Indoctrinated - A Documentary

Last week I went to the showing of the documentary, "Indoctrinated: the grooming of children into prostitution." The purpose of this documentary is to help parents and their children be aware that sex trafficking exists everywhere, including San Diego, and anyone can become a victim. The stories are heartbreaking and the truth isn't an easy one to hear; but I think that everyone should be aware that sex trafficking is a horrific crime and that all girls of all races and economic status are potential victims. Below is a trailer, and if you get a chance, I highly recommend seeing the full length documentary.

iSancturary awareness event at Sawdust - I Come, I Care, I Can stop human trafficking

At the Generate Hope booth with marketing
coordinator, Nicolle Monico (on right).

A few weekends ago I attended iSanctuary's ( a non-profit organization dedicated to helping women who have been rescued from human trafficking) 2nd annual awareness event at Sawdust in Laguna Beach.

It was a wonderful event that took place outside under the canopy of trees and moonlight.  Live music, mouthwatering food, beautiful jewelry (from iSancturary, where girls that have been rescued from human trafficking make jewelry to help restart their lives), and fair trade vendors made it a lovely evening for people to come together and believe in the hope of ending human trafficking.

To add to the uplifting spirit of the evening, many anti-trafficking organizations were present to help increase awareness of the worldwide issue as well as show people how they can participate in helping end human trafficking. Along with iSanctuary and their stunning jewelry,  California Against Slavery, (a non-profit dedicated to strengthening trafficking laws),  and Generate Hope, a shelter for women who have been rescued from sex trafficking in San Diego, were present. Namaste Nepal and the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force were present as well.

Human Trafficking Awareness Walk Through

Along with hope must come understanding, so iSancturary set up a brilliantly decorated, yet disturbing, walk through statistics and stories of human trafficking around the world and in the United States. The picture to the left is section of the walk, with women's and children's underwear to remind us just how young some of these girls are, and the horrors they go through.


Here is a close up of tinker bell underwear - the average age for a girl that has been trafficked is 13 and some girls can be as young as 5. >>>

The awareness walk was full of statistics like the one on the left, as well as stories of girls from around the world who had been trafficked. Some stories were ones of hope and others ended leaving you with a feeling of nausea and wet eyes.

Two other disturbing images I came across were a wall full of missing children and an add for "Models."  Many traffickers lure their victims by offering them fake jobs such as modeling.

    iSancaturary had a great turnout.  It was amazing to see so many people becoming aware of human trafficking and the fact that it is happening in their own neighborhoods. I met a lot of dedicated and inspiring people and I look forward to attending next year.

On my way out, I bought a pair of beautiful peacock earrings from iSancturary.  Knowing that I had purchased with a purpose, I began to see how something as small as buying a pair of earrings can bring us one step closer to creating more survivors than victims and help end human trafficking.   

California Against Slavery 5k walk/Fundraiser

This past weekend I participated in California Against Slavery's 5k walk/fundraiser called Move To Stop Modern Day Slavery. I was joined by groups of people dedicated to ending modern day slavery right here in their own home town, San Diego. It was amazing to see so many people walking for a cause that many people are unaware of and yet human trafficking takes millions of lives each year.

After the walk, a sex trafficking survivor, Nikki Junker--a U.S citizen representing With More Than Purpose, told her story of being trafficked by a man she had thought was her boyfriend. She told us that she came from a middle class family and that she was trafficked to Las Vegas. Currently Nikki helps other girls that have been rescued from sex trafficking. She gives all of us hope that other trafficking victims can become survivors and find their place in the world again.

She told us that if the girls she worked with knew how many people had shown up to support them, they would be happily surprised.  According to Nikki, most of the time these girls feel like they are the "scum of the earth." That is why it is important that we help give them a voice, and spread the word that modern day slavery exists and WE WILL NOT STAND FOR IT.

California Against Slavery is trying to pass an initiative for the 2012 ballot to help create harsher laws for traffickers in CA, including increasing the prison sentence of a trafficker from the current 3 - 8 years to LIFE. If you would like to learn more about the initiative and how you can help, please visit California Against Slavery.  I personally enjoyed raising money for them with my team MiraCosta Rotaract. It was also a great way to create awareness that human trafficking is happening right here in San Diego.

JUSTICE at HERSHEY'S

Watch this video and see how Hershey is abusing college students right here in the United States.

Abolish child slavey and expose the dark side of Hershey's Chocolate

Join modern day abolitionist across the country and show the world that Hershey is using child slaves to produce our candy bars. Watch this video and see how you can end slavery with a simple consumer alert card.

Stories of Hope - Polaris Project

Reading about human trafficking can get overwhelming and many times you just begin to feel hopeless, you begin to think, "is there any hope in this situation?" The answer is YES! And the organization, Polaris Project has proof, they have stories of hope, stories of real survivors who are on their way to recovery. Below are some of the stories I found on their website.

Labor Trafficking | Domestic Servitude

Upon coming to the United States with a wealthy family, Sabine was imprisoned in their home; unable to leave, she was made to work around the clock.

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Sabine was the only member of her family to survive the genocide in Rwanda, so she agreed when a wealthy family offered her a chance to move to America with them.  Shortly after arrival, however, she was imprisoned in their home; forced to work around the clock and made to sleep on the kitchen floor. Finally after six months of servitude, Sabine was allowed to go to church for an hour each Sunday.  On one visit, she was approached by a kind Rwandan man who learned of her situation and helped her escape.  He took Sabine to one of our partner agencies and who immediately referred her to Polaris Project. 

Before participating in the Transitional Housing program, Sabine was afraid of everything.  She did not want to leave the apartment after 4:00 p.m.--because it was too dark--and was afraid to walk to the Polaris Project office by herself.  She had never been independent in the U.S., so even going to the grocery store or using a gift card terrified her.  Her Polaris Project Case Manager not only accompanied her when shopping, but also conducted case management sessions in her transitional housing home, where she felt safe and secure.  Because of her attentive Case Manager, after only three months, she was able to visit the office on her own.  She also began shopping on her own and familiarizing herself with the neighborhood.  When she came to Polaris Project she spoke no English, but after taking English lessons she is now conversational.  She became the most enthusiastic and eager student in our Job Training program, and continued to visit the center to practice the computer skills.

Sex Trafficking | Residential Brothel

Gabriella worked at a grocery store in Colombia. After moving to the United States in search of a better job, she was forced into prostitution by a person she trusted.

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Several years ago, Gabriella lived in Colombia with her family and worked at a grocery store. As the eldest child, she had to provide for her mother and sisters after her father committed suicide. A childhood friend of Gabriella’s moved to the United States some years before, and he offered to help her move to America every time he visited Columbia. He promised he would help her to find work in a restaurant so she could better support her family. After a year, she agreed.

The next thing she knew, Gabriella was taken to the U.S. and forced into prostitution. Not only was she held in debt bondage for $10,000, but she was told that if she tried to escape, her family would be harmed. For five long years, Gabriella lived as the property of her traffickers. She was moved to a different brothel almost every week, never knew where she was, and wasn't able to seek outside help. Unfortunately, Gabriella’s story is not unique. Polaris Project regularly assists victims of human trafficking who are left without homes, employment, family, or friends. Fortunately for Gabriella, Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) caught her trafficker. Gabriella was rescued through a raid that ICE did on the brothel where she was held. ICE referred her to Polaris Project for services.

Gabriella met with one of our case managers at least once a week for much needed emotional support and comprehensive care. Polaris Project assisted Gabriella in finding an apartment for her and her 2-year-old daughter, helped her enroll in ESL classes, and provided her with employment assistance.

Slavery in California

Many forget that human trafficking happens in the United States of America, in fact it happens in every state of the U.S. Here is a video about sex trafficking in CA. Watch this video and hear from two survivors who were trafficked in CA. And hear how one of girl was only 12 years old when she was trafficked... 

Learn how you can help stop trafficking in CA and what California Against Slavery is doing to try and strengthen trafficking laws by visiting, http://californiaagainstslavery.org/.