拐卖和传到好消息

In the span of this semester, one of the major forms of trafficking that we have discussed is sex trafficking. Sex trafficking is one of the most heinous forms of trafficking, and at the same time, it is connected to the controversial topic of whether sex work should be legalized. Either way, sex trafficking occurs worldwide and also takes place in the small city of New Orleans. If a person ventures into certain places, he or she would be able to find a certain number of, specifically, Chinese sex workers. This last comment begs for two questions to be answered: 1) Why are they here in New Orleans? 2) What can I, a mere college student, do to help these women?

First, according to Ko-Lin Chin and James O. Finckenauer, “Chinese women in prostitution in the United States beganas soon as the first wave of Chinese immigrants arrived in the 1850s” (105). So really, then, it is no surprise that there could be Chinese sex workers in a small city like New Orleans, which also happens to be a major port city. Chinese women come to the U.S. just like any other immigrant, to make a better life for themselves and their families. Some have worked as sex workers in China before coming as a sex worker because there is a different kind of market, like with any business. The way to grow is to expand and diversify the market. Of course, there are those who, after weighing their viable options, felt that the only way make enough money is through sex work or because in Asian societies, it is the “responsibility of daughters to sacrifice themselves as a means ofsupporting their families,” and it provides “many uneducated and unskilledwomen with an income that far exceeds what they would earn in any otheroccupation” (Liu 40). Others though, have a different story that leads to the connection to this blog and class. They were forced to become sex workers in China and then were moved to the United States. Others, like the experiences of other trafficking survivors, came to the United States thinking they were going to be restaurant workers and were forced to become prostitutes. These women sometimes work in the ‘house,’ which serves as a front for the brothel, or morecommonly in hair salons, massage parlors, and karaoke bars (Chin 66). Lack of education and cultural practices lead are often underlying reasons for Chinese women to be trafficked, and that do not forget the consequences of the one-child policy, the many abandoned baby girls and the sacrifices they maymake growing up for a son (65). After considering the prior information, please consider the second question: what can this college student do to help?

I also, at first, did not believe that there was something I can do to help besides let others know that this issue is here in New Orleans. But it was not until this past summer when I first stopped at a brothel and then came into this class that I saw maybe I could help. To explain, I was not there for services. I am one of Jehovah’s Witnesses, and I speak Mandarin Chinese. Jehovah’s Witnesses are a religious group who believe that God’s name is Jehovah and they base the way they live their lives on Bible principles. In the Bible, at Matthew 28: 19, 20 Jesus gives the commission to go preach, and so we preach. We believe that the best way for people to learn the bible is through their native tongue. But it can be hard to read something and understand without a teacher, which is why everyone goes to school and why teachers are so valuable in society. Hence, Jehovah’s Witnesses offer to teach and study the Bible with others, and in order to help others learn in their native tongue, some Witnesses will learn another language to help them. Learning Chinese to help teach the Bible in my ministry is how I ended up at a brothel one summer day. I was not aware of what it was until after we talked to one of the ladies. This semester the question was posed to me: how can we help? Jehovah’s Witnesses strive to speak to everyone about the Bible because we believe everyone should have the chance to know Jehovah and His wondrous Word. Even when it takes us to “suspicious” places, we preach. We talk to many people, and if they choose to study the Bible with us, then we are more than happy to be of assistance. Other times, people may ask for help, after they realize we are not from the government, that is. Because we talk to so many people, if we know what to look for or if we are approached for help, we can help these women. Of course, this does not just apply to those who are sex trafficking victims or survivors, but to all forms of trafficking victims. If we know who to look for, or how to direct those we meet, we can, will,  help trafficking victims we meet in our ministry.  

Donating Responsibly

(Pictured:
An advertising campaign by
Stop the Traffik that received over 12 million views)                                                

Many large organizations have advertisement campaigns so that people will be aware of their existence and perhaps be moved by them – and donate their money to keep that organization alive. Nonprofit organizations do work that helps people, but a prospective donator should be wary of where their money is going so that it ends up being spent responsibly. Donation money is better spent directly helping a cause, or it is better spent with caution, if one is going to give to a large organization: some nonprofit organizations focus their spending more on salaries and marketing rather than directly helping people with the donation money they are given.
                                                                                    
Researching organizations is imperative – everything from web design to financial statements of an organization can tell how donation money is being spent. The video above shows that Stop the Traffik, a charity in the United Kingdom, has raised awareness about human trafficking. This is the organization’s purpose: it raises awareness of human trafficking. It describes itself as “acampaigning organisation that seeks to build a traffik-free world!” Furthermore,it has entire sections on its website dedicated to its advertising campaigns. This kind of research shows that Stop the Traffik does not directly help trafficked people - it explicitly calls itself a trafficking awareness organization, and its website is predominantly composed of the campaigns it created, not what it has done to help people who were trafficked directly. Researching a nonprofit’s financial statements also show how the company is spending donation money. Expense reports show the flow of money in and out of an organization, and they also show how exactly money is spent. The Invisible Children Charity is an awareness organization, also; their allocation of funds is mostly towards awareness kits, supplies, and marketing (over $13,000,000worth – that’s over 80% of their expenses). The charity spent over five million dollars to create the awareness kits – and in selling them, made a profit of over fifteen million. Furthermore, in one fiscal year, because of extensive campaigning, the expense of salary increased over $800,000. The financial statement, therefore, shows that Invisible Children do not directly help child soldiers in Uganda – their existence is based on making people want to help. 

A person looking to donate should do research on the charities they donate before giving their money away to a cause. To help causes more directly, a person would be better off donating to a charity that does so instead of raising awareness of an issue, or directly supporting the issues themselves instead of using a charity. To support trafficking victims, for instance, a person would donate to organizations that help trafficking victims directly, such as James Kofi Anaan’s organization Challenging Heights that provideseducation and counseling, among other services, to children trafficked on LakeVolta in the fishing industry and also takes preventative measures to ensurethat children in the future are not trafficked themselves. Donating to organizations like these directly supports a cause rather than supports the awareness of it.

Criminal or Commodity?

One in every 86 adults living in Louisiana are living in prison, totaling 40,000 inmates and topping every other state and country's rate of imprisonment. The problem of crime in Louisiana is an obvious one, as breaking news along with mug shots flash across our televisions, computers, and newspapers on daily basis. Although the amount of convicted criminals has been on a steady increase, the frequency of criminal activity has not decreased in our state. This is, firstly, due to a lack of programs to assist youth in pursuing a positive future, as well as a virtual failure of basic systems, which can be seen through our high poverty rates and low-ranking public school systems, in addition to other appalling factors. However, there is another, hidden influence that is largely causing a continuous influx of imprisonments.

53% of prisoners in Louisiana are in private, for-profit prisons. Sheriffs, who seek to fill as many beds as possible in order to receive more compensation, often run these prisons. The state government pays local prisons for each inmate in their prison. "Each inmate is worth $24.39 a day in state money, and sheriffs trade them like horses, unloading a few extras on a colleague who has openings. A prison system that leased its convicts as plantation labor in the 1800s has come full circle and is again a nexus for profit." This $24.39 is spent very little on the inmates or the prison. The meals served cost less than $2 per day per person, and there are little to no rehabilitation services offered to those in prison. The money made in these businesses help fund new technology and cars in parish sheriff departments. Although this could be a positive thing, the money made in prisons should go towards improving the prisons and the lives of those in prison.

While inmates in state prisons, who often have life sentences, are able to participate in meaningful work, such as welding and yard work--and Angola Prison even offers a college program in Biblical studies--those in local jails have little to do to pass the time and virtually no doors being opened to them to make a better life for themselves. Worse, as those serving shorter sentences usually occupy local prisons, once these inmates leave, they are hardly able to make a living through any legal means. Many places do not hire convicted criminals, especially those who pay well enough to make a living and support yourself, let alone a family. This leads to a cycle of reimprisonment and often will eventually lead to a life sentence through Louisiana's "Three Strikes and You're Out" law.

Because these prisons are looking to make a profit from those in their prisons, there is really very little desire in those who are in power to decrease the rate of imprisonment in our state. Criminals are now being treated as commodities, as these prisons' business plans are centered on maintaining large numbers of inmates. 

The Perpetuation of Human Trafficking in Popular Culture

America's popular culture has and continues to perpetuate the second largest illegal business of human trafficking globally. “Pop culture has played an instrumental role in helping to keep the business of modern day slavery thriving.”  Human Trafficking, or modern day slavery, is the act of recruiting, transporting, transferring and/or harboring a person through the use of force and coercion for the purpose of exploiting them. People are sadly trafficked for sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery and similar practices. Tragically, “its popularity is growing exponentially and it is expected to surpass drugs and become the leading illegal business globally within the next couple of years."

Popular culture, now expanding heavily through social media, has the ability to reach a vast array of people in a matter of seconds. This applies to anyone who watches television, has a social media account, or simply surfs the internet occasionally. However, what we see in the media is not always a good representation of morals and ethics. Popular Culture often has the tendency to exploit and downplay serious issues as funny or whimsical, causing a very nonchalant attitude towards an often very serious subject. In regards to human trafficking, the last thing society needs to do is have an apathetic attitude towards the issue. Unfortunately, adults and children are bombarded daily by negative media. Stars such as Snoop Dogg and Lil Wayne proudly portray themselves as pimps everyday, glamorizing the lifestyle as a way to achieve "true manhood". Snoop Dogg has even gone as far as to publicly announce in an interview that as a kid he "dreamed of being a pimp."

Music, and the musicians that make up the industry, are a very influential part of our popular culture, especially towards young impressionable children and adults. Along with Snoop Dogg and countless others, there is a growing trend of vulgar lyrics glorifying the abuse and ownership of women. For example, famous artist and producer, Jay- Z has a hit song, titled “Big Pimpin” and Kanye West shouts in just one of his many hit songs, “You know how many hot b*tches I own!?” It's unbelievable that nowadays artists are rewarded with Grammys, million dollar record contracts, social media revenue, and corporate endorsements for writing songs and producing videos that degrade and abuse women. When confronted about these issues, artists take the same apathetic approach that the media often takes when questions are raised about their morals and ethics. However, “these musicians can't pretend that the pimping their lyrics glorify [are] not the same heinous federal crime that affect millions of underage children globally!”

Another addictive part of our pop culture that perpetuates and dehumanizes the heinousness of human trafficking is video games. Grand Theft Auto, one of the most popular and best selling video game franchises of all time, “makes it cool to pick up, beat up, and even kill prostitutes”. This is all possible and even encouraged by tips on YouTube, chat rooms, and worst of all, the games instructional manual. In 2014, Grand Theft Auto set a record as the fastest growing entertainment property to ever gross $1 billion dollars, selling over 11 million copies in the first 24 hours.

In this day and age, we can’t underestimate the far reaching effect that popular culture has on children and adults. At the age of 17, a young child can purchase Grand Theft Auto, and accidentally perpetuate the way human trafficking is viewed and accepted by society. That same child can then turn on the radio and hear his favorite rapper dehumanize women. It's no wonder why human trafficking is one of the largest growing issues not just in America, but in the world. Overall, our popular culture is doing more than just perpetuating the business of human trafficking; it is tragically desensitizing it right in front of our own eyes.

Consumers and the Slavery Machine

In a market based on supply and demand, consumers hold significant power. Organic, free-range, hormone-free—companies use these terms to describe increasingly popular products that cater to the changing demands of a rising generation of responsible consumers. Today, consumers inform themselves about the origins of their purchases and hold companies accountable for upholding certain ethical standards. If consumers refuse to buy chicken from farms with cages, why would they purchase anything produced through human forced labor? Many recognizable global corporations can trace their supply chains to farms, factories, or other industries that use forced labor. If consumers recognize their responsibility to use their purchasing power in the global market to act against human trafficking, the loss of consumer demand for forced labor products will affect the trafficking cycle.

            Until consumers make a conscious effort to avoid products of slave labor, companies will not change their business practices. However, as consumers voice their concerns about a product’s origin to companies while threatening to take their business elsewhere, companies respond by addressing slavery in their supply chains and by educating employees to recognize the signs of trafficking. Due to the powerful influence of conscientious consumers, many global corporations including Microsoft, Ford, and Coca-Cola came together to form The Global Business Coalition Against Human Trafficking, an organization working “to mobilize the power, resources andthought leadership of the business community to end human trafficking,” according to the organization’s mission statement. Without the pressure from consumers who do not support forced labor, these large companies would not invest time or resources into investigating their complex world wide supply chains to guarantee forced labor free products. Because of this shift in thinking in corporations like those included in gBCAT, a new standard of ethical responsibility to end human trafficking is expected from all businesses. Because these dramatic changes began with consumers, individual consumers can confidently work to end slavery every day by using their purchasing power with responsibility.

A Destructive Cycle

“The better we can understand the complex forces that give rise to poverty, the better we’ll be able to truly cut at the roots of all forms of slavery.” Arun Gandhi

           

      Governments across the globe have recognized modern-day slavery as a severe violation of human rights. Typically, these governments work to eradicate slavery through a three-step framework of prosecution, protection, and prevention. This framework, however, fails to address the socioeconomic roots that human trafficking stems from. Environmental degradation, poverty, and slavery combine to form a perpetual, vicious cycle in communities around the world.

      Many of the world’s impoverished  people live in rural and remote communities that depend on natural resources for survival. Clean air and water, crop and animal agriculture, forests, and fisheries are several resources that rural poor communities must have regular access to in order to meet basic needs. This access can be halted by natural disasters, such as floods and droughts, or environmental degradation. Environmental degradation can take the form of deforestation, water and air contamination, soil erosion, or the draining of the oceans’ biodiversity – just to name a few. When members of poor communities no longer have access to natural resources, they grow more and more desperate to survive. Without employment opportunities or other forms of capital to fall back onto, the rural poor are left vulnerable. Traffickers then utilize this vulnerability.
      The cycle does not end there. After being tricked and coerced, victims of modern-day slavery are forced to perform work in industries that further deteriorate the environment. Enslaved workers in the mining industries of Ghana contribute to water contamination and soil erosion just as those forced to work in the fishing industries of Thailand contribute to the destruction of coastal ecosystems. As Kevin Bales describes it, “Slaves are being used to perpetuate extreme environmental destruction.”

      Governments, institutions, and organizations around the world must first understand the crucial link between environmental degradation, poverty, and slavery. Only then can efforts to sustainably manage natural resources be paired with the three-step framework of prosecution, protection, and prevention in order to effectively eliminate human trafficking.

Haiti: A Global Stage

thebrassringsales.com

Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, and is a good stage for understanding human trafficking because it is on the Tier 2 Watch List. Human trafficking is more than a global problem, it has a culture within some societies, and it can be familial, as well as cyclical. Using Haiti as a platform for explaining this is beneficial, because all three of these concepts can be found in Haiti. Haiti is a country of approximately eight million people, and about 2,200,000 people are from the ages of 5-14, which is prime restavec age. The concept of a restavec is a respectable one, if it were to work the way it should. What happens, is that a family that realizes that they cannot support their children, they decide to give to another family member or family friend to give their child a hope of a better life: to be able to go to school, to have access to food, maybe get a job. The family that provided their child hoped that they would be accepted as part of the supporting family. This rarely happens, the child usually ends up sleeping on a mat away from the family, often times in the kitchen, and they get different food than that of the rest of the family, typically the gristle. Often times, this process is cyclical. Those who were restavecs have a chance of putting their own children through the restavec process, in hope that their own children would have better luck than they did. There have also been accounts of how people who actually owned restavecs and had children, they would send their own children to be restavecs for other families. In Haiti, we can see the connections between family, culture, and the cycle of enslaving children for domestic work. It is important in Haiti to have children, they help do housework, but if the children aren’t being taken care of fully, they are sent to other families. This is a cultural problem because the concept of a restavec has been part of Haiti for such a long while. Lastly, it’s cyclical because it continues to occur, restavecs have children, then those children are put through the restavec process. These three things are often connected with one another, somehow all interwoven. This is something that can be seen throughout countries. Such as Ghana, when parents send their children off to work for the family – knowing the situations that they send their children to. There needs to be a delicate revolution in these countries, the ones that have this never-ending, engrained process of predominantly child labor. is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, and is a good stage for understanding human trafficking because it is on the Tier 2 Watch List. Human trafficking is more than a global problem, it has a culture within some societies, and it can be familial, as well as cyclical. Using Haiti as a platform for explaining this is beneficial, because all three of these concepts can be found in Haiti. Haiti is a country of approximately eight million people, and about 2,200,000 people are from the ages of 5-14, which is prime restavec age. The concept of a restavec is a respectable one, if it were to work the way it should. What happens, is that a family that realizes that they cannot support their children, they decide to give to another family member or family friend to give their child a hope of a better life: to be able to go to school, to have access to food, maybe get a job. The family that provided their child hoped that they would be accepted as part of the supporting family. This rarely happens, the child usually ends up sleeping on a mat away from the family, often times in the kitchen, and they get different food than that of the rest of the family, typically the gristle. Often times, this process is cyclical. Those who were restavecs have a chance of putting their own children through the restavec process, in hope that their own children would have better luck than they did. There have also been accounts of how people who actually owned restavecs and had children, they would send their own children to be restavecs for other families. In Haiti, we can see the connections between family, culture, and the cycle of enslaving children for domestic work. It is important in Haiti to have children, they help do housework, but if the children aren’t being taken care of fully, they are sent to other families. This is a cultural problem because the concept of a restavec has been part of Haiti for such a long while. Lastly, it’s cyclical because it continues to occur, restavecs have children, then those children are put through the restavec process. These three things are often connected with one another, somehow all interwoven. This is something that can be seen throughout countries. Such as Ghana, when parents send their children off to work for the family – knowing the situations that they send their children to. There needs to be a delicate revolution in these countries, the ones that have this never-ending, engrained process of predominantly child labor.