Restoration Ministries Annual Celebration
Friday, September 23, 2011
Reception at 6:00 pm
Dinner 6:30 - 8:30 pm
Country Club of Fairfax
5110 Ox Rd.
Fairfax, VA 22030
Honoree and Keynote Speaker Dr. Benjamin Keyes
Ph D, Ed. D., LPC
Author of HEART, Healing Emotional Affective Responses to Trauma; clinical application
Regent University, School of Psychology and Counseling
Cost: $100 for Individual Ticket
RSVP by: Tuesday, September 20, 2011
For more information email: info@restorationministriesdc.org
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Ambassadors of Restoration
Restoration Ministries is pleased to announce the launch the Ambassadors of Restoration Program, a non-direct service opportunity for students, small groups and churches from all over the United States to advocate for the survivors of domestic sex trafficking. Ambassadors will have the opportunity to learn about the issue for themselves as well as raise awareness in their communities.
For more information about how you can become and Ambassador of Restoration, please contact Tanya at tanya@restorationministriesdc.org
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
International Christian Alliance on Prostitution 2011 Conference
“Liminality”. This new word struck a cord with me as I sat in a workshop during the 2011 International Christian Alliance on Prostitution (ICAP) Conference. Liminality, I learned means “the place in-between”. The workshop leader emphasized the importance of making space for the survivors you work with to ask questions, wrestle with the “Why’s?, and take some time in that place in-between their trauma and healing.
This year’s conference was held at the serene Green Lake Conference Center in Green Lake, WI. This lakeside retreat was perfect for direct service providers, those fighting on the front lines against human trafficking and prostitution around the globe. It was a breath of fresh air for the individuals and organizations who give endless time, energy, and God-given passion to serve such a unique demographic.
40 countries were represented at this year’s conference. Members from each country proudly sang worship in their own tongue, wore beautiful native dress, and came to share what the Lord is doing with survivors in other areas of the world. In addition to offering therapeutic services, many of these organizations offer training in a new trade or skill. They sold beautiful hand-made jewelry, scarves, purses, clothes and pieces of art.
The speakers, Elsy Carvlho, Jill Briscoe, and Rhea Briscoe used their hearts for ministry to refresh and re-energize the ICAP community. God spoke through these dynamic women to encourage everyone in attendance.
From the ICAP website: “The International Christian Alliance on Prostitution (ICAP) unites, equips and empowers practitioners and advocates who compassionately challenge injustice and offer freedom to people exploited by prostitution, including sex trafficking.” To learn more, please visit www.ICAPglobal.org.
This year’s conference was held at the serene Green Lake Conference Center in Green Lake, WI. This lakeside retreat was perfect for direct service providers, those fighting on the front lines against human trafficking and prostitution around the globe. It was a breath of fresh air for the individuals and organizations who give endless time, energy, and God-given passion to serve such a unique demographic.
40 countries were represented at this year’s conference. Members from each country proudly sang worship in their own tongue, wore beautiful native dress, and came to share what the Lord is doing with survivors in other areas of the world. In addition to offering therapeutic services, many of these organizations offer training in a new trade or skill. They sold beautiful hand-made jewelry, scarves, purses, clothes and pieces of art.
The speakers, Elsy Carvlho, Jill Briscoe, and Rhea Briscoe used their hearts for ministry to refresh and re-energize the ICAP community. God spoke through these dynamic women to encourage everyone in attendance.
From the ICAP website: “The International Christian Alliance on Prostitution (ICAP) unites, equips and empowers practitioners and advocates who compassionately challenge injustice and offer freedom to people exploited by prostitution, including sex trafficking.” To learn more, please visit www.ICAPglobal.org.
(L.L.)
Friday, May 6, 2011
Honor your Mom this Mother's Day with a gift to Restoration Ministries!
Celebrate your mother this Mother’s Day with a donation made in her honor to Restoration Ministries, a Christ-centered organization in Washington, DC that works directly with young women who have fallen victim to sex trafficking. Your gift will help to fund therapeutic programs for these young women.
If you would like to make a gift to Restoration Ministries, please visit our website at www.restorationministriesdc.org and click Donate. Or you may send checks made payable to Restoration Ministries to:
Restoration Ministries
PO Box 15674
Washington, DC 20003
Please use the certificate below to let the special woman in your life know how much she means to you.
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Sunday, March 6, 2011
4th Annual RM Benefit Concert - a Huge Success!
Boris Arratia played beautifully during the Friday evening concert.
The MC for the evening was Maegan Stout of National Community Church. Here she is interviewing Candace Wheeler, founder and director of RM and Lydia Lund, a case manager for RM.
Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to the work of Restoration Ministries in the Washington D.C. area and beyond - we cannot do this work without you!
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Please join us for our 4th Annual Benefit Concert at 7:30 pm on March 4 at Ebenezers Coffeehouse!
If you would like an e-copy of this poster, please email lydia@restorationministriesdc.org and we will get one to you. Invite your friends and join us for an evening of music talent and giving to the important work of Restoration Ministries!
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
CNN: Washington DC is used as the prime example
Sold on Craigslist: Critics say sex ad crackdown inadequate
Laurel, Maryland (CNN) -- On a late afternoon in early June, undercover police officers circled a one-story highway motel north of Washington. Inside was a 12-year-old girl who told her mother she was being forced to work as a prostitute.
According to her mother, the girl had started running away from home earlier this year. She found out her daughter was in the sex trade when she saw her in an adult online classified ad. The girl was advertising herself as a 24-year-old with a bogus name. The next time she ran away, her mother reported her missing.
Read the police press release
According to police and anti-trafficking advocates, the internet has now become the preferred way to sell women for sex. It's fast and convenient for the pimps and relatively safe for the men who pay for sex. Instead of trolling the streets, they can now look through hundreds of girls from the safety of their homes or hotels.
This time, the girl was lucky. She called home, and the call was traced to a Knight's Inn in Laurel, Maryland, where police were quickly on the scene. They rescued the girl and arrested a 42-year-old man and charged him with human trafficking.
Of all the sites that offer "adult services," Craigslist is one of the most popular. The online classified ad site is used regularly by about 50 million Americans for everything from buying used lawn furniture to finding a job or a roommate.
It's also used to sell sex, making Craigslist a prime target of a nationwide campaign against internet prostitution."Most of the young women we've worked with who have been exploited online talk about Craigslist," said Andrea Powell of the anti-trafficking group The FAIR Fund. "Craigslist is like the Wal-Mart of online sex trafficking right now in this country."
According to police who investigated the case of the missing 12-year-old, she had previously advertised on Craigslist under a false name and age. Craigslist declined to provide copies of the ad, citing privacy concerns.
Craigslist founder Craig Newmark defended his site, saying it is doing more than any other site that hosts adult ads to help filter out underage prostitutes and report them to police.
In 2008, under pressure from state prosecutors, the website raised the fees for posting adult services ads. In 2009, it started donating portions of the money generated by adult ads to charity. Craigslist also began to manually screen all ads and said it would refer any suspected underage girls to law enforcement.
That's not good enough for anti-trafficking activists. For all its reforms, they say Craigslist still has no way of knowing whether the females being sold are women or girls and is doing too little to help police identify and rescue children who are being sold for sex.
A CNN investigation of Craigslist's "adult services" section, which replaced "erotic services ads" two years ago, counted more than 7,000 ads in a single day. Many offered thinly veiled "services" for anything from $50 for a half hour to $400 an hour.
Many of the ads had photographs attached, and in many of those it was difficult to tell whether the female was an adult or a minor. Ads with words suggestive of youth, like "young" and "fresh," received a flood of responses from men who clearly expected sex in exchange for money.
One 20-year-old said it's the easiest and cheapest way to get customers.
A 20-year-old identified only as "Jessica" works out of low-rent hotels on Washington's busy Interstate 95 corridor. She posts ads mid-morning for $10 and says she earns up to $250 from each man who answers and shows up. She told CNN her "man" -- her pimp -- was good to her, but that the vast majority of the females who post ads are run by pimps who force them to have sex with as many as a dozen men a day.
She said many of the prostitutes give everything they earn directly to the pimps. If they don't, they're beaten.
"Girls are called 'yes bitches' and 'no bitches.' Yes bitches are what the pimps want," Jessica said after applying makeup to cover bruising on her face. "My advice is if you're doing this to be a yes bitch. Otherwise, you're going to have a very hard time."
Just how many of the ads include children is extremely difficult to establish, but many of the photos that accompany the ads on Craigslist are questionable.
A classified posted alongside Jessica's ad in the Washington market showed an African-American woman in her underwear offering herself for $250 an hour. Like dozens of other pictures posted the same week, her face appeared very young.
According to internet research firm the AIM Group, Craigslist this year is expected to earn a third of its revenue -- more than $36 million -- from its adult services section alone.
AIM Group's summary report on Craigslist
Craigslist says any increased revenue is partly because it was required to charge more for adult ads under a 2008 agreement with government officials intended to curb the volume of online adult ads. But the amount it is earning has opened the website up to charges that it's profiting from the exploitation of women.
According to its own rules, Craigslist requires anyone using its adult services section to immediately report any suspicious ads to a national tip-line run by the Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The head of Washington's Metropolitan Police anti-prostitution unit said Craigslist "never" reports suspicious ads to his department.
"It does bother us from a law enforcement perspective, because the problem is so rampant that you know to get a handle on it we need all the assistance we can get," Metropolitan police inspector Brian Bray said. "If they're notifying, I'm not sure if they're notifying the right people, because we're not getting a call."
Craigslist spokeswoman Susan MacTavish told CNN in an e-mail that of all the websites that offer adult services ads, Craigslist is the leader in pushing users to report any suspected violation. She said the site cooperates fully with law enforcement, and that fewer than one ad in 10,000 meets the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's guidelines for anti-trafficking action.
MacTavish also noted that Craigslist requires anyone posting an ad to give the website a phone number, which is verified as being real. She said that because Craigslist follows the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's guidelines, the percentage of ads in its adult services section that are in fact children is "effectively zero."
The head of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said his group has recently started to get referrals from Craigslist, but that it has no direct say in how Craigslist determines what ads are worth reporting.
"We are not a part of their initial screening and review process, and don't see exactly what their screeners see or know how they make their determinations as to what is actionable and reportable," director Ernie Allen wrote in an e-mail to CNN. "We are now getting reports from them regarding suspected violations and that is a good thing. The key question is -- are they doing enough?"
To another national advocacy group, the Rebecca Project, there's only one answer to Craigslist's adult services dilemma: Shut it down.
The Rebecca Project has published open letters to Newmark from a former underage prostitute who says her pimp forced her to sell her body and used Craigslist to drum up customers.
"We hear this story every single day of girls who are being bought and sold, American girls who are being bought and sold through the internet," said Malika Saada Saar, executive director of the Rebecca Project.
Read Saada Saar's commentary on CNN.com
She believes many Americans are either unaware of just how many girls are being sold on sites like Craigslist or simply chose to ignore the problem.
"I think we have an easier time looking at these girls when they are in India or Thailand and being thoughtful or supportive of those girls," Sadaa Saar said. "But when those girls come from Southeast D.C., or Toledo, Ohio, or Atlanta, Georgia, we are challenged at being able to see them as victims. It's much easier to call them bad girls or girls acting out, as opposed to recognizing these are girls who are vulnerable, who are being raped and exploited
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/08/03/craigslist.sex.ads/index.html
Laurel, Maryland (CNN) -- On a late afternoon in early June, undercover police officers circled a one-story highway motel north of Washington. Inside was a 12-year-old girl who told her mother she was being forced to work as a prostitute.
According to her mother, the girl had started running away from home earlier this year. She found out her daughter was in the sex trade when she saw her in an adult online classified ad. The girl was advertising herself as a 24-year-old with a bogus name. The next time she ran away, her mother reported her missing.
Read the police press release
According to police and anti-trafficking advocates, the internet has now become the preferred way to sell women for sex. It's fast and convenient for the pimps and relatively safe for the men who pay for sex. Instead of trolling the streets, they can now look through hundreds of girls from the safety of their homes or hotels.
This time, the girl was lucky. She called home, and the call was traced to a Knight's Inn in Laurel, Maryland, where police were quickly on the scene. They rescued the girl and arrested a 42-year-old man and charged him with human trafficking.
Of all the sites that offer "adult services," Craigslist is one of the most popular. The online classified ad site is used regularly by about 50 million Americans for everything from buying used lawn furniture to finding a job or a roommate.
It's also used to sell sex, making Craigslist a prime target of a nationwide campaign against internet prostitution."Most of the young women we've worked with who have been exploited online talk about Craigslist," said Andrea Powell of the anti-trafficking group The FAIR Fund. "Craigslist is like the Wal-Mart of online sex trafficking right now in this country."
According to police who investigated the case of the missing 12-year-old, she had previously advertised on Craigslist under a false name and age. Craigslist declined to provide copies of the ad, citing privacy concerns.
Craigslist founder Craig Newmark defended his site, saying it is doing more than any other site that hosts adult ads to help filter out underage prostitutes and report them to police.
In 2008, under pressure from state prosecutors, the website raised the fees for posting adult services ads. In 2009, it started donating portions of the money generated by adult ads to charity. Craigslist also began to manually screen all ads and said it would refer any suspected underage girls to law enforcement.
That's not good enough for anti-trafficking activists. For all its reforms, they say Craigslist still has no way of knowing whether the females being sold are women or girls and is doing too little to help police identify and rescue children who are being sold for sex.
A CNN investigation of Craigslist's "adult services" section, which replaced "erotic services ads" two years ago, counted more than 7,000 ads in a single day. Many offered thinly veiled "services" for anything from $50 for a half hour to $400 an hour.
Many of the ads had photographs attached, and in many of those it was difficult to tell whether the female was an adult or a minor. Ads with words suggestive of youth, like "young" and "fresh," received a flood of responses from men who clearly expected sex in exchange for money.
One 20-year-old said it's the easiest and cheapest way to get customers.
A 20-year-old identified only as "Jessica" works out of low-rent hotels on Washington's busy Interstate 95 corridor. She posts ads mid-morning for $10 and says she earns up to $250 from each man who answers and shows up. She told CNN her "man" -- her pimp -- was good to her, but that the vast majority of the females who post ads are run by pimps who force them to have sex with as many as a dozen men a day.
She said many of the prostitutes give everything they earn directly to the pimps. If they don't, they're beaten.
"Girls are called 'yes bitches' and 'no bitches.' Yes bitches are what the pimps want," Jessica said after applying makeup to cover bruising on her face. "My advice is if you're doing this to be a yes bitch. Otherwise, you're going to have a very hard time."
Just how many of the ads include children is extremely difficult to establish, but many of the photos that accompany the ads on Craigslist are questionable.
A classified posted alongside Jessica's ad in the Washington market showed an African-American woman in her underwear offering herself for $250 an hour. Like dozens of other pictures posted the same week, her face appeared very young.
According to internet research firm the AIM Group, Craigslist this year is expected to earn a third of its revenue -- more than $36 million -- from its adult services section alone.
AIM Group's summary report on Craigslist
Craigslist says any increased revenue is partly because it was required to charge more for adult ads under a 2008 agreement with government officials intended to curb the volume of online adult ads. But the amount it is earning has opened the website up to charges that it's profiting from the exploitation of women.
According to its own rules, Craigslist requires anyone using its adult services section to immediately report any suspicious ads to a national tip-line run by the Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The head of Washington's Metropolitan Police anti-prostitution unit said Craigslist "never" reports suspicious ads to his department.
"It does bother us from a law enforcement perspective, because the problem is so rampant that you know to get a handle on it we need all the assistance we can get," Metropolitan police inspector Brian Bray said. "If they're notifying, I'm not sure if they're notifying the right people, because we're not getting a call."
Craigslist spokeswoman Susan MacTavish told CNN in an e-mail that of all the websites that offer adult services ads, Craigslist is the leader in pushing users to report any suspected violation. She said the site cooperates fully with law enforcement, and that fewer than one ad in 10,000 meets the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's guidelines for anti-trafficking action.
MacTavish also noted that Craigslist requires anyone posting an ad to give the website a phone number, which is verified as being real. She said that because Craigslist follows the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's guidelines, the percentage of ads in its adult services section that are in fact children is "effectively zero."
The head of the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children said his group has recently started to get referrals from Craigslist, but that it has no direct say in how Craigslist determines what ads are worth reporting.
"We are not a part of their initial screening and review process, and don't see exactly what their screeners see or know how they make their determinations as to what is actionable and reportable," director Ernie Allen wrote in an e-mail to CNN. "We are now getting reports from them regarding suspected violations and that is a good thing. The key question is -- are they doing enough?"
To another national advocacy group, the Rebecca Project, there's only one answer to Craigslist's adult services dilemma: Shut it down.
The Rebecca Project has published open letters to Newmark from a former underage prostitute who says her pimp forced her to sell her body and used Craigslist to drum up customers.
"We hear this story every single day of girls who are being bought and sold, American girls who are being bought and sold through the internet," said Malika Saada Saar, executive director of the Rebecca Project.
Read Saada Saar's commentary on CNN.com
She believes many Americans are either unaware of just how many girls are being sold on sites like Craigslist or simply chose to ignore the problem.
"I think we have an easier time looking at these girls when they are in India or Thailand and being thoughtful or supportive of those girls," Sadaa Saar said. "But when those girls come from Southeast D.C., or Toledo, Ohio, or Atlanta, Georgia, we are challenged at being able to see them as victims. It's much easier to call them bad girls or girls acting out, as opposed to recognizing these are girls who are vulnerable, who are being raped and exploited
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/08/03/craigslist.sex.ads/index.html
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Feeling Powerless
"I had gotten word that one of the girls from the jail had been trafficked from out of state. I was praying all the way over to the jail because I hadn’t met her yet and wanted to make contact. This girl was in hysterics trying to find some reason for what had happened to her and what the next step was. Explaining what I did just didn’t seem good enough to help change the circumstances. I explained that I have no real power as far as decisions for her future were concerned, but yes I would be there to walk with her through it all. I left the jail feeling completely powerless.
The next day I went over to the jail to see her again as promised. She was crying with her knees to her chest rocking back and forth saying I want to go home. I asked her if she wanted a hug and she nodded; however, she did not reach her arms out to me. I wrapped my arms around her and prayed for her feeling a little bit of the burden she was carrying.
Over the course of last week the Lord worked in amazing ways. I kept asking Him, “What am I doing God that is actually changing her circumstances?” The answer He gave me: “You are changing everything…you are showing her My love.” I got a glimpse into how she felt powerless in her circumstances and I was able to emphasize knowing that I was journeying with her in this confusion. My ministry is a ministry of presence where I keep showing up day after day loving her, listening to her, laughing with her, and praying with her. After I went to court with her she told the other girls in the jail that court went well “because I was there”. She was bragging on me and wrapped her arms around me saying she loved me. She told me I’m the only one who listens to her and cares for her. There was my conformation. I just shook my head and smiled…thank you God…I needed that. I am right where you want me to be and God you are being glorified. Restoration Ministries gave her a gift last week that her mom told me she didn’t have, a bible, it was her first one.
Thank you God, for you are the one who saves and heals. It is a blessing feeling myself getting smaller because it is the weak He uses to proclaim His glory and spread forth His light."
Alysha Tagert
The next day I went over to the jail to see her again as promised. She was crying with her knees to her chest rocking back and forth saying I want to go home. I asked her if she wanted a hug and she nodded; however, she did not reach her arms out to me. I wrapped my arms around her and prayed for her feeling a little bit of the burden she was carrying.
Over the course of last week the Lord worked in amazing ways. I kept asking Him, “What am I doing God that is actually changing her circumstances?” The answer He gave me: “You are changing everything…you are showing her My love.” I got a glimpse into how she felt powerless in her circumstances and I was able to emphasize knowing that I was journeying with her in this confusion. My ministry is a ministry of presence where I keep showing up day after day loving her, listening to her, laughing with her, and praying with her. After I went to court with her she told the other girls in the jail that court went well “because I was there”. She was bragging on me and wrapped her arms around me saying she loved me. She told me I’m the only one who listens to her and cares for her. There was my conformation. I just shook my head and smiled…thank you God…I needed that. I am right where you want me to be and God you are being glorified. Restoration Ministries gave her a gift last week that her mom told me she didn’t have, a bible, it was her first one.
Thank you God, for you are the one who saves and heals. It is a blessing feeling myself getting smaller because it is the weak He uses to proclaim His glory and spread forth His light."
Alysha Tagert
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Street Outreach
These are the girls we recently came in contact with during street outreach. Please read about this on Lloyd Wolf's photography blog. Thank you.
http://lloydwolfphoto.blogspot.com/2010/06/restoration-ministries-end-trafficking.html
http://lloydwolfphoto.blogspot.com/2010/06/restoration-ministries-end-trafficking.html
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
DC SMS Walk
RM has a team! Please join us for the walk. Go to walk.stopmodernslavery.org to join us and help raise money for RM and the fight against modern day slavery happening here in Washington D.C. If you have any questions please call our office 202.544.1731. Thank you!
In addition, RIJI Green is having a fundraiser for the DC Stop Modern Slavery Walk. For the entire month of July, every Act Justly messenger bag you purchase, RIJI Green will donate $1 to the Walk.
These bags not only make great gifts for your friends and family, but also provide economic opportunities for survivors and people at risk of trafficking.
Check out the bags here: http://rijigreen.com/node/41
In addition, RIJI Green is having a fundraiser for the DC Stop Modern Slavery Walk. For the entire month of July, every Act Justly messenger bag you purchase, RIJI Green will donate $1 to the Walk.
These bags not only make great gifts for your friends and family, but also provide economic opportunities for survivors and people at risk of trafficking.
Check out the bags here: http://rijigreen.com/node/41
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
A Way to Get Involved
The DC Task Force on Human Trafficking is creating subcommittees and they are a great way for people to get involved. They are: Outreach/Awareness/Events 2. Training and 3. Communication. Start thinking about how and where you can serve. It is a great way to meet others who are interested in the movement and be involved in short-term projects instead of the long-term commitment that direct service requires. Individuals cannot join the TF but they can participated under RM.
For more information contact info@restorationministriesdc.org
For more information contact info@restorationministriesdc.org
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Secretary Clinton Announces Release of 2010 Trafficking in Persons Report
Article taken from: http://blogs.state.gov/index.php/site/entry/clinton_2010_tip_report
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced the release of the 10th annual Trafficking in Persons Report on Monday, June 14, 2010 at 10:30 a.m. in the Benjamin Franklin Room at the Department of State. Secretary Clinton said:
"This report provides in-depth assessments and recommendations for 177 countries, some of whom are making great progress toward abolishing the illicit trade in human beings. Others are still doing too little to stem the tide. But behind these statistics on the pages are the struggles of real human beings, the tears of families who may never see their children again, the despair and indignity of those suffering under the worst forms of exploitation. And through this report we bear witness to their experience and commit ourselves to abolishing this horrible crime.
"Human trafficking crosses cultures and continents. I've met survivors of trafficking and their families, along with brave men and women in both the public and the private sector who have stood up against this terrible crime. All of us have a responsibility to bring this practice to an end. Survivors must be supported and their families aided and comforted, but we cannot turn our responsibility for doing that over to nongovernmental organizations or the faith community. Traffickers must be brought to justice. And we can't just blame international organized crime and rely on law enforcement to pursue them. It is everyone's responsibility. Businesses that knowingly profit or exhibit reckless disregard about their supply chains, governments that turn a blind eye or do not devote serious resources to addressing the problem, all of us have to speak out and act forcefully.
"Now, we talk often here in the State Department about shared responsibility. Indeed, it is a core principle of our foreign policy. So we have to ensure that our policies live up to our ideals. And that is why we have for the first time included the United States. As this report documents, cases of trafficking persons are found in our own communities. In some cases, foreign workers drawn by the hope of a better life in America are trapped by abusive employers. And there are Americans, unfortunately, who are held in sexual slavery. Some find themselves trapped through debt to work against their will in conditions of modern-day bondage. And this report sends a clear message to all of our countrymen and women: human trafficking is not someone else's problem. Involuntary servitude is not something we can ignore or hope doesn't exist in our own community.
"I'm very proud of the bipartisan commitment and leadership that the United States has shown on this issue over many years. For the Obama Administration, combating this crime is a top priority. And the United States funds 140 anti-trafficking programs in nearly 70 countries, as well as supporting 38 domestic task forces that bring state and local authorities together with NGOs like many represented in this room.
"It's been 10 years since the United Nations Trafficking in Persons Protocol was negotiated and the U.S. Trafficking Victims Protection Act was enacted, and I was very proud to have worked on both of those in a prior life sometime back. And under the paradigm of the three Ps -- prevention, protection, and prosecution -- and thanks in part to the facts and focus provided by this annual report, governments, law enforcement agencies, international organizations, and families are working more closely together than ever. Now we call for the fourth P -- partnership. And that is making a real difference. More countries are updating their laws and expanding enforcement, more criminals are facing prosecution, and more survivors are being helped back into a life of freedom.
"This report is a catalogue of tragedies that the world cannot continue to accept. But it is also a record that deserves praise and recognition because it exemplifies hope and action because hope without action cannot be our goal. We have to provide the hope that then leads to the action that changes the reality that we describe."
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton announced the release of the 10th annual Trafficking in Persons Report on Monday, June 14, 2010 at 10:30 a.m. in the Benjamin Franklin Room at the Department of State. Secretary Clinton said:
"This report provides in-depth assessments and recommendations for 177 countries, some of whom are making great progress toward abolishing the illicit trade in human beings. Others are still doing too little to stem the tide. But behind these statistics on the pages are the struggles of real human beings, the tears of families who may never see their children again, the despair and indignity of those suffering under the worst forms of exploitation. And through this report we bear witness to their experience and commit ourselves to abolishing this horrible crime.
"Human trafficking crosses cultures and continents. I've met survivors of trafficking and their families, along with brave men and women in both the public and the private sector who have stood up against this terrible crime. All of us have a responsibility to bring this practice to an end. Survivors must be supported and their families aided and comforted, but we cannot turn our responsibility for doing that over to nongovernmental organizations or the faith community. Traffickers must be brought to justice. And we can't just blame international organized crime and rely on law enforcement to pursue them. It is everyone's responsibility. Businesses that knowingly profit or exhibit reckless disregard about their supply chains, governments that turn a blind eye or do not devote serious resources to addressing the problem, all of us have to speak out and act forcefully.
"Now, we talk often here in the State Department about shared responsibility. Indeed, it is a core principle of our foreign policy. So we have to ensure that our policies live up to our ideals. And that is why we have for the first time included the United States. As this report documents, cases of trafficking persons are found in our own communities. In some cases, foreign workers drawn by the hope of a better life in America are trapped by abusive employers. And there are Americans, unfortunately, who are held in sexual slavery. Some find themselves trapped through debt to work against their will in conditions of modern-day bondage. And this report sends a clear message to all of our countrymen and women: human trafficking is not someone else's problem. Involuntary servitude is not something we can ignore or hope doesn't exist in our own community.
"I'm very proud of the bipartisan commitment and leadership that the United States has shown on this issue over many years. For the Obama Administration, combating this crime is a top priority. And the United States funds 140 anti-trafficking programs in nearly 70 countries, as well as supporting 38 domestic task forces that bring state and local authorities together with NGOs like many represented in this room.
"It's been 10 years since the United Nations Trafficking in Persons Protocol was negotiated and the U.S. Trafficking Victims Protection Act was enacted, and I was very proud to have worked on both of those in a prior life sometime back. And under the paradigm of the three Ps -- prevention, protection, and prosecution -- and thanks in part to the facts and focus provided by this annual report, governments, law enforcement agencies, international organizations, and families are working more closely together than ever. Now we call for the fourth P -- partnership. And that is making a real difference. More countries are updating their laws and expanding enforcement, more criminals are facing prosecution, and more survivors are being helped back into a life of freedom.
"This report is a catalogue of tragedies that the world cannot continue to accept. But it is also a record that deserves praise and recognition because it exemplifies hope and action because hope without action cannot be our goal. We have to provide the hope that then leads to the action that changes the reality that we describe."
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
“What belongs to you but is used more by others?”
It was the typical start of a Sunday program, I had searched hard for some form of ice breaker or question to engage the girls at the detention center with when they first walked in. Though hoping for a better tie-in to the theme of our discussion that day, I settled with a riddle I had seen multiple places online. The girls filed in, they took their seats, they responded to our greetings. It was the first riddle I asked, a simple mind trick that questioned “What belongs to you but is used more by others?”. The answer is, “your name”. However, it was I who was tricked by the question when without missing a beat, two girls simultaneously responded with “your body”.
‘What belongs to you but is used more by others?’ ‘Your body’.
Their response hit me like a ton of bricks, the ease and rapidity of their reply solidified the reality that these girls have experienced life in a body that is used more by others but is suppose to belong to them. It’s typical to learn that the majority of the girls we work with have encountered sexual abuse at staggeringly young ages. We give them surveys about their sexual experiences to determine if they have experienced trafficking and we frequently are returned with the x’s and checks marked next to “yes” when asked “Has anyone ever made you have sex when you didn’t want to, either through physical violence, threats, or making you feel like you couldn’t say no?”. Right beneath the question there is a space to indicate at what age they first experienced said trauma, I’ve seen girls answer as young as 2 ½.
For these young women, I think about how they never had a chance to grow comfortably into their bodies. I reflect on my own coming of age as the teenagers they are now, and the discomfort, the uncertainty, the unfamiliarity with my physical self that naturally through time was resolved. I had the privilege to grow into who I am and the body God gave me, it is part of how I find my identity in him and how I learn to reconcile the flesh with the spirit. I think again about the true answer to the riddle, ‘your name’, and how much our names, though not chosen by us, define who we are. We are identified by our names, we are identified by our bodies. But the two young girls who have identified their bodies as belonging to others, much like all the women and girls in prostitution, are trapped in a body that others have taken so much from, and left little identity to be found. I wonder in hurt of the difficulties they face in trying to find their true identity and home in Christ, and pray that they relate and understand his broken body on the cross as the core of their identity, beyond any body that any one has misused.
There’s a brief pause after they first answer my question, I absorb the weight of their response in a painful private moment, and move on.
“Every human body has been given a new hope of belonging eternally to the God who created it. Thanks to the Incarnation, you can bring your body home” -Henri Nouwen
‘What belongs to you but is used more by others?’ ‘Your body’.
Their response hit me like a ton of bricks, the ease and rapidity of their reply solidified the reality that these girls have experienced life in a body that is used more by others but is suppose to belong to them. It’s typical to learn that the majority of the girls we work with have encountered sexual abuse at staggeringly young ages. We give them surveys about their sexual experiences to determine if they have experienced trafficking and we frequently are returned with the x’s and checks marked next to “yes” when asked “Has anyone ever made you have sex when you didn’t want to, either through physical violence, threats, or making you feel like you couldn’t say no?”. Right beneath the question there is a space to indicate at what age they first experienced said trauma, I’ve seen girls answer as young as 2 ½.
For these young women, I think about how they never had a chance to grow comfortably into their bodies. I reflect on my own coming of age as the teenagers they are now, and the discomfort, the uncertainty, the unfamiliarity with my physical self that naturally through time was resolved. I had the privilege to grow into who I am and the body God gave me, it is part of how I find my identity in him and how I learn to reconcile the flesh with the spirit. I think again about the true answer to the riddle, ‘your name’, and how much our names, though not chosen by us, define who we are. We are identified by our names, we are identified by our bodies. But the two young girls who have identified their bodies as belonging to others, much like all the women and girls in prostitution, are trapped in a body that others have taken so much from, and left little identity to be found. I wonder in hurt of the difficulties they face in trying to find their true identity and home in Christ, and pray that they relate and understand his broken body on the cross as the core of their identity, beyond any body that any one has misused.
There’s a brief pause after they first answer my question, I absorb the weight of their response in a painful private moment, and move on.
“Every human body has been given a new hope of belonging eternally to the God who created it. Thanks to the Incarnation, you can bring your body home” -Henri Nouwen
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
2010 DC Stop Modern Slavery Walk
The 2010 DC SMS Walk is an event organized by the community to raise awareness and funds for the fight against human trafficking. It includes a walk, speakers, information fair, art exhibit, and music concert. This is an opportunity to get together with elected officials, artists, luminaries, businesses, professional athletes, and the community to celebrate the cause and galvanize the movement!
When: Saturday, September 18th, 2010
Where: Constitution Gardens, which is the area next to the Lincoln Memorial.
Who: All are welcome!
PRE-REGISTER: Join the many others who have pre-registered for the walk. Click Here to pre-register. Once you pre-register, we will send you a reminder when the official registration website is online.
For questions and to get involved, please contact walk@stopmodernslavery.org.
Please join us for the walk to show your support for Restoration Ministries and the fight against human trafficking. A portion of the money raised goes to RM. More updates to come!
If you have any questions e-mail Alysha Tagert at alysha.tagert@gmail.com
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Friday, November 6, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Action Alert! DC Walk to Stop Child Sex Trafficking
Step Out to Protect Our Children
When: September 26, 2009
Time: 9 AM to 2 PM (Check-in: 8 AM to 10:30 AM
Where: Meridian Hill Park, Washington DC
Registration Deadline:
JOIN TEAM RESTORATION MINISTRIES: http://www.stopmodernslavery.org-a.googlepages.com/map2
Why: The Stop Child Trafficking Now (SCTNow) Walk is an annual event to rally support, increase awareness, and raise funds to stop child trafficking. Thousands of people will take to the streets in cities across the United States on the weekend of September 26-27, 2009. Be a part of this nation-wide event and the global fight to end the sale of innocent children into slavery by participating in the DC Walk to stop child sex trafficking.
Questions?
Contact Kacy Wandel kacy@restorationministriesdc.org
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
2009 Esperanza Awards : Keynote Speaker and Honorees
Keynote Speaker: J. Robert Flores
A longtime advocate for children, J. Robert Flores has led a distinguished career in juvenile and criminal justice. In January of 2009, he completed the longest tenure of any Administrator of the United States Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, having served since April of 2002. Previously, Mr. Flores served in the Criminal Division of the U.S. Justice Department and was an Assistant District Attorney in New York City.
Mr. Flores is an experienced lawyer and former prosecutor who is an expert in Internet facilitated crime, sexual exploitation, and the trafficking of children. Mr. Flores has been a lecturer and featured speaker on Constitutional Law, technology, Interagency collaboration, and juvenile justice.
In his most recent position, Mr. Flores led a successful drive to increase and improve Federal interagency cooperation, serving as Chairman of the Coordinating Council on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. In this role he oversaw multi-agency efforts to address underage drinking, increasing job training efforts for youth leaving detention or aging out of foster care, and efforts to prevent youth from becoming involved in gangs.
During his tenure, and in keeping with President Bush’s efforts to increase faith-based and community organization efforts, Mr. Flores increased funding to many organizations that had never partnered with the federal government before. He also pioneered new ways to coordinate funding between government agencies, something that makes federal funds much more flexible and useful to local communities and social service organizations.
A devoted husband to his wife, Ingrid, and father to his three children, Mr. Flores has dedicated his professional life to our Nation’s children. He has prosecuted major cases at every level of government, teaches frequently on issues of law and culture, and has served as a consultant to state and federal government officials.
Currently, Mr. Flores is the President of Hampton Road Strategies, LLC., a consulting and law firm he recently founded. The firm is dedicated to working with small and effective businesses and non-profit organizations that can benefit from sophisticated strategic planning, partnership development, and improved resource management.
Jose Dearteaga is a Program Manager for the The Department of Youth Rehabilitation Services who has faithfully served in the field of social service for over twenty years. An attorney and former parole officer, he has a variety of experience working in criminal justice, labor law and is currently working in DC's juvenile justice system. Jose is a true child advocate as his specialties range from assisting young girls locally who have fallen victim to sex trafficking, homelessness and abuse to advocating for victims internationally through the non- governmental organization, Landmines Blow! (www.Landminesblow.com), raising global awareness on the impact of landmine affected communities across the world. Jose is truly dedicated to the plight of those in need and has demonstrated a solid commitment to serving others through local advocacy and international activism. Jose is infinitely compassionate, selfless and is never hesitant to volunteer, lend support or advocate on behalf of anyone in need.
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