Somebody’s Daughter
My heart pounded me awake. The screaming in my ears was my
own. As my eyes adjusted to the 3 am darkness, it dawned on me that it was just
a dream. No, it was a nightmare.
In my nightmare, my daughter, who was studying in Australia at the time, was abducted and sold into slavery. I remember every agonizing detail of the dream, from the faded floral pattern of the peeling wallpaper in the stairwell where they grabbed her to the dread in her eyes, the terror in my heart, and my panic that it would take me 24 hours just to travel there and by then she'd have disappeared into the abyss.
With my husband still lightly snoring, I grabbed my phone & texted my daughter to make sure she was ok. While I waited for her reply, I started to search for flights to Australia – as if I were Liam Neeson in the movie “Taken.” Unlike Liam Neeson however, I had no idea what I’d do when I got there.
Finally the ping of her text. “I’m fine Mom. What’s up?”
The flood of relief as I sank into the pillows and prayed "Thank God it wasn't my daughter" was immediately replaced by the awareness that it was somebody's daughter.
Somebody's daughter was abducted and sold into slavery that night. Somebody's daughter ran away and was sucked into the web of human trafficking. Somebody's daughter was brainwashed to think there was no hope, no way out. Somebody's daughter was being used for profit and the salacious enjoyment of men in a dark and evil underworld. Somebody's daughter was silently crying out for justice.
The flood of relief as I sank into the pillows and prayed "Thank God it wasn't my daughter" was immediately replaced by the awareness that it was somebody's daughter.
Somebody's daughter was abducted and sold into slavery that night. Somebody's daughter ran away and was sucked into the web of human trafficking. Somebody's daughter was brainwashed to think there was no hope, no way out. Somebody's daughter was being used for profit and the salacious enjoyment of men in a dark and evil underworld. Somebody's daughter was silently crying out for justice.
That night, across the world and in my own state of NJ,
people of all ages, colors, and genders were being held against their will,
their passports held by unscrupulous “employers,” working as nannies, maids,
bonded laborers with no hope or chance for freedom.
It's a tragic fact that there is more slavery in the world
today than there was during the Civil War, in fact more than at any time in
history. There's an estimated 29.8 million people caught in human
trafficking – modern day slavery - whether it is the sex trade or forced labor
or child prostitution. It’s the fastest growing and second largest criminal
activity in the world.
Shortly after my nightmare, I saw a post on a friend’s
Facebook page about purchasing items made by survivors of human trafficking. I
left a comment that I was interested in
this issue. Then another Facebook friend, one with no connection whatsoever to
the one who created the post, left a comment saying ,”If you do something, let
me know.”
I stared at her comment for several minutes that seemed like
hours. And I pondered it thinking, “Will this be one more time where I say I
want to do something, yet actually do nothing. Or this time will I actually DO
something?”
So I reached out to Tanya who created the original post. We’d
only met once, but still we were friends, at least in the Facebook sense of the
word. I knew I needed to do something even though I had absolutely no idea what
it was.
Over her kitchen table, Tanya and I shared our thoughts and
some information about the subject and the few organizations we were familiar
with. We were just two suburban moms , outraged over the colossal issue, wanting to answer the question, “How can we make
a difference from here?”
We committed to pray about it, and we agreed to meet again to
watch a movie that we could possibly show to others.
I knew so little about an issue that was so big. I was afraid
and wondered what we could do. After all, there were just two of us. That
phrase “just two of us” reminded me of a Bible story where the prophet Elisha
and his servant were facing an army of evil-doers. The servant feared that
there were just two of them, but the prophet answered, “Don’t be afraid. Those who are with us are more than those
who are with them.” (2 Kings 6:16) I
realized that even though there are 29.8 million
caught in slavery, there are over 7 BILLION people in the world. And most of
those people would be opposed to slavery. IF they knew about it.
Edmund Burke who famously said, “The only thing necessary for
evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing” also said, “Nobody makes a
greater mistake than he would did nothing because he could only do a little.”
Around this time, I saw a photo of a cardboard sign which
read,
“I ALWAYS WONDERED WHY SOMEBODY DIDN’T DO
SOMETHING ABOUT THAT.
THEN I REALIZED.
I AM SOMEBODY.”
That quote and picture galvanized my decision to at least “do
a little.”
In the days that followed, I casually mentioned my new
endeavor to selected friends and family. With each discussion, my boldness and
excitement grew because each person in one way or another said almost the same
thing – “I was looking for a way to get involved in this, but didn’t know what
to do.” Just like me!
In less than two months, our group grew from two to
twenty-two! Within this diverse group, we had people of different ages and from
all walks of life. Some had experience and wanted to be involved with the
legislative and government side of the problem. Others were more interested in
compassionate care for the survivors. And others were somewhere in between. We
even had two members who were moving to Cambodia!
We created a mission statement, a website, and a plan of
action. Justice Network was born. Less than four months after that kitchen
table conference, we hosted the movie showing of “Trade of Innocents” with over 100 people in attendance and an
information fair with eight local and global organizations represented . And
that was just the beginning.
Justice Network formed to raise awareness of the issue and
support for organizations locally and globally that are already on the front
lines fighting this heinous evil. JN exists to educate, equip, and empower
friends and neighbors to become abolitionists providing education about the
facts and ways to fight the issue and directing support to those organizations
rescuing victims.
We are part of the NJ Coalition Against Human Trafficking,
participating in and contributing to their activities, particularly events
leading up to the Super Bowl. Large sporting events are an attraction to human
traffickers, and the Super Bowl is the number one such event annually. With the
Super Bowl coming to NJ just six months after Tanya and I met in her kitchen,
we never believed that we’d be taking such an active part in raising awareness
in our communities. We created and developed the #HTChallenge, a social media campaign using the Super Bowl to raise awareness about the issue.
Through both secular and religious organizations, change is taking place. Traffickers are going to jail. Victims are being rescued and redeemed. People are changing the world. I'm a "real housewife of NJ" out to change my corner of it and to do what I can to impact the lives of those in peril.
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,
that the blind will see,
that the oppressed will be set free," Luke 4:18
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