Human Trafficking: Could it Be Happening in Your Own Backyard?

This is a topic I have been thinking about and wanting to write about for a long time. I wish I didn't have to write about it. It breaks my heart to read about it, but we need to be aware of the evil that is lurking in our own backyards and work on preventing it.

When I hear the words "Human Trafficking" the first thing I think of is people in other countries being sold into slavery mostly in the sex industry (it makes me vomit that there is even a sex industry).

It wasn't until recently that my thinking was redefined. I heard a story about a young girl, from a good family, a Christian family, who was struggling with normal teenage feelings. She didn't feel she fit in with her friends or her family and she had dreams of having nice clothing and hanging out with "cool" people. She met some guys who she thought could show her this life, they gave her clothes, took her to parties and made her feel special. However, after a while she was forced into prostitution. In order to keep her quiet, they took photos of her performing sexual acts and warned her that if she told anyone the photos would be shown at her church and they would also go after her sister.


After I heard these stories, I thought that could happen to anyone. That could have happened to me. As a teenager I did many stupid things and put myself in dangerous situations. It reminded me of a time I got into a car with some men I didn't know (I'm pretty sure they worked at a strip club in Sydney). They said they would drive us home (my female friend and I, both of us around 16). On the way home, the driver was pulled over by the police. The police officer questioned why we were in the car with these people, and warned us never to be so stupid again. We all got back in the car and were delivered safely home. In some ways it is a pretty non eventful story, but now, as a mother and after reading about human trafficking, I wonder what if things had been different? Did that police officer save us from something that night? (I wouldn't be surprised if he followed us home to make sure we arrived safely).

I was fine, but there are others who are not. Girls, sometimes as young as 13 years old are actively being recruited and sold as prostitutes.  The quote below was taken from the FAQ page of sharedhope.org:

"Many pimps often use a “lover-boy” technique to recruit girls from middle and high schools. A lover-boy will present himself as a boyfriend and woo the girl with gifts, promises of fulfilled dreams, protection, adventure – whatever she perceives she is lacking. After securing her love and loyalty, he will force her into prostitution."

I have been reading so many stories lately like this story about girls being recruited through Facebook targeted because they are posting about struggles with parents and friends. Parents of young girls who sell their children to men for sex.  These articles are shocking to read but they make me realise that we can't pretend it isn't happening.

This is from the U.S. but it would be a similar situation here Click here to read it in detail.

These girls need our help, they are living a life I would never wish on anyone. They are forced to have sex with multiple (sometimes 30+) men per day, are given drugs to cope with it, are subjected to physical violence and are highly likely to contract an STD.

What can we do?

This is a question I keep coming back to. What can I do? There are so many wonderful organisations such as the A21Campaign and Shared Hope International who are doing so much across the world to free people from slavery. Of course they always need donations, and I continue to pray, and I raise awareness in posts like this but I want to do more.

I want to take a stand and say that as a society we need to do more to reduce the demand for prostitution and pornography. We need to stop saying that pornography is ok and fun and harmless and that it is ok for people to use prostitutes  We need to teach our children that the internet (pornography) is NOT the place to learn about sex and that there can be serious consequences (for many people). According to the Shared Hope Website:

"In a study of 932 sex addicts, 90% of the men, and 77% of the women indicated that looking at pornography “played a significant role in their addiction. Viewing pornography essentially rewires the brain and drastically influences how dopamine and other chemicals are received and used in the brain"

  We also need to be teaching our young people that there are people in the world who may take advantage of them. They need to keep their online security setting high and parents (I believe) should check their accounts regularly. 

These issues are not new, there are just new ways that these people are recruiting their victims.  The world has been full of these horrible things since people turned their backs on doing things God's way. That doesn't mean we can do anything to protect our loved ones and to help those who have suffered at the hands of evil people. We need to stand up to protect those who cannot protect themselves.




Linking up with Jess for IBOT over at www.essentiallyjess.com

Weekend Cookbook: Super Easy Chocolate Cake

On Monday my CWA group is baking cakes for the Big Cake Bake to raise funds for the Red Cross.

I was wondering what I should bake and then thought of my old faithful cake friend...the Super Easy Chocolate Cake.

It is made with buttermilk which I also use in my scones so whenever I make scones I also make this cake with the leftover buttermilk. 

It is moist and tasty and best of all quick and easy.  I often don't bother with icing as it is yummy on its own but a basic chocolate icing or chocolate cream cheese icing works well.

Super Easy Chocolate Cake

I won't be winning any CWA prizes for this one but it will taste amazing

1 1/3 cups plain flour
1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
1/3 cup cocoa powder
1 cup caster sugar
1 cup buttermilk
2 eggs
125g butter, melted, cooled
1 teaspoon vanilla essence

1. Preheat oven to 180°C. Lightly grease a 6cm-deep, 20cm round cake pan. Line base with baking paper.
2. Sift flour, bicarbonate of soda and cocoa powder into a bowl. Add sugar. 






3.  In a separate jug combine buttermilk, eggs, melted butter and vanilla. Make a well in centre of flour mixture. Pour in buttermilk mixture. Beat on low speed until combined. Increase speed to high. Beat for 3 to 4 minutes or until thick and creamy.  



This was a double quantity

4. Pour mixture into prepared pan. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes or until a skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes. Turn out onto a wire rack to cool completely. 
   
   
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Is My Baby Going to Be OK?: Our Hospital Experience

As I sit here in my daughter’s hospital room, listening to the constant beeping of medical devices, crying children,the chatter nurses and other parents, she continues to sleep as soundly as ever. It is something she has become used to over the past five days since we arrived at the hospital. As she is only two and a half weeks old she has barely noticed life being different ,but as a mother of a sick child, being in the hospital has been an eye opening experience.

We arrived at Emergency at 2pm on Saturday afternoon after noticing our baby was not interested in her breastfeed and was feeling quite hot. We recorded a temperature of 39 degrees and after calling the Heathdirect nurses we were advised to take her straight to the hospital (this was my first scare as I have never had to take a child to Emergency).

On arrival, her temperature had dropped and she happily had her feed so I was expecting to have them send me home thinking I was just an anxious mother. However due to her age we were told we needed to be transferred to a hospital with a paediatric ward so she could be monitored, possibly overnight.

The poor little mite had to endure a cannula being placed into her hand, blood tests taken and a urine sample taken with a catheter. It was heart breaking to see her in pain and not be able to help her. 

waiting for our ambulance transfer

We were then transferred by ambulance to The Canberra Hospital where she again had to go through the stress of  two attempts of a lumbar puncture which they were not able to do successfully. I was glad that we were not present for it, as from what we could hear coming from the treatment room it sounded like she was very distressed.

The first night was probably the hardest as I didn’t know what was going on and of course I started to imagine the worst. I was initially given my own room which I thought was great but as time went on I found it hard being so isolated and it was hard hearing all the screaming children and imaging what they must be going through.

I kept it together for the first day but on the afternoon of the second day I called my husband broke down in tears. Not so much for my baby but because of the sadness of all the sick children and the parents who were there hoping their kids would be ok.

At 11pm one night they came into my room and said they needed my room and moved me to a room with four beds. A first I was upset at being moved but I soon realised that sharing a room was what I needed, as I was able to talk to other mums and hear stories of kids that were getting better and going home. It was also better as I was no longer across from the Treatment room where they do all the horrible (but necessary procedures to the kids). 

The doctors began IV antibiotics the first night we were there as they had found what seemed to be a urinary tract infection. Further tests revealed that it was a UTI which was caused by an infection in her right kidney. As she was so young they decided to continue the antibiotics for 5 days to make sure that she went home well. The great thing was that Alicia seemed really well and apart from a few scary moments she did not display any symptoms of being unwell.

Little trooper managing a smile in her sleep

For the most part of our time in hospital I was able to enjoy myself. I just had to feed my baby, cuddle my baby, eat chocolate, eat my meals, watch tv, eat chocolate, read magazines and eat some more chocolate. I actually found it pretty relaxing once I settled into hospital life. 
 

My time in hospital was a breeze compared to some of the stories I heard from other mums I chatted to while I was there. One woman has been back and forth to hospital with her 15 month old daughter since she was 6 days old. She told me she would have liked to have a third child but didn't think it fair to bring another child into their lifestyle. Another mother visited her 5 month old daughter every day...her daughter had been in hospital her whole life, another mother was anxiously waiting for test results to explain why her daughter was having fits. 

These mums were just ordinary mums who have to be strong for their kids in such difficult circumstances. I may never see them again but I have been touched by them and have had my eyes opened to what other people go through who have sick children.

 I was also blessed enough to have my family and friends close by. My husband kept life going on at home, and lovingly brought two toddlers into the hospital to visit us twice a day (I am sure he now has a few grey hairs because of it) . I can only imagine the isolation people could feel when they are stuck in a hospital away from their loved ones.

Visits with sisters

I don't think Emily missed me at all..she always went straight to Ali's cot

When I looked around at the families in the hospital with me, I felt helpless to be able to do anything, and early on I just felt sad for them. However after a while I just started praying for them. I don’t know why these things happen but I trust that God is a loving God and cares about each of these kids and their families.

While praying for them is super important I also wanted to be able to do something practical. I thought of silly things like buying some plates for people to put their toast on instead of having to improvise with  paper towel (something that was slightly annoying while I was there) but it did not seem enough. Then while I was watching tv  I heard of Starlight day which the Starlight Foundation is holding to raise $2 million to help transform the hospital experience for seriously ill children from pain, fear and boredom to fun joy and laughter. While staying in the hospital I was able to see the great play room and fun activities which were provided for kids (my older girls also got to enjoy the room which made our time easier as small children and hospitals are not a good combination). So on the 4th of May they are holding Starlight Day and I will be supporting them as they raise funds.

I am also going to be involved in raising money towards the building of the new Ronald McDonald House in Canberra. It is such an important charity which allows families to have a "home away from home" while their children are in hospital. I will be raising funds through my Country Women's Association group but donations can be made at http://www.rmhc.org.au/695/donate 

Having a sick child was a scary experience, but it allowed me to gain a small glimpse into what families of seriously ill children go through. I have realised that it is easy to feel helpless and sad for them, but what they really need is prayer and practical support. I am thankful that this experience has opened my eyes to this great need and hopefully by supporting these charities it can help these families, even in a very small way.