Ending Human Trafficking

Ms. Whittenburg’s civil service career began with the U.S. Customs Service at the Port of New Orleans as an import specialist 32 years ago while serving in a parallel career as a commissioned U.S. Army Reservist.

Ms. Whittenburg is a graduate of Dillard University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science/Business and has earned a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from Georgia Southern University.  Additionally, she graduated from the Department of Homeland Security Senior Executive Service Candidate Development Program in 2013 and the Senior Managers in Government course at Harvard Kennedy School of Government in 2016.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has a large role in the fight to end human trafficking that most people are unaware of. CBP has the authority to stop goods from coming into the U.S. that have been produced with forced labor.

The Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act was passed in 2016 which gave CBP more authority to detain shipments coming into the U.S. that are made wholly or in part with forced labor.

When businesses use forced labor they are upsetting the economic competitiveness of American business, and negatively impacts other businesses’ abilities to compete in a fair and competitive manner.

There are many resources available to the public to see which companies and products have been in contact with forced labor. These websites and reports also give readers the ability to see what regions in the world are high in labor trafficking; in order to, avoid buying products from those areas that have the potential to be tainted with human trafficking.

Resources

Customs and Border Protection

Trafficking in Persons Report

Department of Labor

EnsureJustice.com

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, this is episode number 244: The Role of Customs and Border Protection in Disrupting Supply Chain Forced Labor, and Why it Matters to All of Us.

Production Credits [00:00:13] Produced by Innovate Learning, maximizing human potential.

Dave [00:00:34] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. My name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:40] And my name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:43] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking, Sandie. I’m so glad for our conversation today. We are so pleased to have a leader that’s part of an organization that’s such an important partner in the work we are doing to end human trafficking. We’re so glad to welcome today Cynthia F. Whittenburg to the show. Cynthia was appointed Deputy Executive Assistant Commissioner of the Office of Trade in 2016, charged with overseeing one of the most important aspects of U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) complex mission: facilitating lawful trade while protecting our supply chain to support our nation’s economic growth and security. Under her leadership, CBP addresses many of the complex challenges in today’s trade environment, including e-commerce, forced labor, unfair trade practices, and regulatory reform. Miss Wittenburg’s civil service began with the U.S. Customs Service at the Port of New Orlea...

Rachel Goble

With the support of others, Rachel Goble started the Sold Project, which was renamed The Freedom Story, in order to raise awareness for human trafficking and prevention efforts.

The story that is told about human trafficking is very powerful. If the story does not represent the true struggles of the victims of human trafficking, it can be very detrimental to anti-human trafficking efforts, as well as prevention and funding.

The Sold Project began with a documentary about the vulnerabilities to sex trafficking of children in Thailand.

Sadly, there is a common story among people who have been subjected to human trafficking and helped by an organization. They tell their story to help that organization the way they were helped. However, when that survivor begins on the path to healing, oftentimes they don’t want their story to be available on the internet anymore. They don’t want to be known for what happened to them.

The theory of change has created a standard that The Freedom Story organization uses to help track prevention efforts.

Resources

The Freedom Story

Michael Kass: Ethical Story Telling

The Freedom Story Podcast

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, this is episode number 243, Ethical Storytelling in Prevention.

Production Credits [00:00:09] Produced by Innovate Learning, Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:30] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. My name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:35] And my name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:38] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking, Sandie. I’m so glad we get to have another conversation today about the importance of prevention, and I’m so glad to welcome to the show today Rachel Goble. Rachel grew up in an interconnected and multicultural world, whether traveling to Central America with her family to survey land for the founding of a nonprofit or trudging through the Sierra Nevada’s as her parents sought to awaken Christians to our role as creation’s caretakers, Rachel learned early that the world’s peoples and problems are connected and that we must all help in overcoming them. Rachel co-founded the Freedom Story to prevent child trafficking in northern Thailand through education, resources, and mentorship. After developing close relationships with the children, the Freedom Story serves, Rachael founded Ethical Storytelling, a community of nonprofit practitioners and storytellers learning how to integrate a new standard of storytelling. Today, Rachel serves as the CEO of the Freedom Story and executive director of the Global Family Foundation. Rachel, we’re so glad to welcome you to the show.

Rachel [00:01:47] Thank you so much for having me.

Sandie [00:01:49] Rachel and I were kind of reminiscing about when we first met, and it’s been a very, very long time since we’ve seen each other. But I’ve watched you from afar, and I would love for our listeners to learn a little bit about how you started in this and the Sold Project and how it morphed into what you’re doing now.

Rachel [00:02:12] Sure, yes. I think the last time we saw each other was probably in 2007 when I was a student at Fuller Seminary in L.A., and I believe our paths crossed there at an anti-trafficking seminar. And so, when I was a student, it was the early 2000’s and I had just learned about human trafficking. And given that I had grown up so connected to the nonprofit world, I think, like many people, was surprised that this is happening in our world and wanted to do something about it and so was able to dedicate a lot of my studies to trafficking research. And that brought me their work in Los Angeles and through India, South Africa. And all along that journey, I kept hearing this narrative of the need of prevention and the lack of resources that were available for prevention work, whether that was financial resources or just staff capacity. And so, I came home from that trip with a really clear understanding that I wanted to raise awareness about the need for prevention and the anti-trafficking space, and then was able to meet a couple of other individuals, one of whom was a Thai national, and had a similar vision for his village. And so, we put our minds together and our hearts together and thus was born what was then the Sold Project and today has been rebranded to the freedom story.

Sandie [00:03:41] Wow. OK, so tell us then let’s jump right into our favo...

The Salvation Army is in over 130 countries around the world.

The Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Response team is working in over 130  countries to connect people, information, and resources in the fight against human trafficking.

There is an International Modern Slavery & Human Trafficking Response Coordinator in every territory, adding up to around 90 coordinators.

These coordinators work together within one big network to help victims of trafficking.

Resources

www.salvationarmy.org/ISJC

EHT Ep. 101 – Mother’s Day Challenges, Champions, and Celebrations

Britain’s Maiden Tribute

Fight for Freedom Strategy Report

Ensure Justice Conference

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast; this is episode number 242: International Salvation Army Social Justice Strategy.

Production Credits [00:00:10] Produced by Innovate Learning Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:31] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. My name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:36] And my name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:39] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. Sandie, you and I talk a lot about partnership on this podcast, and it’s been a central part of our work for many years, and one of the most important partners we have worked with over the years is the Salvation Army. And we’re so glad to welcome a friend back to the show, someone who’s been a leader in the space. We’re glad to have Priscilla Santos with us. Priscilla is the Salvation Army Social Justice Commission’s International Coordinator for Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Response. And Priscilla is an adjunct professor at Vanguard University’s Global Center for Women and Justice, where she teaches courses on justice and holistic survivor care. She obtained a master’s in intercultural studies specializing in international development and children at risk from Fuller Theological Seminary. Priscilla, so glad to have you back on the show.

Priscilla [00:01:36] Thank you so much for having me. It’s a joy to be here today.

Sandie [00:01:40] I was looking back at to see when the last time you were a guest. It was in May 2015 and we recorded a podcast about Mother’s Day and human trafficking. And it was one of those podcasts that just really grips your heart. So, I recommend that those who have never met Priscilla go back and listen to that. That’s podcast number 101. So, Priscilla, you’re in a new role and your title is so long. I’m so glad I already know you and I can just call you Priscilla. Tell us what the International Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Response Coordinator does.

Priscilla [00:02:24] Yeah. So, my new position is all of our International Social Justice Commission office, which is part of our international headquarters and our department is really to be the strategic advocacy voice for all things social justice and to really lift voices from those on the margins. And so, within that department now, they’ve created this role, which is the International Coordinator for Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Response. And my primary function of my new role is to oversee the implementation of our international strategy, to strengthen our response to trafficking all over the world.

Sandie [00:03:10] So let’s get a little bit better picture of what you mean by all over the world. How many countries is Salvation Army in?

Priscilla [00:03:19] Yeah, so we are in over 130 countries around the world.

Sandie [00:03:25] Wow. Wow. What an amazing platform to have influence and voice in 130 countries. That’s amazing. OK, so Salvation Army has a very long and deep history in fighting slavery. And when I looked at the new strategy, it’s called Fight for Freedom. Tell us a little bit about how it was developed.

Priscilla [00:05:02] Yeah, so kind of like you mentioned, fighting and trying to end human trafficking is something that the Salvation Army has been a part of before, even the term human trafficking was coined. So, for the listeners that don’t know, the Salvation Army started in 1865. And actually, our first encounter with advocating against trafficking happened in 1885. So very quickly after we started, and it was where we advocated to change the law for the age of consent from 16 to 18. It’s one of our historical stories Britain’s Maiden Tribute. But I think one of the things for us to realize is that the Salvation Army, that this is a part of our DNA. We have been doing this since the very beginning, even before. Again, the co...

Happy National Human Trafficking Awareness Day!

Ambassador John Cotton Richmond

Prior to the Institute, Ambassador Richmond served, for more than ten years, as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Department of Justice’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit where he was named one of the “Federal Prosecutors of the Year” by the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation. He investigated and prosecuted numerous victim-centered labor and sex trafficking cases throughout the United States.

Ambassador Richmond’s work to combat human trafficking has earned numerous honors, including: the David Allred Award for Exceptional Contributions to Civil Rights, twice earning the Department of Homeland Security’s Outstanding Investigative Accomplishments in a Human Trafficking Award, as well as twice receiving the Department of Justice’s Special Commendation Award.

Key Points

We cannot take the trafficker out of the conversation. When we do this we are treating human trafficking as if it’s a naturally occurring phenomenon we can’t do much about. This leads to some level of blame being placed on the victim.

When we change from passive language to active language when describing human trafficking, we are holding the trafficker responsible and keep them a part of the conversation.

Collect data on prevention efforts can be very difficult because one is trying to prove that by their action something didn’t happen. However, in order to grow and mature as a movement, we need to start putting systems in place to measure our efforts.

As we move forward in this movement, it is important we open spaces for survivors to take leadership roles, and guide us with the experiences that they’ve had.

Labor trafficking can be very difficult to identify when left to law enforcement alone. Ambassador Richmond proposes strategies that would utilize administrative forces to help identify cases and. funnel them to law enforcement.

Covid-19 has caused a lot of chaos and put a lot of people in a vulnerable situation. The question we need to ask ourselves is not where are we going in this situation, but how do we adapt to these changing circumstances?

There is a place for everyone at the table of conversation. It’s alright for all of us to be different and focus on different aspects of this issue because when we come together and collaborate, it allows us to tackle the issue as a whole.

Resources

EHT Episode 240 – Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council

EHT Episode 239 – The Rise of Prevention and the Role of the Faith-Based Community

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast; this is episode 241 Ambassador-at-large John Cotton Richmond: Looking Forward.

Production Credits [00:00:10] Produced by Innovate Learning, Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:30] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. My name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:35] And my name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:37] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. Sandie, today we have with us a returning guest who has been just a tremendous leader in this space throughout his career. I’m so glad to welcome back to the show, John Cotton Richmond. He is the United States ambassador-at-large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons and leads the Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. Ambassador Richmond comes to the highest position in the federal government dedicated to combat human trafficking, after a distinguished career in the global battle for freedom. He co-founded the Human Trafficking Institute that exists to decimate modern slavery at its source by empowering police and prosecutors to use victim-centered and trauma-informed methods to hold traffickers accountable and ensure survivors are treated with respect and care. Prior to the institute, Ambassador Richmond served for more than 10 years as a federal prosecutor in the US Department of Justice’s Office for Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, where he was named one of the “Federal Prosecutors of the Year” by the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation. He investigated and prosecuted numerous victim-centered labor and sex trafficking cases throughout the United States. Mr. Ambassador, welcome back to the show.

Ambassador Richmond [00:01:58] It’s great to be back with you today.

Sandie [00:02:00] I remember when we first met at the human trafficking summit at the Underground Railroad Museum in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Ambassador Richmond [00:02:09] I remember that as well. It was a great conference. It was great to hear so many different perspectives, including yours. And it’s been fun to watch your career prog...

Dr. Sandie Morgan and Dave Stachowiak discuss Dr. Morgan’s time with the Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council to End Human Trafficking. They examine the annual report that the council released, and how it came to be. Dr. Morgan considers the impact that has been made by this council and topics that are still wanting to be addressed by a future council.

Dr. Sandie Morgan

Dr. Sandie Morgan is recognized globally for her expertise on combating human trafficking and working to end violence against women. She is the director of the Global Center for Women and Justice at Vanguard University in Southern California. She is passionate about the role of education in fighting human trafficking. She launched a 12 unit Anti-Human Trafficking Certificate that is totally online.  She believes everyone can do something.  But first, they need to study the issue.  Then they can be a voice and make a difference.

Key Points

Dr. Sandie Morgan was appointed Co-Chair of the Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council in December 2019.

This council was legislatively mandated to submit a report by Sept. 2020. In the midst of Covid.

This council had representatives from nonprofit groups, academia, non-governmental organizations, including faith-based to advise the federal government and make recommendations on federal anti-trafficking policy and programming efforts with a specific focus on prevention and victim services.

Prevention can be very difficult to measure, and funding is data-driven. This means that not much funding goes into prevention efforts.

The Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council was able to make recommendations about legislation that should be put in place to address human trafficking; however, they did not have enough time to address every topic and facet that comes with human trafficking. Because of this, they hope that this council will be reinstated in order to address these issues.

Resources

Public-Private Partnership 2020 Annual Video Report

Public-Private Partnership 2020 Annual Report

Episode 239 – The Rise of Prevention and the Role of the Faith-Based Community

Episode 233 – Bella Hounakey: A Fierce Survivor Advocate

Episode 227 – Another Form of Human Trafficking: Child and Forced Marriage

Episode 137 – Interview With Prosecutors: John Cotton Richmond & Victor Boutros

Coaching for Leaders podcast episode 416

The New Activist – Dr. Sandra Morgan, Combating Human Trafficking

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Transcription

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast; this is episode number 240: Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council.

Production Credits [00:00:09] Produced by Innovate Learning, Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:30] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. My name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:35] And my name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:37] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, to be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. If you’ve listened to the show before, you know, often we have guests on talking about the importance of all the work we’re doing in partnership around the world to end human trafficking and Sandie we get the pleasure of talking with so many experts around the world. And of course, I get the pleasure of talking with you, the expert that I know, who has just done incredible work all over the world and most recently through this Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council. And for those who don’t know and didn’t hear our previous announcement about your leadership on this, I’m wondering if you could tell us a bit about what the advisory council is and about your experience as co-chair because this is a presidential appointment from the White House.

Sandie [00:01:31] You know, it was an opportunity at a level to have an impact on policy. And if you’ve listened to the previous podcast with the folks from Arise, policy is a really important part of how we expand what we’re doing. So, for instance, for me, an attractive part of this invitation to be on this inaugural Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council to End Human Trafficking was that the emphasis was on prevention and protection, survivor care, and a little bit of the history for this, the Public-Private Partnership Advisory Council to End Human Trafficking, which I’m going to reduce to P three after this was established by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2017, which the whole process when we pass legislation, it’s like you have to go back to your civics class, Dave, and remember that it doesn’t happen the minute you push the vote button, it takes some time. So, it was enacted in December 2018 and it provided a formal platform for the development of a council with representatives from nonprofit groups, academia, non-governmental organizations, including faith-based to advise the federal government and make recommendations on federal anti-trafficking policy and programming efforts with a specific focus of prevention and victim services. So, the members of the council came from faith-based communities, from academia. I was very privileged to be asked to be co-chair of the council and our job was to submit a report by September 30th, 2020, when the act was passed in 2017 and enacted in 2018. It took some time to vet the council members and make that final appointment. So, our actual council began in December 2019 and we were by legislation mandated to submit a report by September 30th and our council would end. That was a challenge because after our first meeting in January, shortly thereafter, everything shut down because of covid. So, we produced that report in the midst of a global pandemic, all by vi...

Arise is an anti-slavery and anti-human trafficking NGO, that works around the globe to protect communities from exploitation.

Arise believes the best way to combat vulnerability to trafficking among communities is to work directly with and empower local groups and their already established networks.

Arise works closely with the worldwide network of Catholic religious sisters. These sisters support Arise in the work to prevent human trafficking and help Arise to collect data on this issue.

In today’s culture, decisions are data-driven; however, it can be very difficult to collect data on prevention efforts because one is trying to prove that by their action something didn’t happen.

Building trust in anti-human trafficking circles has a substantial impact against slavery.

Covid has and will cause an increase in trafficking numbers, as it has led to an increase in vulnerability.

Resources

Arise Foundation

AMRAT Network

Bertelsmann Transformation Index

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, this is episode number 239, The Rise of Prevention and the Role of the Faith Based Community.

Production Credits [00:00:10] Produced by Innovate Learning, Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:31] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, my name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:37] My name is Sandie Morgan,

Dave [00:00:39] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. Well, if you’ve been listening to this show for more than just a couple of episodes, you have heard our continued efforts at this word, prevention and the importance of prevention. And of course, you’ve heard so much about partnership and community in our work. So, we’re so excited today to be able to bring two guests to us that will really help us to dove in much further on both of these. And I know we’re going to be able to learn a lot from I’m so glad to welcome to the show. Two guests today, Luke de Pulford and Tove van Lennep. Luke is the director and co-founder of Arise. He has been educated between the U.K., Italy and Lesotho. Luke came to an early appreciation of the importance of solidarity. Much of his professional life has been focused on the UK Parliament, where he is well known for his work in defense of Human Dignity. Separate to his work at Arise, Luke specializes in building coalitions, including the Coalition for Genocide Response and the Interparliamentary Alliance on China IPAC. He also serves as a fellow of Hong Kong watch advisor to the World Congress and Commissioner of the Conservative Party Human Rights Commission. And I’m also glad to welcome Tove van, Tove van over her life and education in South Africa, Turkey, and the Netherlands. Tove van developed a clear picture of inequality and injustice and launched into a career for the protection of human dignity after working with refugees in the Hague. She spent several years in research and advocacy at an NGO in Johannesburg. Welcome, both of you to the show.

Luke [00:02:19] Thank you. It’s a pleasure to be here. Dave and Sandra, thank you for having us.

Tove van [00:02:22] Thank you for having us.

Sandie [00:02:24] All right. So, we’re going to dove right in. Let’s talk about the organization that you lead. It is very clear to me, just getting to know you over the last several weeks that your work around human dignity had to impact how you address human trafficking. So, tell us what that means for the organization Arise. Tell us what you do, where you do it, what is Arise?

Tove van [00:02:59] All right. I’m happy to start with the elevator pitch, I suppose. Arise is an anti-slavery and human trafficking NGO. We work across the world to protect communities from exploitation, and we believe that local groups and their networks hold the key to ending slavery and human trafficking and that they are a hugely powerful but marginalized and underdeveloped resource in the fight against slavery. We advise our little team of nine s...

Interim Director Angie Salazar leads the Center for Countering Human Trafficking, which consists of a collaboration between 16 departments within the Department of Homeland Security.

The Center for Countering Human Trafficking is going to be broken down into four sectors: operations, intelligence, victim protection and support, and training and outreach.

Resources

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, this is episode number 238, Integrated and Synchronized: Homeland Security Launches Center for Countering Human Trafficking.

Production Credits [00:00:11] Produced by Innovate Learning, Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:32] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, my name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:37] My name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:40] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. Today, we are so glad to have with us one of our government partners here in the United States who has just been a tremendous leader and really here to share some exciting updates with us. I’m so glad to welcome to the show today, Angie Salazar. Angie is the Interim Director for the Center for Countering Human Trafficking. And as Interim Director, Ms. Salazar brings nearly two decades of law enforcement experience to her work. She began her federal law enforcement career with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE and Homeland Security Investigations HSI in California, where she investigated human smuggling and trafficking, border violence, and money laundering. And she has also served in multiple leadership positions throughout HSI, at its headquarters, and at domestic and international field offices. During her career, Ms. Salazar has led law enforcement operations, develop policies and initiatives regarding human trafficking, investigative programs coordinated with other U.S. and international government agencies on trafficking investigations and victim services, and conducted training worldwide on best practices to combat human trafficking. Director Salazar, we’re so glad to welcome you to the show.

Angie [00:01:56] Thank you so much for having me. It’s an honor to be here with the two of you.

Sandie [00:02:00] Well, Angie, you and I co-presented at the faith-based webinar called Serving on the Front Lines The Impact of Faith and Community Leaders in Countering Human Trafficking for over 20 years. And that was last month as we celebrated the 20th anniversary of our Trafficking Victims Protection Act. And I was so excited about your presentation, I couldn’t wait to schedule you to be on the podcast so our listeners can learn more about the innovations that are happening with the center. And if anybody wants to go take a look at that webinar, the link will be in the show notes, as usual. So, let’s just start off and tell us what the Center for Countering Human Trafficking actually is.

Angie [00:02:52] Sure. So, we launched this center on October 20th. Officially, the secretary signed the policy creating the Center for Countering Human Trafficking and committed 16 of the departments, federal agencies to come together and counter human trafficking, both sex trafficking and labor trafficking occurring in the United States. And also, we’re going to be investigating the importation of goods produced with forced labor in foreign countries. We plan on accomplishing this through existing law enforcement programs and then some inn...

Glenn Miles

Glenn Miles discovered that boys were being sexually abused much more than had been originally thought.

Porn is often seen as a male issue; however, anyone can be affected by it and become addicted to it.

When a boy is sexually abused by an adult female, society often reacts with congratulations for the boy. In contrast, if a girl were sexually abused by an adult male, society would react very differently. Both situations are the same and must be responded to in the same way.

When children watch pornography, a distorted mindset can be created. Their body image can be very detrimentally affected, and the way they create relationships will be harmed.

Resources

Up International

Stopping the Traffick

Glenn Miles’ Website

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, this is episode number 237, Research and Advocacy: What about Boys?

Production Credits [00:00:09] Produced by Innovate Learning, Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:30] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, my name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:36] And my name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:38] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. This is going to be a wonderful follow up to our last conversation with Christa. I’m so glad today to welcome Glenn Miles to our show. Glenn is an independent researcher, evaluator, and trainer. He has pioneered three NGOs in Cambodia. His research mostly focuses on listening to the voices of survivors of sex trafficking with a special concern for men and boys. This year, he has helped complete an evaluation of the Chab Di Longitudinal Butterfly project. Glenn, we’re so glad to welcome you to the show.

Glenn [00:01:18] Thank you. I’m very glad to be here.

Sandie [00:01:20] Well, Glenn and I have known each other for a long time, and during covid, we had a chance to connect more often. He lives in Wales. I live in California. But our virtual space has been an opportunity to build our anti-trafficking community, and he’s been really instrumental in that. So, thank you so much, Glen. I want to dive right into your special concern for men and boys. My very first encounter with a commercially sexually exploited child was as a night nurse in central California, and the little boy was only 14 years old. And so, I followed your work especially closely. Why, boys?

Glenn [00:02:06] Yeah, that’s a really good question. When I did my Ph.D. research, we found that boys were sexually abused much more than we had expected. And so, I was interested to follow that through. And so, as things emerged and developed with looking at sexual exploitation, I wanted also to look at how much boys and men were being sexually exploited as well. And in Cambodia, there was at the time, everyone was saying, oh, it’s not really a problem with boys and men. It’s just not really happening here. So, I was well, not really convinced. I need to know for sure myself. So, I had been to India and in India, there was a guy they called Jasmir Thakur, and he was a guy who was working with boys in the slum areas. And when he was doing HIV education with them, he realized just how much these boys were exposed to being sexually exploited. And I think it really came home to him when one of the boys called him in the night and said that he’d been brutally raped. So, then he followed that up and ended up getting himself really quite involved in what was going on there. So, I had kind of helped him to explore doing some research there in Mumbai, in India. And so, I invited him to come to Cambodia. I said, could you come and just have a look and see what’s happening? And I’d really appreciate it if you could help us to identify areas where boys might be being exploited and then we can do some research here. So, he then did come to Cambodia and within a week he’d expose a number of d...

Christa Foster Crawford

Christa spends her days, and sometimes nights, empowering the anti-trafficking movement for greater effectiveness. She wears a lot of hats including teaching, training, writing, and speaking. A Harvard-trained lawyer, she helps direct the Payap Human Rights Law Center in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where she has lived for the past 20 years, and she is the founder of Freedom Resource International, an international consultancy.

Key points

Trafficking in Thailand is different then it is in the USA

In Thailand those who are most vulnerable to trafficking normally lack citizenship or basic human rights; such as, being able to travel freely, having access to education, and being able to get work.

A person does not truly have a choice unless there is more than one option.

If we can build communities of wholeness, peace, and opportunity and address the underlying human rights deficiencies then we can hopefully reduce the demand for human trafficking.

We can’t only focus on saving victims, we must also do our part to help lift them up and restore them.

Resources

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, this is episode 236, Strategic, Collaborative, and Resourced: a conversation with Christa Foster Crawford.

Production Credits [00:00:12] Produced by Innovate Learning, Maximizing Human Potential.

Dave [00:00:32] Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. My name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:38] And my name is Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:41] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. You’ve heard so many times on the show about the importance of partners. And today we’re so glad to welcome another one of our partners who has been working so diligently to support all of us in our efforts. I’m so glad to welcome today Christa Foster Crawford. She is the founder of Freedom Resource International and the associate director of the Payap Center for Human Rights Law. Christa spends her days and sometimes nights like she has today, empowering the anti-trafficking movement for greater effectiveness. She wears a lot of hats, including teaching, training, writing, and speaking. A Harvard-trained lawyer, she helps direct the Payap Human Rights Law Center in Chiang Mai, Thailand, where she has lived for the past 20 years. And she is the founder of Freedom Resource International and international consultancy. Christa, we’re so glad to welcome you to the show.

Christa [00:01:39] Thanks. It’s so great to be with you both.

Sandie [00:01:41] Well, Christa and I have known each other for a long time. I think we’ve only had a couple of in-person encounters. And I wish I’d known you when I did some studies in Chiang Mai back in like 2009. So, you’ve lived there for 20 years, and I’m really interested in understanding how that context shapes your approach to combating human trafficking.

Christa [00:02:10] I think context is everything. I think all of us came to this issue with a vision, a vision of wholeness and a better future, a vision of what we thought the problem was, and how we thought we would solve it. And it’s not until our feet hit the ground and our eyes are open and our minds are engaged to see what the real problem is, not just on the surface, but what’s in the background. What are the driving forces? What are some of the macro factors that are affecting individuals, harm? And so, I’ve seen both my paradigm and my understanding of what the problem and the solutions are. Change over time. And then I’ve also seen the problem itself change over the decades as well.

Sandie [00:02:53] So that brings up a really intriguing conversation that I’ve been having with some of my colleagues lately. If you knew then what you know now, what’s the biggest thing you would do differently?

Christa [00:03:08] Run,

Sandie [00:03:09] Run. OK.

Christa [00:03:13] No, I’m just kidding. It’s a hard fight. It’s a really difficult journey. I think anybody who’s been doing it as long as we have, knows that for every small success, we’ve had a lot of big failures. For every individual life changed, we’ve seen entire communities who still struggle to try to find true freedom and true resiliency and true change. And so, I don’t think we have to run. But I also think we should tread carefully and not run ahead of ourselves. And so, yeah, being prepared, being aware, being a constant learner and constantly questioning and evaluating and striving to do better, I think is really how we ought to be running this race. And not just the mad blind, you know, slapstick or whatever unfocused attempt to put out all the fires, but to really see, OK, what is the area in which we are both gifted and suited and who should we come alongside in trying to best attempt to address those issues?

Sandie [00:04:20] Those are really wise words. If you are a new advocate joining our listening community, please pay attention. So, one of the things I’ve noticed in the anti-trafficking world here in the U.S. is everybody knows about trafficking in Southeast Asia and they’ve all seen videos. And I’m using air quo...