Healing for Survivors of Human Trafficking

Melissa     Empower Women, Trafficking News & Information     0

There’s great news in Cleveland this week: Three women who’ve been missing for about a decade have been rescued. News sources aren’t saying too much at this point about what the women went through and if they were officially victims of human trafficking. While investigators will be probing for details, it’s important for each of the women to feel a sense of privacy as they heal from the ordeal. Kidnapping survivor, Elizabeth Smart, sheds light on the mentality of shame that can overtake victims of trafficking: Rescued kidnapping victim Elizabeth Smart said Wednesday she understands why some human trafficking victimsRead more

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Egypt and Human Trafficking on the Sinai

Melissa     Trafficking News & Information     0

Last fall we shared with you about Sister Aziza and her work protecting victims of human trafficking on the Sinai Peninsula (click the links for more info!). This article from Think Africa Press gives a more in-depth look at the problem and what surrounding countries, especially Egypt, are (and aren’t) doing to help. Most of the victims of human trafficking and kidnapping in the region are from Eritrea. Thousands reportedly escape the repressive regime of Isaias Afewerki each year, some ending up in Ethiopia but more tending to find themselves in refugee camps in eastern Sudan. Eastern Sudan’s Shagarab camp,Read more

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Human Trafficking and Your Summer Travel

Melissa     Everyday Abolitionist, Trafficking News & Information     0

             It’s the time of year to book flight and hotels for summer travel—hooray! But as you plan, take into account what Kimberly Ritter, an event planner turned anti-human trafficking advocate, learned: trafficking is rampant in the U.S. travel industry, especially hotels. “It happens everywhere,” Ritter says, and “that includes five-star hotels.” It all started with Ritter’s largest client, the Federation of the Sisters of St. Joseph. In her work as a senior account manager at Nix Conference & Meeting Management in St. Louis, Ritter books meeting venues for this group of Roman Catholic nuns. The sisters devote themselves toRead more

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The Big Change in Trafficking in Sweden

Melissa     Empower Women, Rescue, Trafficking News & Information     0

Human rights activist and columnist for The Independent, Joan Smith took a ride with an undercover officer in Sweden to see how Sweden’s laws—criminalizing buying sex rather than selling it—have changed the face of human trafficking there. She shares encouraging news in “Why the Game’s Up for Sweden’s Sex Trade.” I am sitting in the back of an unmarked police car on the small island of Skeppsholmen, to the east of Stockholm’s picturesque old town. Above us is the city’s modern art museum but it’s a dark February night and we’re not here to appreciate culture. “They park up there,”Read more

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The Cure for Late-Winter Apathy

Melissa     Partner Organization News, Survivor Stories, Trafficking News & Information     0

I’ve been struggling with some late-winter apathy. I’m tired and unmotivated (hence, in part, the silence on the blog). Fighting human trafficking sometimes seems just too impossible and exhausting (I mean, how can I make a real difference in the world if I can’t always keep this blog updated?). But IJM and its president Gary Haugen provide two important reminders: 1. At the Justice Conference last month, Gary talked about the long, tedious road to justice. Perseverance is not always glamorous, but it’s powerful. (This video is absolutely worth watching; it was one of my favorite talks at the conference.)Read more

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Petition for Safe Harbor Laws

Melissa     Everyday Abolitionist, Trafficking News & Information     0

Here’s an quick, simple way to take part in National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month: Sign this petition for safe harbor laws by Carolina De Los Rios, Director of Client Services at Polaris Project. Here’s more about safe harbor laws: Safe Harbor laws … define these sexually exploited children as victims of abuse, help them find protection and support, and grant them immunity from prosecution for prostitution while they are under 18 years of age. Safe Harbor laws also can increase funding for specialized services like long-term housing, mental health care, educational support, and job training to help theseRead more

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Much to Be Thankful For

Melissa     Books & Resources, Empower Women, Partner Organization News, Trafficking News & Information     0

There’s lots to be thankful for this time of year. From food to family to finances, most of us have quite a few things going for us. But just like looking past myself in hard times helps me broaden my perspective, being thankful for things beyond my own life enriches this thankful time of year. So here are a few organizations and people doing good around the world that I am very thankful for. They are changing lives in ways that I never could even imagine. They’re empowering women and fighting human trafficking in very real, very powerful ways. IJMRead more

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New Film About Human Trafficking

Melissa     Trafficking News & Information     0

Trade of Innocents is an independent movie starring Mira Sorvino and Dermot Mulroney that dramatizes the fight against human trafficking in southeast Asia. It’s premiering in cities around the country this fall; find out here if it’s coming near you. It’s one of several one of several cinematic portrayals of human trafficking in the media recently. Here’s more about the film: In the back streets of a tourist town in present-day Southeast Asia, we find a filthy cinder block room; a bed with soiled sheets; a little girl waits for the next man. Alex (Dermot Mulroney), a human trafficking investigator,Read more

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Protecting People in the Sinai

Melissa     Everyday Abolitionist, Trafficking News & Information     0

Recently we wrote about Sister Aziza’s life-giving work against human trafficking in the Sinai. Now CNN shares ways you can help: In the Sinai Desert a handful of groups is fighting ruthless people-traffickers who prey on desperate migrants trying to reach Israel from war-ravaged and poverty-stricken parts of Africa. Many of them also live in an unwired world such as the Bedouins who operate a safe house and have persuaded others not to allow the traffickers to shop at their stores – a kind of localized sanctions. In Israel there’s a free clinic for migrants run by the Physicians forRead more

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Human Trafficking Laws Must Be Enforced

Melissa     Trafficking News & Information     0

We talk a lot about how important it is to have strong laws against human trafficking. And it’s true. It’s essential to have clear, actionable laws. It’s the first thing the US Department of State looks at when it ranks a country’s efforts against trafficking in the Trafficking in Person’s Report. But having laws on the books is not enough.These laws must be enforced. The protective power of law is nearly nullified when punishments aren’t carried out. Which makes it so frustrating to see that Obama has waived sanctions on countries who use child soldiers. A very important aside: I’mRead more

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