Stop Traffic: The Fight to Abolish Slavery Once Again
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Presentation by the Community of Christ Human Rights Team about human trafficking.
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Stop Traffic: The Fight to Abolish Slavery Once Again
- STOP TRAFFICSTOP TRAFFIC The Fight To AbolishThe Fight To Abolish Slavery Once AgainSlavery Once Again
- What is Human Trafficking? Modern Day Slavery !
- Approved at 2010 WorldApproved at 2010 World ConferenceConference Whereas,Whereas, Human trafficking is destructiveHuman trafficking is destructive to individuals, families, andto individuals, families, and communities and is fundamentallycommunities and is fundamentally incompatible with the life given toincompatible with the life given to us by our loving Creator;us by our loving Creator; andand
- Whereas, Our Eternal CreatorWhereas, Our Eternal Creator weeps for and with those soweeps for and with those so enslaved and desires for us to actenslaved and desires for us to act individually and as a church with aindividually and as a church with a worldwide presence throughworldwide presence through individual and corporate efforts toindividual and corporate efforts to confront and abolish slavery andconfront and abolish slavery and end human trafficking;end human trafficking; therefore, be ittherefore, be it
- Resolved, That members ofResolved, That members of Community of Christ, in organizedCommunity of Christ, in organized groups or as a part of their individualgroups or as a part of their individual stewardship, investigate whatstewardship, investigate what resources exist in their area to helpresources exist in their area to help them fight slavery and assist victims,them fight slavery and assist victims, and participate in those activities asand participate in those activities as appropriate given localappropriate given local considerations.considerations.
- Such activities might includeSuch activities might include participation inparticipation in •Rescue and Restore Coalitions (in theRescue and Restore Coalitions (in the United States);United States); •groups such as Stop the Traffik, Polarisgroups such as Stop the Traffik, Polaris Project, Not for Sale, and the InternationalProject, Not for Sale, and the International Organization for Migration;Organization for Migration; •gathering supplies for basic needs like foodgathering supplies for basic needs like food preparation, toiletries, and basicpreparation, toiletries, and basic housekeeping to offer to freed victimshousekeeping to offer to freed victims through rescue groups;through rescue groups;
- sponsoring community training on victimsponsoring community training on victim recognition;recognition; organizing and hosting movies, book clubs,organizing and hosting movies, book clubs, or journal reading to sensitize and educateor journal reading to sensitize and educate church members and community members;church members and community members; and be it furtherand be it further
- Resolved, That the Human RightsResolved, That the Human Rights Team identify and recommendTeam identify and recommend resources to assist local congregationsresources to assist local congregations and mission centers to advocate forand mission centers to advocate for victims, assist with efforts to rescuevictims, assist with efforts to rescue and restore victims, and prosecuteand restore victims, and prosecute traffickers, and to participate in othertraffickers, and to participate in other appropriate ways to dismantle andappropriate ways to dismantle and abolish this modern day slavery.abolish this modern day slavery.
- International Institute of St. Louis Looking Beneath the Surface Human Trafficking 101
- Human Trafficking Mode of Operation Force Fraud Coercion
- Trafficking: How it Works Women/children told false promises Some children sold by parents Easier to smuggle people than drugs or weapons Mafias or loosely organized crime networks Hidden in ethnic enclaves and cultural taboos People reusable and resalable
- Forms of Recruitment Smuggling networks Employment agencies Maid/ housekeeping/nanny schemes Mail order bride services Internet schemes False modeling agencies Befriending and/or seduction Illegal foreign adoption agencies
- People Trafficked For: Domestic Servitude Sex Work Forced Prostitution Marriages/Surrogacy Factory Work Begging International Adoptions Agricultural Work Criminal Activity Restaurant Work Construction Hotel/ Motel Housekeeping Other Informal Labor Sectors
- Scope of the Problem Worldwide 600,000 to 800,000 victims trafficked annually across international borders. Estimated 80% of victims are women and girls. 27 million people in slavery around the world. $9 billion business *After drug dealing, human trafficking is tied with illegal arms trade as the 2nd largest criminal industry in the world and the fastest growing.
- Scope of the Problem United States 18,000 to 20,000 victims are trafficked annually into the United States. 750,000 women were trafficked into the US in the last decade. 300,000 to 400,000 US children are victims of the sex trade.
- 18 Victims of Human Trafficking
- Victim Mindset Limited/ no English Unfamiliar with US culture/ systems Confined Fearful and/ or distrustful of authority Unaware that they are a victim May develop loyalty to trafficker Unaware of where they are Fear for safety of family
- Vulnerability Destitute Little/ no education Homeless or runaways Prior victims of domestic violence or sexual assault and abuse
- Psychology of Control Isolation Dependency Fear Instilled Abuse Shame Culture
- Needs of Victims There are four general areas of victim needs: Immediate assistance Housing, food, medical, safety and security, language interpretation and legal services Mental health assistance Counseling Income assistance Cash, living assistance Legal status T visa, immigration, certification
- How Many Slaves Work for You? Let’s take the survey: www.slaveryfootprint.org
- Victim Rights Safety Privacy Interpretation Information Legal Representation Right to be heard in court Civil compensation Medical assistance Immigration relief Repatriation Case Management Benefits
- Where to Look BENEATH THE SURFACE! Migrant or immigrant communities Areas known for prostitution Law enforcement Clinics/doctor’s offices Restaurants Hotels Your own neighborhood
- Red Flags Living with employer Poor living conditions Holding of documents Signs of abuse Inability to speak to individual alone Victims living at same premise where they work or driven to and from work Kept under surveillance Submissive and fearful Underpaid or unpaid
- What to Do If you think you have come in contact with a victim of human trafficking… if the victim is at risk of imminent harm, CALL 911
- What to Do Call the National Hotline This hotline will help you: Determine if you have encountered a victim of human trafficking Identify local community resources to help victims Coordinate with local social service organizations Trafficking Information and Referral Hotline 1-888-373-7888
- Communication with Victims Before questioning a potential trafficking victim, isolate individual from person accompanying her/him without raising suspicions. Enlist a trained interpreter who also understands victim’s cultural needs. Importance of indirectly and sensitively probing to determine if person is trafficking victim. SAFETY! SAFETY! SAFETY! SAFETY!
- Messages Gaining victim’s trust is an important first step in providing assistance Sample messages to convey: We are here to help you. Our first priority is your safety. If you are a victim of trafficking and you cooperate, you will not be deported. If you are a victim of trafficking, you can get help to rebuild your life safely in this country. We can find you a safe place to stay. We can help get you what you need. We want to make sure what happened to you doesn’t happen to anyone else. You are entitled to help. We can help you get assistance.
- How to Get Involved Join an activist organization like Stop the Traffik www.stopthetraffik.org or the Not For Sale Campaign www.notforsalecampaign.org Organize your congregation to get involved Explore www.acf.hhs.gov/trafficking for additional information
- How to Get Involved Tell your pastor or youth leader you want to do something about human trafficking and help lead activities in your congregation using the Human Rights Team electronic resource packet – www.cofchrist.org/humanrights/stoptr affic
- Questions and Discussion
- The CallThe Call He has sent me to proclaimHe has sent me to proclaim release to the captives andrelease to the captives and recovery of sight to therecovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressedblind, to let the oppressed go free…go free… Luke 4:18
Notas do Editor
- Human trafficking is a devastating human rights violation that takes place not only internationally, but also here in the United States. It is, indeed, a form of modern-day slavery. Millions of individuals, the majority of which are women and children, are tricked, coerced, sold or forced into situations of slavery-like exploitation from which they are unable to escape.
- I’m going to begin today’s presentation with a story: A woman kept in domestic servitude in the United States for several years was rescued when a neighbor, noticing that she had a large tumor, offered to take the woman to the health clinic. Luckily, the health providers asked the right questions and realized the woman was a victim of human trafficking. As a result, they helped the woman escape her situation and receive the medical care she desperately needed. Her employers received 15-20 years in jail. This is a success story because, first, the neighbor took the important step in bringing the woman to the health clinic, and second, because the health providers examining the woman were able to look beneath the surface to probe whether or not she was a possible trafficking victim. Today, I’m going to discuss not only the dimensions of human trafficking but also how to identify and work with trafficking victims.
- Traffickers use force, fraud, or coercion to exploit their victims. Force involves the use of rape, beatings and confinement to control the victim. Forceful violence is used especially during the early stages of victimization, known as the ‘seasoning process,’ which is used to break the victims’ resistance to make them easier to control. Fraud usually involves false offers of employment. For example, women and children will reply to advertisements promising jobs as waitresses, maids and dancers in other countries and are then forced into prostitution once they arrive at their destinations. Fraud may also involve promises of marriage or a better life, in general. Coercion involves threats, debt-bondage and psychological manipulation. Traffickers often threaten victims with injury or death, or the safety of the victim’s family back home. Coercion may also include things that are culturally pertinent, for example, holding a lock of the victim’s hair to make a voodoo doll or telling the victim that they cannot return home anyways because they are no longer virgins and this would bring great shame to the victims’ families. Victims do experience a lot of shame as a result of their situation and traffickers utilize this negative emotion to further control their victim.
- Recruiting people for the purpose of trafficking is not always a difficult task. Traffickers feed upon a person’s or families current situation to coerce them into slavery without them even knowing. For traffickers, victims are merely commodities to be exploited and traded in any market.
- Traffickers use a variety of recruitment methods to “lure” victims in. Most victims think they are recruited for legitimate employment or marriage abroad. They are not aware of the inhumane conditions they will face or that they may be forced to pay back the fees, and accrued interest, associated with their recruitment or transportation fees. Often times, the trafficker takes the person’s documents away until the debt has been repaid. Sometimes, when children are sold into slavery, parents sincerely believe, or hope, that they are giving their child a better life. This would be part of the fraud and false promises propagated by traffickers.
- This slide includes the various employment sectors that victims may be found in. While most of the information we have just covered primarily focuses on international trafficking I would like to take some time to discuss domestic trafficking.
- As you can see from these estimates, the incident of human trafficking internationally is quite staggering. The numbers are hard to accurately depict as this crime remains hidden and often goes unreported.
- As these figures show, the problem of human trafficking exists right here in the United States. Like international statistics, accurate national data is difficult to obtain. However, it is clear that most likely human trafficking is occurring right here in our city, community, probably even close to our neighborhoods.
- As we have shown in this presentation, the occurrence of human trafficking is staggering. The most disheartening fact is that many of the victims are hidden, despite that they probably come into contact with us in a variety of ways. One of the best ways to help combat this problem is to get involved in the effort. Involvement can be by joining the coalition, or organizing a presentation at your organization, or even by letting the coalition know that your agency is willing to provide services to potential victims. You can also find additional information regarding human trafficking on the DHSS web site.
- Now that b have an understanding of what human trafficking is and who the victims are, we will now discuss some particular strategies for identifying and working with victims.
- As a social service provider, it’s important to understand the mindset of trafficking victims. They fear and don’t trust service providers, the government or the police. Often traffickers tell their victims that they are in the United States illegally and they will be arrested and deported if they try to get help. Trafficking victims often fear or distrust the police because they come from countries where law enforcement is corrupt. Victims may feel that their current situation is their fault, thus they may feel guilty. They might also feel as though there is no way out of this situation. Trafficking victims may develop loyalties and positive feelings toward their trafficker as way to cope with their situation – known as the Stockholm or Patty Hearst Syndrome. In these cases, they may even try to protect the trafficker from authorities. Traffickers frequently move their victims to escape detection. As a result, trafficking victims may not even know what city or country they’re in. Victims of trafficking also fear for the safety of their family members in their native country, who are often threatened by the traffickers.
- People are vulnerable to traffickers for many reasons such as those listed on this slide. It is these vulnerabilities that make them a “target” for traffickers.
- While physical restraint, violence, and sexual assault are often used to control, traffickers also use psychological coercion as a way of controlling victims in a more subtle manner. Isolation: Victims kept from the public, not allowed to leave, do anything on their own. Dependency: Traffickers make their victims dependent on them for all their needs. Fear: Traffickers instill fear into their victims, fear for their lives, their families lives, that they will be arrested and deported. Abuse: physical and sexual abuse as well as emotional. Shame: Shame created for the situation that they are in, what they have done. Culture: Women/girls have a lesser place in society, must obey men
- Victims of human trafficking are vulnerable human beings who have been subjected to severe physical and emotional coercion. These trafficking victims are usually in desperate need of assistance. First and foremost these victims need to feel safe. There is a component of the Human Trafficking Grant that ensures a linkage into the mental health systems. There are benefits and services available to trafficking victims. These benefits and services include legal, healthcare, counseling, housing, food, medical, cash and employment assistance. Legal assistance is available to victims to help them with their immigration status. It is important to link a possible victim up with an attorney as soon as possible. Once they have continued presence, they are eligible for assistance in the refugee program. Please be careful when addressing a victim about the possible immigration relief which may be available to them. Due to issues of disclosure, it is better for an attorney to discuss with a victim the particulars of immigration relief measures. This helps emphasize the need to get an immigration lawyer as soon as possible.
- Because of the TVPA law, victims of human trafficking are eligible to receive assistance upon certification without regard to their prior immigration status. Some of the services that are available to them are listed on this slide.
- Human Trafficking victims can be found throughout the community if we know what to look for. We need to bring this problem to the surface and begin identifying victims so we can help them recover.
- This is a list of the things that a person can look for as possible indications of whether a person may be a victim of trafficking. While victims may have different experiences, they share common threads, a life marked by: Abuse Betrayal of their basic human rights Control by their trafficker These indicators show that a person may be controlled by someone else and accordingly, the situation should be further investigated. (Yes, the pictures are of a woman being smuggled across the Moldovan border in the dash board of a car).
- Here are some suggestions for what to do if you need to contact the authorities. First and foremost, if the person is in danger, CALL THE POLICE. The Department of Justice Hotline can be used to leave tips or report suspected cases of human trafficking. They take calls concerning both domestic and international trafficking. Also, they have translators on staff. Rick Rea of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department can be contacted if you need a law enforcement perspective. He can be reached at (314) 444-5739, if he is not there leave a message and he will be paged.
- If you come across a possible victim and you think that person is in immediate danger or imminent harm, call 911 or your local police. There are two ways to seek help for trafficking victims. Through the Office of Victims of Crime grant funding, you can call the International Institute and make a referral or you can call the National Hotline. You can contact law enforcement. Please see the previous What to Do slide for more information. You can also get more information at the Department of Health and Human Services website. www.acf.hhs.gov/trafficking
- There are a number of special considerations you should keep in mind when working with a potential or known trafficking victim: Before questioning a potential trafficking victim, it’s vital to isolate the person from the person accompanying him or her. However, try to do this without raising the suspicions of the individual accompanying the potential victim, who may say they are a spouse, other family member or employer. That’s because this individual may actually be the trafficker. You may want to say that your organization policy is to meet with the individual alone. It’s also important to enlist a trusted interpreter who also understands the individual’s cultural needs. Don’t rely on the individual accompanying the patient to interpret, since this individual could be the trafficker and will likely sanitize the patient’s responses. If the potential victim is a child, it is important to call in a social services specialist skilled in interviewing children who are trafficking or abuse victims.
- Gaining trust with the trafficking victim will be an important first step in providing much-needed assistance to this individual. This slide gives sample messages you may want to convey to trafficking victims to help gain this trust and demonstrate that you care for their well-being and safety. Many victims are feeling shame as well as fear, which will most likely prevent them from opening up to you. Earning their trust is critical.
- As we have shown in this presentation, the occurrence of human trafficking is staggering. The most disheartening fact is that many of the victims are hidden, despite that they probably come into contact with us in a variety of ways. One of the best ways to help combat this problem is to get involved in the effort. Involvement can be by joining the coalition, or organizing a presentation at your organization, or even by letting the coalition know that your agency is willing to provide services to potential victims. You can also find additional information regarding human trafficking on the DHSS web site.
- As we have shown in this presentation, the occurrence of human trafficking is staggering. The most disheartening fact is that many of the victims are hidden, despite that they probably come into contact with us in a variety of ways. One of the best ways to help combat this problem is to get involved in the effort. Involvement can be by joining the coalition, or organizing a presentation at your organization, or even by letting the coalition know that your agency is willing to provide services to potential victims. You can also find additional information regarding human trafficking on the DHSS web site.
- From Telling The Truth Human trafficking: Thai workers were physically abused and forced to live in rat-infested housing after being recruited by a labour contractor, based in Los Angeles, to work on farms in Hawaii and Washington, according to a US lawsuit. In a case echoing John Steinbeck's 1939 novel The Grapes of Wrath the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said it was the largest human trafficking case to date pursued by the agency against the agriculture industry. Global Horizons lured Thai workers to the US between 2003 and 2007 with promises of highly paid jobs and temporary visas. It charged recruitment fees of up to $25,000 (£15,000) which the workers often borrowed at home, putting their families in extreme debt, and then confiscated their passports and threatened to deport them if they complained about conditions, commission officials said. The workers were paid very low wages, lived in dilapidated, rat-infested rooms – where many did not have beds – and were often threatened and physically abused in the fields. The EEOC is seeking back pay and up to $300,000 in damages for each worker. Lawyers said they could not estimate how much was owed in wages and expected the number of workers in the case would increase. Global Horizons could not be reached for comment.