trafficking, Steve Chalke.  Top-ranking British bands, Delirious?, YFriday and bandwithnoname are featured, as well as Jon Foreman from the US band, Switchfoot and many other prominent musicians.

 

The three programs will air on GOD TV on Friday January 30th at 10pm; Saturday January 31st at 9:30pm and on Sunday February 1st at 5pm (EST) and can be watched via satellite on channel 365 of DIRECTV or via webstreaming at www.god.tv/stream. The broadcasts will also be made available for video on demand viewing at www.god.tv/god.

 

In addition to being a music concert, The Stand also includes hard-hitting video footage, taking viewers on a journey into the world of human trafficking and showing how it impacts innocent lives. This includes the heart-breaking story of Geeta, a young girl from Nepal who was sold into prostitution in India and a British mother shares her tearful account of how her teenage daughter was trafficked.
 

Founded by Ben and Debbie Cooley, Hope for Justice exists to inspire people to rise up against the injustice of human trafficking and see God restore broken lives -  with the motto 'No one is free until we are all free'. "Trafficking is a global issue and it is our prayer that the Church would continue to unite, and stand for freedom and justice," said Ben Cooley. "It was incredible to have so many top Christian artists and speakers at The Stand supporting the cause and an awesome sight to see the crowd with their arms raised in worship, praying for change and being inspired to make a difference."

 

Founded by Rory & Wendy Alec, GOD TV reaches almost half a billion people worldwide with several different regional GOD TV feeds, each of which will be screening The Stand this weekend.
 

"Human trafficking is a horrific reality so many people are unaware of, yet statistics show that some 27 million people are trapped in modern-day slavery across the world," said Wendy Alec who is Director of Television at GOD TV. "It is time for God's people to join the fight against this. We all have to play our part and I encourage the GOD TV family around the world to tune into these important broadcasts this weekend and find out how they can make a difference."
 

For more information about GOD TV visit www.god.tv 
For more about Hope For Justice visit www.hopeforjustice.org.uk

Ten things to do if you Want to Help Stop Trafficking

Here's my top ten list for things to do if you are serious about being a part of the solution to trafficking. This is a list I'm working through myself.

1. Check out web sites and blogs on Slavery and Trafficking.

2. Watch the videos and slide shows on the sites or on U-tube. A picture is really worth a thousand words.

3. Read a good book or two on trafficking - check out the reading list in the side bar.

4. If you live near a major university see if they are going to sponsor any conferences on trafficking.  Conferences are wonderful ways to get a lot of information in a short time.

5. Connect with others in your area who are interested in trafficking by typing trafficking and your city into a google search. You are likely to find groups and churches that will have already created their own lists of resources.

6. Meet with those of like interest in your church to share information and resources.

7. Present your collected information to the leadership of your church - they might be interested in becoming actively involved as a church.

8. Pick a few ministries that are working in trafficking to support with your dollars. 

9. Come up with some creative ways to raise funds. Our church is doing an improv night this week to raise money for a group in India we have partnered with.  

10. Connect with a ministry that works in an aspect of trafficking that especially tugs on your heart and pray specifically for their needs and the needs of the people they rescue. 

Thoughts on the Relationship of Abortion to Slavery

Tomorrow is the anniversary of Roe vs. Wade the Supreme Court case decision that in 1973 made abortion legal. As I contemplated what to write about slavery or trafficking today I kept coming back to the thought that an unborn baby whose mother is choosing abortion is a lot like a slave. The child is innocent and helpless, caught in a situation not of it's own making, it's life in someone elses hands and considered disposable. The largest difference being of course that at least at this point in America the child does not bring financial gain to it's mother or those who may be trying to influence or control her decision. That's not to say that in a future America a child might be conceived purely for financial gain through the sale of tissue or organs.

As a Christian who believes that human life is made in the image of God I feel challenged to be deeply saddened any time someone tries to cheapen or redefine the worth and equality of another human's life whether they be a baby at 15 weeks gestation, a 12 year old caught in sex trafficking or a 40 year old man caught in slavery in the rainforest. 

Below are links to several groups that work with women in difficult situations.

http://www.optionline.org/ 

http://www.pregnancysupport.org/

http://www.safehavenministries.com/Home/tabid/36/Default.aspx

Slavery in the United States - Good News

Along with all the hard to take, gut retching information on trafficking and slavery in the US is the seed of hope that someday we as citizens of the United States can say that we know that our government is truly doing all that it can to protect it's most vulnerable and weak citizens from harm in the area of trafficking and slavery. This decade has seen significant laws passed, intensification of efforts by the Justice Department along with state governments that have become actively involved in passing laws and educating law enforcement. There is still much to be done, but an effort is being made.

Below is some information from the Department of Health and Human Services report on the Campaign to Rescue and Restore Victims of Human Trafficking.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) called for the creation of the President's Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons to coordinate anti-trafficking efforts among various U.S. Federal government agencies. The following Federal government agencies are implementing programs to protect and assist victims of human trafficking and to capture and prosecute their traffickers.

U.S. Department Health and Human Services
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is responsible for certifying victims of human trafficking once they are identified. This certification allows victims to receive Federally funded benefits and services to the same extent as refugees. To read more about what HHS is doing, click here.

U.S. Department of Justice
DOJ investigates cases of trafficking and prosecutes the traffickers. DOJ has also contributed to the construction of a network of trafficking victims service providers via their grant programs, and facilitates the complaint process for persons wanting to report a case of trafficking.

U.S. Department of Labor 
DOL offers programs such as job-search, job-placement assistance and job-counseling services as well as educational and training services and referrals to supportive services such as transportation, childcare and housing, through its One-Stop Career Center System - which victims can access after HHS certification. The Wage and Hour Division also investigates complaints of labor law violation, and is an important partner in the detection of trafficking victims. To report a possible violation, please call 1-866-487-9243.

U.S. Department of State
State is responsible for coordinating international anti-trafficking programs and efforts.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security 
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), a division of U.S. Department of Homeland Security, investigates cases of trafficking, and is an important partner in victim identification. ICE also adjudicates continued presence status, which makes a victim eligible for HHS certification. U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, another division of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, awards the T visa, which also makes a victim eligible for HHS certification.

Slavery in the United States - Domestic Slavery

When I first got interested in researching slavery and trafficking I had no idea that slavery (apart from sex trafficking) is still an ongoing issue in the US. I had read a few newspaper reports of young women who had been trafficked into the US by relatives or others as domestic slaves, but did not realize the scope of the problem and that it is believed to be even more wide spread than the data suggests. 

In the US domestic slavery is usually found in impoverished immigrant populations. The Justice Department estimates that over 4700 people  (usually young women and girls) a year are trafficked into the US to serve as domestic slaves. Remember these are per year numbers not the total found in the US. We don't really know how many are perpetually trapped here in domestic servitude. Many of these girls and young women have been lured here with the promise of good jobs, education and money to send home. A high percentage of those trafficked for domestic slavery also end up being sexually abused. The stories that girls and women who have fled their captors have told are harrowing. Below are several stories of domestic slavery.

http://www.workingimmigrants.com/2007/12/domestic_slavery_in_america_am.html

http://captivedaughters.org/2008/12/ca-child-domestic-slavery-spreads-to-us.html

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/18/AR2006041801520.html

What can we do?

1. Keep your eyes opened. Many times in domestic slavery trials there are witnesses that saw something strange going on but didn't report it.

2. Support awareness education for school, medical and law enforsement personnel that may come in contact with victims.

3. Be dangerous with your prayers. Pray that evil things done in secret in your community would be revealed in public.

 

Slavery in the United States?

Are you aware that the Justice Department estimates that about 18,000 people are trafficked per year into the US and that over 200,000 people are trafficked within the boundaries of  the United States in that same year?

The slave population here originates in 35 different countries with most being trafficked from China, Mexico or Vietnam.   46% of those trafficked will be found in prostitution and sex trade, 27% in domestic servitude, 10% in agriculture, 5% will be in sweatshop labor (especially in the garment industry) and factory work and 4% in restaurant/hotel/motel work.

 Sex trafficking in the US is a growing problem that has just recently started to be assessed by groups like Shared Hope International (www.sharedhope.com) at the behest of the Justice Department. Increasingly, underage girls are being trapped in some kind of sex trafficking which may include prostitution, pornography, Internet pornography, massage parlors and strip clubs.  Many of these girls are minors (the average age is 12-14 according to the Justice Department) when they are initially entrapped and although some are trafficked from Mexico, China or other countries a growing number are American teen runaways and foster children that slip through the cracks or minors that are enticed through the Internet. Shared Hope Internationale's assessment of Las Vegas reported that 1,496 children from 40 states were trafficked into and arrested for prostitution in Clark County, Nevada between January 1994 and July 2007 showing that sex trafficking of under aged minors is truly an American Problem. 

Our children and teens need to be educated at home and at school about trafficking and how to asess whether they are being approached by a trafficker either online or in person. One study estimates that 80% of all runaways are trapped in trafficking within 48 hours of leaving home. 

Child Slavery

When I started researching slavery one thing I quickly noticed was that many of those enslaved are children. All over the world children are trapped in the most dire of circumstances, taken advantage of due to their inability to defend themselves. Hideous unspeakable crimes are committed against these defenseless little ones and the world is just beginning to wake up to the scope and depth of their pain.

 In India and Pakistan children as young as five are taken from their poor, illiterate parents and through either out right kidnapping or subterfuge they are moved hundreds of miles away to work up to 15 hours a day at rug looms weaving wool oriental carpets. Many times the children are fed once a day and sleep under their looms. As time goes on these children suffer from wool dust in their lungs, on their skin and in their eyes as well as malnutrition. They are often beaten for mistakes.  

 In India, Thailand and other Asian countries girls as young as ten are kidnapped or sold by their parents into a sex trade market that uses religious ideas along with violence and economic pressure to keep girls in the trade, . Many of these children are made to "service" multiple customers a night. When they either become HIV positive or become too old many are then literally discarded like rubbish on the streets, others become the madams and slave owners of the next generation.

Many other countries turn a blind year to child slavery in cotton production, the garment industry, mining, cocoa, farming, domestic service, fishing and even soccer ball production.

http://www.time.com/time/asia/features/slavery/cover.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/this_world/6458377.stm

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/28415693/

 

Slavery Around the World - Chocolate from Africa

All over the world poverty, false religious beliefs, broken families and illiteracy create a powerless class of people who become the prey of individuals who desire to profit and live off those they deem less valuable than themselves. Many times these powerless people are children. 

Have you eaten any chocolate in the last few days? Was it marked fair trade or fairly traded? If not there is a good chance that at least a percentage of it was produced by child slave labour. Much of the world's chocolate (43%) comes from one country - the Ivory Coast on the west coast of Africa (also known as Cote d' Ivoire). The cocoa farmers of the Ivory Coast can not afford to hire labor due to the low prices paid to them for the cocoa beans by the large chocolate producing companies. As a consequence they use the labor of their own children and also enslave other children and young boys to produce their crops. Most of the farmers and their workers have never tasted the final product - they can not afford to buy a bar of chocolate. 

Over 200,000 children are in either slavery or forced labor situations on small cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast and 12,000 of those children have been trafficked into the Ivory Coast mainly from other West African countries.

By buying  fair traded cocoa and chocolate products you can vote for change with your dollars. Asking for slave free and fairly traded products from your grocer is another way to influence change. Fairly traded chocolate can be found at Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, Amazon.com and many other health food and specialty stores. Brands that declare their chocolate products to be 100% slave free include Clif Bar, Cloud Nine, Dagoba Organic Chocolate, Denman Island Chocolate, Gardners Candies, Green and Black's, Kailua Candy Company, Koppers Chocolate, L.A. Burdick Chocolates, Montezuma's Chocolates, Newman's Own Organics, Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company, Rapunzel Pure Organics, and The Endangered Species Chocolate Company.

Check out the links below for more information on slavery and trafficking in chocolate production.

http://www.chocolatework.com/chocolate-slavery.htm

http://vision.ucsd.edu/~kbranson/stopchocolateslavery/index.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Labor_exploitation_in_the_chocolate_industry

A Little History and Background

Almost 150 years ago Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. Today most Americans believe that slavery in the US ended then. Sadly, slavery was not eradicated then in the US or the rest of the world, but instead has grown to the point where there are more people enslaved today, at this moment in time, than were enslaved in the entire 300 years of the historical slave trade between Europe, Africa and the Americas. 

Slavery today is rarely racial in nature except for a system of generational slavery practiced in Mauritania, Africa . Between 40 to 50%of the population of Mauritania are enslaved even though slavery was legally abolished in the 1980s. According to Romana Cacchioli, Africa program officer at Anti-Slavery International, "Slavery is deeply embedded in Mauritanian society and exists across the country, both in rural and urban areas. Slaves are told that under Islam, their paradise is bound to their master, so if they do what the master tells them, they will go to heaven. If, however, they disobey or run away, slaves are told they will be forsaken by God and live outside of Islam. In an Islamic country, this is a powerful means of control. The slaves are victims of obscurantism, and their outlook is fatalistic, with many living in the belief that it is Allah's wish for them to be slaves." 

http://www.npr.org/programs/specials/racism/010828.mauritania.html

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/4091579.stm

 Most slavery is perpetrated on children and women, although in some countries whole villages are caught in the net of forced labor and slavery. Slavery almost always has economic components and usually involves those who are very poor and have few economic options.   Forced labor is virtually the same as slavery although there may be more control over life outside of work in forced labor and many involved in forced labor believe they are paying off a debit. Whether caught up in slavery or forced labor the people involved believe themselves to be powerless to walk away or work towards something better and generally are barely subsisting at a survival level.

Slavery is a worldwide problem and the faces of slavery come from many different nations. The countries with the largest slave trade are those that have the bleakest poverty. China, India, Pakistan, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Africa, Eastern Europe and Russia top the list. Slavery and forced labor are common in the carpet and rug making industry (Pakistan and India), the production of cocoa (Africa), sugar (Dominican Republic, Haiti), tea (Pakistan, India, China), mineral, gold and gem mining (Africa), agriculture (South America, America, Caribbean, India, China and just about every other country in the world that produces agricultural products)and sex trade and domestic service (All over the world). 

 

A Beginning

Speak up for those who can not speak up for themselves;

Ensure justice for those being crushed.

Yes, speak up for the poor and helpless,

And see that they get justice. Ps. 31:8-9 NLT

Welcome to the first posting on our new blog - Help Stop Human Trafficking.  About five years ago I started researching the coffee, tea and chocolate industries in preparation for purchasing a coffee shop. As I did research I discovered a lot of information on how coffee, tea and chocolate are grown and produced. I was dismayed to realize that coffee and tea are both products that are connected historically with poor treatment of the labor that produces them and that chocolate is connected with child labor and slavery. Over the last year or so I decided to revisit my original research and also branch out to looking at other facets of slavery and forced labor. This blog is my attempt to share the research, links and news releases of ministries and groups that work to stop slavery.

There are over 27 million people trapped in some form of slavery as I write this. I know that 27 million is a number too big to comprehend as written so let me put it another way; there are about 27,000,000 people living in the states of North Carolina, Virgina, Tennessee and South Carolina. Somewhere in the world; here, and probably in every other country on earth men, women and children are trapped in slavery (trafficking) - If we believe that as Christians we are placed in our generation for a purpose might it not be that one of this generation's callings is to work at bringing release to the captives literally? 

FYI - in the blog I will use the terms slavery and trafficking interchangably. More often lately the term trafficking is used to describe modern slavery. Both are defined by forced servitude that includes the belief on the part of the one enslaved that they have no choice but to obey. This obedience may be obtained by threats of physical violence or curses, threats against family, belief that there is no choice but to submit or physical restraint.