Human trafficking is a bane to anyone who's a mother, been a girl, or ever loved one...

Contributed By:Dorothy Nevils

This is Women’s History Month, a month we’ll celebrate women who’ve shattered glass ceilings, opened doors, made a difference: Eleanor Roosevelt, Leymah Gbowee, Maya Angelou, Susan B. Anthony, Malala Yousafzai, Shirley Chisholm, Marie Curie…

The list goes on, and we smile. We salute them. We suggest even more names for our daughters and granddaughters who may have projects and presentations for school. We’re proud of what women have added to our history, a pride that makes a little spot in our chests grow warmer. “Shine the light on us,” an inner voice says! “Set the record straight! Recognize!”

But, did you not hear a whisper? No, you didn’t! It was said too softly, whispered. Shhh… Don’t say it “out loud.” Pretend it wasn’t said. Stick your fingers in your ears. Close your eyes and swear. Hear no evil. See no evil. Speak no…

Human Trafficking. Sex Trade. Back Page. Human Bondage. There! I’ve said it.

How much do you know about sex trafficking? What have you heard?

Chances are you don’t hear that term often, not nearly often enough. It’s something you don’t want to deal with. You want a wall erected between you and “that world,” separation from “that kind of thing.

I can almost guarantee you that you haven’t heard it at church… unless the text happened to be from Deuteronomy or Leviticus. The word most likely to come from the one standing behind the pulpit is “fornication,” placing the “sin” with the act.

We, though, need to “cease the judgment” and seek a different truth! That can only happen if we consider the meaning of slave. Then we need to examine all that we’ve learned about slavery: It is, and was, to take a twist on what we hear at a marriage ceremony, an institution… “not to be entered into lightly.”

Get it out of your head: Slavery is not consensual, no matter the form! The belief, and thus the judgment of many people of faith that the sex trade is chosen stands in the way of delivery, for “good folk” don’t associate with, to use a convenient term, “whores.”

Northwest Indiana is “fertile soil” for traffickers. Major highways criss-crossing an area, and an abundance of truck stops and motels make it an ideal place for trading youngsters, most of them girls and many just teens, to satisfy two lusts, power and dominance.

Several religious groups have taken on human trafficking as a justice issue, but not nearly enough noise is being made. Our Women’s Organization in Ohio, Michigan and other states are depositing miniature S.O.A.P. (Save Our Adolescents from Prostitution) bars with emergency numbers in motel rooms. Last spring, our NWI Cluster met in Valpo, but too many women stayed home. I’ve contacted a female officer in Crown Point, but heard nothing.

Human trafficking is a bane to anyone who’s a mother, been a girl, or ever loved one or the other, and we should all be a part of eradicating it. All girls, and even boys, are at risk, as, rushing outside because of a quarrel, they are befriended by some “sympathetic” person.

If you are involved, or aware of a group or organization involved in fighting human trafficking, comment and/or share info below. Joining together we have the power to “Save Our Children” from the horror of human trafficking… and sweeten Women’s History from this day forward. We can do this!

Story Posted:03/10/2017