How Can This Be Allowed To Remain On Our Earth?

Human Trafficking / Modern Slavery

 

·        3rd largest criminal enterprise in the world
·        Enslaves up to 800,000 people, many of which are children
·        Makes more than $32 Billion a year
·        It is not just a problem in remote areas of the world.  It’s rampant in the U.S.  It’s in your own backyard.

 

 

 

 

Outside of the U.S.

 

• Girls rescued out of brothels as young as 5 years old.
• Typical age ranges from 10 – 12 – 15.
• Many times parents are complicit in selling their kids – poverty driven.
• Victims may be abducted off the street in poor and developing nations.
• In remote villages there is a promise given of getting a job far away from their homes.
• UNICEF estimates there are nearly 2 million children today in the commercial sex trade world wide.

 

 

 

Southeast Asia and South Asia

 

• In Southeast Asia, many times victims are taken to different countries like Cambodia and Thailand.
• In Southeast Asia, karaoke bars, places of entertainment for westerners are fronts for brothels.
• One of the big issues is with western pedophiles that travel to these places specifically looking for young children that they can abuse without any accountability to law.

 

 

 

It’s in your own back yard

 

• It goes on in every major U.S. city; in small cities as well.
• Typical age of child in the U.S.:  14-16
• Victims are kids, young girls that are having difficult times at home and become runaways looking for people to love them and take care of them; and that’s how traffickers entice them
• According to the FBI, 85 – 90% of these kids have suffered abuse in their homes; kids in foster care system.  These kids are often called “throw-aways.”
• Traffickers use coercion.  They offer their victims jobs, material things until the victims realize they have to pay them back, and they have to do this by “providing services.”
• These young victims feel like they’ve reached a dead end because there is no one left for them to turn to.  In their minds, the local authorities won’t believe them, and their families aren’t willing to take them back or rescue them.

 

 

 

“What can I do?”

 

• Join and/or support organizations dedicated to fighting human trafficking / modern slavery
• Write your congressmen/women about your concern for worldwide human trafficking / modern slavery.  “When the American people write their congressmen/women, urging them to help the poorest, the weakest and the innocents, congressmen/women really do sit up and take notice.  For example, when they say things like ‘I care about the 7 year old child in prostitution in Cambodia’ or ‘In India, I care about the child slave in the brick kiln.’  Constituents, many of which are friends of IJM, around the U.S. have contacted their congressmen/women – democrats and republicans, all across the spectrum – and because of these voiced concerns more than 90 co-sponsors have been generated for The Child Protection Compact Act, legislation in congress that will provide a little more foreign assistance to governments to help them eradicate the trafficking of children.”
• Obtain and share resources that help spread the word about the existence of modern day slavery as well as the existence of ways to end it.  At the End of Slavery – a film resource at IJM.org
• Research what is going on in your area

 

-  Contact your local police departments, juvenile divisions, FBI.  Ask, “What do

    you need?”

-  Ask local FBI if there is a task force in your area for human trafficking /

    modern slavery.  Go to local FBI website, look for the Lost Innocence

    Initiative.

• Anyone can make a difference.  Keep your mind open, and let God use your knowledge and skills.  He will give you opportunities to make a difference.  Listen to God and follow His leading.

 

 

 

Organizations dedicated to fighting this abomination

 

• Amnesty International – Worldwide campaigning movement that works to promote internationally recognized human rights.  www.amnesty.org
• Anti-Slavery International – World’s oldest international human rights organization, (Founded in 1839), and the only charity in the United Kingdom working exclusively for the elimination of all forms of slavery.  It has consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council.  Through campaigning, research, supporting local NGO’s work, and pressing governments to implement national and international laws against slavery, the organization works to end this abuse throughout the world.  www.antislavery.org
• Bilateral Safety Corridor Coalition – Organization working on the prevention of sexual exploitation of people from Central America, Mexico, and the United States.  www.omnigon.com/~bscc
• Children of the Night – Has rescued more than 10,000 American children form prostitution since 1979.  It is dedicated to assisting children between the ages of 11 and 17 who are forced to prostitute on the streets for food and a place to sleep.  childrenofthenight.org
• Coalition Against Trafficking in Women – A nongovernmental organization that promotes women’s human rights.  It works internationally to combat sexual exploitation in all its forms, especially prostitution and trafficking in women and children, particularly girls.  www.catwinternational.org
• Coalition of Immokalee Workers – A community-based worker organization with a member base of mostly Latino, Haitian, and Maya Indian immigrants working in low-wage jobs throughout the state of Florida.  It works for fair wages, better working conditions, stronger laws and law enforcement of workers’ rights, and respect.  www.ciw-online.org/
• Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking – CAST is the first organization in the United States dedicated exclusively to serving survivors of trafficking.  It is a nonprofit organization that provides comprehensive social services to survivors of trafficking and conducts advocacy through training and outreach to raise awareness on the needs of trafficking survivors.  www.castla.org
• Courage To Be You, Inc. – Building Christian homes for kids rescued from human trafficking and exploitation all across the U.S., starting in Sacramento, California.  They provide comprehensive schooling, counseling and therapy services for the life of the trafficking survivor.  www.c2bu.org/
• ECPAT International – Network of organizations and individuals working together for the elimination of child prostitution, child *********** and trafficking of children for sexual purposes.  www.ecpat.net/eng/index.asp
• Free the Slaves – Fights slavery all over the world by helping people to freedom and to stable lives after liberation, by removing slave labor from the products we buy and by helping governments enforce their own anti-slavery laws.  It is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that is leading U.S. work against slavery.  www.freetheslaves.net
• Global March Against Child Labour – Works to put an end to child labor worldwide; be it slavery, prostitution, armed conflict, or hazardous work.  www.globalmarch.org
• Human Rights Watch:  Campaign Against Trafficking of Women and Girls – Investigates and exposes trafficking and slavery incidences around the world.  www.hrw.org/about/projets/traffcamp/intro.html
• International Human Rights Law Group – A nonprofit organization of human rights and legal professionals from over 20 countries engaged in advocacy, human rights lawyering, and training around the world.  Its Initiative Against Trafficking in Persons assists advocates and NGOs in building their advocacy, legal-literacy, and case-monitoring skills; encourages governments to protect the rights of victims of trafficking and also to prosecute traffickers; disseminates up-to-date information on trafficking cases and anti-trafficking legislation in countries around the world; and seeks to increase the awareness of the link between trafficking and the subordinate status of women and other vulnerable groups in all societies.  www.hrlawgroup.org/initiatives/trafficking_persons/default.asp
• International Justice Mission – Organization dedicated to freeing victims of human trafficking and prosecuting their perpetrators, focusing on children, (under the age of 18), with legal and law enforcement professionals using investigation strategies, legal expertise, and cutting-edge technology.  www.IJM.org
• International Organization for Migration – Their counter-trafficking activities are geared towards the prevention of trafficking in persons, particularly women and children, and the protection of migrants’ rights.  www.iom.int/
• Interpol:  Children and Human Trafficking – Their main aim is to promote assistance among all criminal police authorities.  It provides a structured platform for raising awareness, building competence, and identifying best practices within law enforcement worldwide.  Trafficking in human beings is considered one of the top priorities.  www.interpol.com/Public/THB/default.asp
• Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse – Their Electronic Clearinghouse provides a quick and user friendly access point to the extensive electronic resources on the topic of violence and abuse available online.  They also have a section of links of trafficking articles and resources.  www.mincava.umn.edu/traffick.asp#A101280100
• Polaris Project – A non-profit organization that researches and combats the sex trafficking of women and children.  www.polarisproject.org
• The Protection Project – A human rights research institute based at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington, D.C.  It documents and disseminates information about the scope of the problem of trafficking in persons, especially women and children, with a focus on national and international laws, case law, and implications of trafficking on U.S. and international foreign policy.  www.protectionproject.com
• Rapha House – Building Christian homes for kids rescued from human trafficking in Southeast Asia that give them a place to go and have a future.  www.raphahouse.org/
• Rugmark – A global nonprofit organization working to end child labor and offer educational opportunities for children in India, Nepal, and Pakistan.  The RUGMARK label is your best assurance that no illegal child labor was employed in the manufacture of a carpet or rug.  www.rugmark.org/
• United Nations Children’s Fund – UNICEF works to protect the rights of children worldwide, including protecting them from trafficking and slavery.  www.unicef.org
• U.S. Agency for International Development, Trafficking in Persons – They fund direct anti-trafficking activities that include prevention through economic and educational opportunities targeted at groups that are especially vulnerable to traffickers, public awareness, protection and rehabilitation of trafficked victims, and legislative changes.  www.usaid.gov/wid/pubs/trw01a.htm
• U.S. Department of State, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons – Assists in the coordination of the U.S. government’s anti-trafficking efforts, both domestically and abroad, guided by the vision of eradicating trafficking worldwide.  It also releases and annual report of the state of trafficking worldwide.  www.state.gov/g/tip