Sex-Trafficked American Girls Are Not Prostitutes!

The following are part of my notes taken at the Justice Summit January 17, 2015 during

Rachel Thomas's talk on her curriculum--Ending the Game (ETG) "Ending The Game © is a ground-breaking “coercion resiliency” curriculum that reduces feelings of attachment to traffickers and/or a lifestyle characterized by commercial sexual exploitation, thereby reducing the rate of recidivism among sex trafficking victims." 
More about Rachel and ETG can be found at Sowers Education Group. 

Please understand that there are also boys and adults being Trafficked. However, this post is to clarify that little children do not choose to become what we, American society, call Child Prostitutes. They are manipulated, kidnapped, and scared. They are black and white, they are tall and short, rich and poor, smart and dumb. They are dreaming about iphones, getting there nails done, and what they get to eat for dinner. They may be dreaming of growing up one to be doctor, a dancer, or a mom. They come from good homes and broken homes. You name it, they come from every walk of life and
 they live right here in Anywhere, USA.

       


In a simple 4-step process those little dreamers are lured into a fairytale that ends in slavery.

Hopes, plans, wishes....

Media teaches romance and sex every day.

             

#1 Bend: The Trafficker works to build her trust luring her with whatever she needs to believe that he (or she) is safe and trustworthy. Sometimes they will step in and save her from someone who may be hurting them. This puts them in the "knight in shining armor" role.

#2 Break: Isolation, confusing behavior, pushing boundaries (the 12-14 year old girl thinks "am I crazy or are they?") Their hope for life without their trafficker is stripped away. Their self-esteem is decreased. Their true identity is taken away.(They learn they probably better stick to the guidelines.)

        

#3 Build: Now they have a new lifestyle and live in a subculture (new terms, new protocol). Positive and negative reinforcements to encourage the most productive behavior. Their new identity is centered on product value. They begin to see their value differently (I'm getting good at this.) Our brains are adaptable.

#4 Lock: Intense cycles of highs and lows (everything from addictions to drama). They further self-impose isolation upon themselves ("I don't fit in anywhere else.") This leads to further loss of their true self.

Anyone has the ability to be coerced.  The truth is at the core, everyone involved in human trafficking is broken and seeking shortcuts to love, security and happiness. The hope is that the true self always remains waiting to reemerge.

No child chooses to give up her little girl dreams to raped, maimed, and tortured by an average of 20 men a day. No child should ever be arrested for prostitution. What needs to happen is we need to arrest the so called Johns. How in the world did it ever become acceptable to arrest a 13 year old for child prostitution, throw her in jail and the man, usually living a double life (ie...supposedly respectable) gets a slap on the hand and is sent home? This is madness.

The modern day slavery of today is no different than the slave owners we all detest so much from the our history books in school. But today we have a  media filled with people who encourage and support them by glorifying them as cool pimps. They are slave owners. They are human trafficker. They are scum.

There is good news and there is hope. Organizations are standing up and fighting for the defenseless.
Shared Hope International , and  International Justice Mission are fighting around the world.
Women like Rachel Thomas, who is a survivor, have come out to fight for survivors.
Local groups like Central Coast Freedom Network in the south side of our county and North County Abolitionists (Click to find us on facebook) in the north side of our county. We are fighting and we will not stop.

Comments are appreciated. Thank you.

North County Abolitionists Paso Robles, California

Breaking news: North County Abolitionists of Paso Robles, California has a Facebook Page now. We are Partnering with Mountainbrook Aboltionists of San Luis Obispo County. They are an Anti-Human Trafficking Community Task Force bringing awareness to the public & taking action against modern-day slavery. 


Here is an example of our posts:

Hi NORTH CO. ABOLITIONISTS! 
Glad to hear that you have a FB presence! I've been an Abolitionists since 2004, and jointed with Mountainbrook Abolitionists ("MbA") last year! I'm wondering if you would be interested in posting about the MbA 2015 "JUSTICE SUMMIT." We now are accepting registrations. 
Please considering posting this link: 
http://l.facebook.com/l/bAQH7ck9NAQGKL2kfP7b8WSN6y5qBrJMxC8QJBlXKJz0nQw/mbabolitionists.org/2015-speakers/ Amy-Lynne Hilderbrand

Every effort we make to get the word out is a step forward. Saving Lives is what it's all about. Education is the only way we will progress through the jungle of people busy lives. Teaching that human trafficking exists is not enough, we need to educate and encourage individuals who are asking questions like what is a Modern Day Abolitionist? What is labor trafficking? What is Modern day Slavery? What is sex trafficking? What can I do about it? How does it effect me? What is Fair-Trade?  The questions are endless. We need people asking them and we need to be answering them. 

Think of someone who is being Trafficked as a child in a burning house.   If you knew you could save them would you??? I think most of us wouldn't hesitate. If we ban together we can make a real difference for hundreds, thousands, or even millions of innocent lives being destroyed by countless predators, who for selfish reasons choose to force other humans, mostly women and children into forced the labor and sex trade industry. Organizations like Shared Hope International and The Polaris Project are already out there fighting to save lives.
  


Please click the >>>link<<< and like our page and then share and spread the word. Together we can do much. Questions and comments welcomed. Thank you.

Human Trafficking and how I really feel about it

I am in pain today. I suffer from fibromyalgia; Autumn is a bear. My thoughts are with those who are hurting and helpless. I hope if this is seen that it is truly understood. So here it goes. Let me bare my heart and my soul. I am a survivor of rape. The details don't matter though one of the rapes was brutal.

Years have gone by and I have healed....a lot. Christ has helped me. [Also I am in Celebrate Recovery.] Now as a mother of seven daughters and two sons I wonder and I pray and, although I shouldn't, I worry. Our world is messy to say the least. How do I keep my children safe? How do I teach them?

And, in the mean time, how do I HELP!?! I was fortunate. I was "lucky". The girls I am fighting for aren't much different than I was. But, I wasn't kidnapped or sold for sex trafficking or labor trafficking. I wasn't possessed. They are.

If I told you that I am weeping would you think me crazy? I don't care anymore. I look at my children and even my own baby picture and I think.<<<<<<I think!!!!!.... God, it could have been me. What can I do?

I am becoming more involved. I am a Freedom Fighter for Better Way Imports. I am an Ambassador of Hope with Shared Hope International. It sounds so.....involved. The reality is, I am doing so little. Women who have been victimized need time and support to heal.I am still healing. I am 56 years old. My healing has been slow, mostly because I was NOT supported. 

There is hope though, for me with Celebrate Recovery and for the million who are trafficked across the globe, 100,000 right here in America, there are Modern Day Freedom Fighters stepping up to fight.

Organizations, like Shared Hope International, are working to help girls/women. Truly supporting them in their healing. I WAS ONLY RAPED 3 TIMES IN 4 YEARS....THEY ARE, 20 TIMES A DAY! Let's do the math. Sorry. It needs to be said. 20 X 365 X 4 = 29,200. Even though you may think....."No way!", it will not change the facts. 20 times a day is only a statistic. An average. Unreliable at best.

Unless these girls/women are rescued they have 7 years before they will die.

Do you see? Do you care?

Fight for freedom. Please consider becoming a Modern Day Freedom Fighter. An Abolitionist.

Comments and questions are welcome. Thank you.

Dug Shelby Across America For Human Trafficking Awareness

In an article entitled Dug Shelby will pedal bamboo recumbent bicycle from Paso to New York by

Meagan Friberg of  the Paso Robles Daily News, Shelby becomes yet another person to join the ever growing list of modern day abolitionists fighting to free modern day slaves. 

Dug Shelby Freedom Fighter!

                           

The articles states that the issue of human trafficking became a cause for Shelby while on photography assignment in India (2008), he witnessed firsthand women and children being forced into sexual slavery in the Dubai red light district. 

Again from the article, Shelby says, “I saw 10 and 11 year old girls working the red light district,” he said, “and I witnessed women and children who were being rehabilitated through the organization I was working with. I have two sisters and three nieces and it really hit home for me; these are someone’s daughters.”

Like Congress woman Linda Smith founder of Shared Hope International who also witnessed the brutal exploitation and sexual slavery of women and children when she traveled into the heart of the brothel district in Mumbai, India in 1998 just 10 years earlier, Shelby was unable to forget the faces of the people he had seen with his own eyes. Now he is riding his bike across America, completely ALONE, to raise awareness of human and sex trafficking. Slaves are alone everyday.    

ALONE

                                                                                                  

 Human trafficking is slavery. It can be for labor or sex. Either way people are the commodity and are a re-usable resource. It is growing rapidly. It is not just in Dubai and Mumbai, India. It does not effect any specific group of people. It doesn't care what economical background you are from or the color of your skin. It only cares that you are vulnerable and that you are available. 

I hope you will look for Dug Shelby as he travels from Paso Robles, California to New York starting on September 16th, 2014. According to the article, this extraordinary 44-year old man has already hiked 2,000 miles along the Pacific Crest from Mexico to Canada to raise awareness of human trafficking in 2011. 

This abolitionists says THANK YOU DUG! I will be watching and praying. Thank you Paso Robles Daily News and Meagan Friberg for the excellent and timely article. 

****Much of this article and the picture were taken from Meagan's article. In stating this I am attempting to give her all the credit due her.**** I'm so glad I found it so I could help raise awareness about Dug Shelby's trip and his efforts. 

Dear readers, please read Meagan's article and check out the Shared Hope site. Support Dug here.

The Lucrative Economics of Human Trafficking

Human trafficking, including both labor and sex trafficking, generates residual income for traffickers. The growing and thriving illegal drug industries natural response to sex trafficking was to add it their multiple streams of revenue. Gangs, drug lords and cartels thrive selling drugs and guns. 

Narco gangs like the Zetas — a criminal army founded by defectors from the Mexican military — have diversified their portfolio to include kidnapping, extortion, theft of crude oil, gun running and lucrative human-trafficking networks. It’s impossible to know the exact value of Mexico’s human-trafficking trade, though the U.N. estimates the global industry to be worth $32 billion a year. (Taken from article:  The Mexican Drug Cartels’ Other Business: Sex Trafficking)

People are in business to make money.  Some make it by selling drugs and it works.

Drug bust money mountain.

Guns and ammo from a bust.

          

Let's face it though. Sell a drug. Gone. Sell a gun. Gone. Sell a body. Sell it again. Again. Again. Again. Residual income. It's perfect. They are making money hand over fist. As long as we believe we aren't effected or that we can do nothing; they win!

In reality WE ALL PAY!!!!!

        

So, what is the solution? Preventing. Restoring. Bring Justice. Shared Hope International has worked everyday since their founder, Congresswoman Linda Smith traveled into the heart of the brothel district in Mumbai, India in 1998. There she witnessed the brutal exploitation and sexual slavery of women and children.  She established Shared Hope International to rescue and restore women and children enslaved in sex trafficking. As SHI grew, it became painfully obvious that the United States of America was also a cesspool of the sick and horrific industry of human and sex trafficking. Shared Hope found that it wasn't just women brought here to America or the girls who are kidnapped while on vacation in Europe (see the movie Taken...sad truth in that one). Our girls (AVERAGE!!!!! AGE 12, and growing lower), were being taken right off our safe American streets. Not just the poor and disadvantaged, but rich kids too. Suddenly the pain is on our soil. Families just like those across the globe losing their child. Most are never recovered.

What if your daughter disappeared?!
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

There are some obvious obstacles. If there are buyers there will be sellers. Prevention is huge. While we work on prevention we need to rescue and restore victims. We need to fight for tougher laws. Laws that stick!!!!

In closing, make yourself aware. Get educated. Spread the word! Together and only together we can work to end this nightmare. To end human trafficking we must fight for their freedom. Modern day slavery is alive and thriving, men, women, and children (both boys and girls) are trapped. We are their hope and by the grace of God we will free them!

                                                                                           

AMERICA the Movie and Human Trafficking

America, the movie, produced by Gerald Molen, the Academy-award winning producer of Schindler's List,and Dinesh D'Souza, the creator of 2016: Obama's America and writer/director of America, along with writer/director John Sullivan. In the movie America: Where Would We Be Without Her; they take you on journey through America's history. They shed light on our now rewritten history after detailing what modern day critics have to say about us, the people of America.

                                                                              

Why talk about this controversial film?

Slavery is one of America's scars. We are branded with it. We are stained as the evil country that stole lives for financial gain. Are we guilty? Have we done anything to change or improve the status of ALL people? 
As a modern day abolitionist I seek justice. I seek freedom for all. I believe in the Constitution where our Founding Fathers wrote: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." (emphasis mine)

Our Founding Fathers also believed, "That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness." (emphasis mine) [these ends] are the unalienable Rights listed in the previous paragraph and [laying its foundation] is crucial to the promise made within the Constitution to work toward true freedom for all.

In other words when a government is not allowing any man, woman, or child, Life, Liberty, or the pursuit of Happiness. When they are not treating people as created equal. Something must be done to end the tyranny. So, they set up a foundation of hope to abolish injustices, in time, effecting Safety and Happiness.

Were there slaves? Yes, of course, we all know it. Did you know that the most feared plantation owner was, in fact, a freed slave? However, there were African American's such as Madam C. J. Walker who was not only the first free born in her family but was the first self-made woman millionaire and philanthropist in America. Also, during this time, there were English and Irish people who were brought over here by force and sold as indentured servants? As such, they had to work for their freedom for seven years, often this period was extended or they died before they were freed. At one point there were more of these trafficked people than there were African American slaves. The Civil War was fought to change this. The Civil Rights 
movement continued our fight to give all true liberty and justice.

A slow and painful fight to end slavery begins.

The fight continues....

Forced Labor or Sexual Exploitation, it is all wrong!

                                                                                                                                                         
We are not done. The fight must continue. Let us open our eyes to a new breed of slave owners. Traffickers and pimps are organized and deadly. While we go about the business of life. Working. Paying taxes, bills, and more taxes. Living. Getting by. Pimps are prowling around looking for our children. Around the world you can find more than 27 milllion men, women, and children enslaved for financial gain. Here in America the drug cartels figured out that, unlike guns and drugs, a woman, girl, or boy can used over and over. People are a better investment for them with larger profit margin. We have allowed our senses to become dull to the shock and horror of human trafficking. Here in America 100,000 (and growing) children are disappearing into a life of hell on earth. 

On the brighter side there are groups rising to fight this is travesty. Shared Hope International, MISSSEY, Polaris Project, International Justice Mission, Better Way Imports, and many more are taking a stand and fighting. Each of us is the key to making a change here in America and across the world. Open your eyes to the truth. Find something you can do to be a part of positive change. Become a Freedom Fighter! As General George Washington called out in the movie, America, "Hold the line!" And then let's push forward and change the world. Let us work today to END SLAVERY FOREVER!

           

Please contact me by leaving any of your questions or comments.