FAITH OVER FEAR
Fighting Human Trafficking
Sabrina Stratford, representing Love Justice International (LJI), is headed to Alaska to launch the first domestic transit monitoring program at the Anchorage airport to fight human trafficking. She will intercept potential victims before they are enslaved, before their beautiful lives are exploited and lost forever.
40M+ people are in slavery today globally
1 in 4 victims is a child.
Trafficking has been reported in all 50 states.
Human trafficking generates $150 Billion+ annually.
Statistics sourced from The US Institute Against Human Trafficking and The Polaris Project
Love Justice International (LJI) has piloted transit monitoring in 19 countries. After a decade of working in Nepal, fine-tuning our processes, developing resources and building traction on the ground, they’ve developed one of the most effective anti-trafficking strategies in the world. Their approach is scalable, and is now being replicated in other locations.
Love Justice International has intercepted more than 25,000+ potential victims, about 300 people per month!
Why Alaska?
Alaska is the location of their first domestic pilot due to the urgency of the injustice there. In the United States, about 25% of men and 44% of women have experienced some form of sexual violence. Alaska has the highest rate of abuse and rape in the country with 67% of women experiencing sexual violence, and that number increases to about 90% in the outer regions. Rural villages are isolated and often have no law enforcement or 911 service. When there is a law enforcement presence, there has historically been minimal to no training provided for sexual assault response. While the current Governor of Alaska is working hard to rectify these challenges, currently, sexual violence for Alaskan children is 6X that of the national average.
Data shows that 80% of domestic trafficking victims pass through airports, and since Alaska doesn’t depend on bus lines and trains, the numbers there are even higher. This means that Love Justice can do much with little by executing their tested protocols for intercepting potential victims at Alaska’s biggest airport, Ted Stevens Airport in Anchorage.
Love Justice International describes how they operate under three core values:
Be the Kingdom:
Our primary identity is part of the body of Christ, which is eternal.
Nearly all our projects are done through local churches.
We seek to live out the teachings of Christ and the Scriptures in how we live, work, and relate to one another.
We are an evangelical organization, and we believe in the supreme importance of sharing the message of the gospel. We are engaged in “justice work” serving “the least of these,” We see ourselves as calling the Church to literally, love justice.
Help Those Who Need It Most:
We believe Jesus when He says, “What you do for the least of these, you do for me.”
Thus, we fight the world’s greatest injustices and serve the most vulnerable people.
Do Much with Little:
We are focused on finding the most cost-effective strategies to make the greatest possible difference in the lives of “the least of these.”
We strive to make every dollar count, and we are constantly learning and improving how we do what we do.
What is human trafficking? Why now?
We define human trafficking as: “Moving someone into SLAVERY.” The opposite of freedom.
Human trafficking is hidden, and no one really knows just how prevalent this crime is. But according to the Global Slavery Index, there are 40.3 million slaves in the world—more than any other time in history. This would mean 1 in every 200 people alive today is in slavery.
For example in Nepal, where our work started, this is how this looks:
Around 10,000 Nepali girls are trafficked to India every year.
They are deceived by false marriages and false jobs and sold into brothels.
They are not allowed to leave or contact anyone.
At first, they refuse to engage in prostitution but are “broken in” by a process of gang rape, torture, and starvation.
Eventually, they “break” and are forced to have sex with as many as 30 men a day, every single day of their lives.
God loves every person more than the person you love most, and God’s perspective is the truth. So if you want to get the truest understanding that you can of the issue, imagine it happening to the person you love most.
The inhumanity of the abuse, the violent and destructive nature of the crime, the generational impact of abuse, and the sheer volume of the problem leads us to believe that human trafficking is one of the greatest injustices of our generation.
Sabrina answers the question: Why me?
I grew up in a Bible based church in the panhandle of Texas. I raised my son as a single mother and pursued a career in software sales. By the grace of God and with hard work I was able to rise in the ranks of Information Technology and spent most of my career as a Global Business Development Manager building out partnerships and creating and executing business plans for some of the largest corporations on the planet, e.g. Microsoft and IBM. The combination of good upbringing and a solid foundation in Christ and His Word has given me unshakable faith and the ability to meet people right where they are and come alongside them. My son is grown and standing on his own firm foundation and my home can be leased out to cover my financial responsibilities. I have no excuse not to fight this fight! Called by Isaiah 6:8 “I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, here am I; send me.”, it’s time to put boots-on-the-ground and fight the greatest injustice of our time.
How do we make a difference?
We post trained Transit Monitors at the most logical transportation stations, stand alert, and watch for signs of trafficking.
When we see signs of trafficking, we question potential victims. Staff will approach the potential victim and show their ID card. We then begin questioning according to our questioning protocol; our Interception Record Form (IRF).
If staff uncover a red flag, we will attempt to separate the potential victim from any suspect and question further in a more private space. All red flags are recorded, and this data is used by Investigators to help prosecute the Traffickers.
How Can I Join the Fight?
Prayer
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