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October Monthly Member Newsletter Dear friend! What an amazing, amazing time we had last week! I cannot express adequately the gratitude in my heart for those of you who attended our conference and for those, who maybe could not attend, but lifted us up. Some highlights of the conference include announcing our new name, proclaiming Srs. Margaret Nacke, CSJ and Ann Scholz, SSND as founders of the organization and presenting Talitha Kum and FADICA with the Sister Margaret Nacke, CSJ Bakhita Award. We had thoughtful, poised presentations from each of our speakers, enjoyed good food and even better company. A special thank you to Nix Conference and Meeting Management for another excellent experience--they embody skillful service. Check out the pictures below! When you have a chance, please watch our Tenth Anniversary video. It details information about our history and our future as well as why we chose our new name. Stay tuned to our YouTube channel for more content from the conference as we begin to upload it. Watch for us at the Ignatian Family Teach In toward the end of October in Washington, D.C. and the National Catholic Youth Conference in Indianapolis this November! I wish you peace and all good. In gratitude, Katie Boller Gosewisch Executive Director, USCSAHT |
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 U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking Announces New Name, Initiatives U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking announced its new name as the Alliance to End Human Trafficking at its third annual conference recently to further collaboration efforts with other groups and religious organizations. AEHT also announced its efforts to address human trafficking and forced migration through initiatives that will initially focus on work visas for migrants followed by supporting efforts related to the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act and support for migrant children. The faith-based national network, which was founded by U.S. Catholic Sisters 10 years ago, also will continue its efforts to address the online exploitation of children and its support of the Equality Model, which calls for partial decriminalization of prostitution. More than 160 people registered for the conference Sept. 28-30 in Chicago. Three students were awarded an all-expense paid trip to Chicago so they could learn and further their efforts for future generations to end this affront to human dignity. Workshops included sextortion, child labor, a legal panel, trauma-informed care, and the Sister Margaret Nacke Bakhita Awards Dinner. The Alliance awarded FADICA – Foundations and Donors Interested in Catholic Activities and Talitha Kum with the Sister Margaret Nacke, CSJ Bakhita Award. Thank you to Conrad N. Hilton Foundation and all our sponsors for making this event a success! Sponsors: CAST--LA, Daughters of Charity Province of St. Louise, Dominican Sisters of Grand Rapids, MI, Felician Services, Felician Sisters, Network Lobby, School Sisters of Notre Dame, Sisters of the Precious Blood; Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Monroe, MI, Ursuline Sisters of Cleveland |
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Anti-Trafficking App Assists With Detection in Hotel Rooms It began with a request from the Sisters of St. Joseph Federation, who wanted to ensure their 2008 national gathering was at a hotel that worked to stop human trafficking. Kimberly Ritter, senior account manager at Nix Conference & Meeting Management, laughed at the idea. “I said, ‘Well, we’re not in India, Sister.’ ” But the sister explained that human trafficking happens everywhere, even in the United States, and at rates that would shock most people: The U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline reports 10,360 cases of identified trafficking in 2021 involving nearly 17,000 victims. Read more about how the TraffickCam App is used in Anti-Trafficking work and view AEHT's September's member presentation. |
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Monthly Member Reflection |
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Mercy Walks With Trafficked Women
Sister Jeanne Christensen
Have you ever smelled something and your whole being takes you immediately back to a memory? Or you are touched in a certain way and memories flood back. Maybe you feel anxiety growing in a particular situation as your body tries to get your attention with body tension or pain. At times our wise, even if broken, bodies are trying to tell us something.
Our bodies hold our memories and our traumas. This year I took a course on Trauma and Wellness provided by Spiritual Directors International. I listened and learned from 13 different therapists and experts conscious of our USCSAHT work with survivors. One of the tips I picked up was to avoid using the word “trigger” and to substitute “activated by”. Although I will never fully comprehend the depth of the trauma experienced by a survivor of trafficking, the course broadened my understanding of chronic trauma and how we respond as we listen. Trauma consciousness is the realization that we are unable to cope, especially when activated by memories, flashbacks, or body sensations.
Read more
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Stop Trafficking Newsletter |
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October: Domestic Violence Awareness Month October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and is also the anniversary of the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act (FVPSA), passed in 1984, which supports lifesaving services for victims of domestic violence and their children. These events call our attention to the intersection of domestic violence and human trafficking, exacerbated by the normalization of violence against women and girls. The Department of Justice's Human Trafficking Task Force lists domestic violence as a crime that may intersect with human trafficking. The grooming that traffickers use to acquire their victims often mimics that of intimate partner relationships. According to the Office of Family Violence prevention and Services, when domestic violence in intimate relationships includes trafficking, it represents a double victimization. Victims are most often trapped in sex trafficking. However, they can also be involved in labor trafficking, including forced work on farms or orchards, in family-owned restaurants, in mom-and-pop business, and begging rings. Read more |
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Human Trafficking & Forced Migration National Migration Week took place Sept. 18-24. For more than 40 years, the Catholic Church in the United States has celebrated National Migration Week, which has traditionally been linked to the Vatican's World Day of Migrants and Refugees. This was an opportunity for the Church to reflect on the circumstances confronting migrants, including immigrants, refugees, children, and victims and survivors of human trafficking. Oct. 28 also marks National Immigrants Day. Immigrants are especially vulnerable to human trafficking due to fear of deportation, limited options and language barriers. |
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October is Fair Trade Month Purchasing survivor-made and Fair Trade goods are a fun way to help support survivors who are learning new job skills and working to become independent and a fair wage to workers. Check out this page for a list of organizations that sell items made by survivors: Survivor-Made Products |
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Prayer for Healing Victims of Abuse |
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God of endless love,
ever caring, ever strong,
always present, always just:
You gave your only Son
to save us by the blood of his cross. Gentle Jesus, shepherd of peace,
join to your own suffering
the pain of all who have been hurt
in body, mind, and spirit
by those who betrayed the trust placed in them. Hear the cries of our brothers and sisters
who have been gravely harmed,
and the cries of those who love them.
Soothe their restless hearts with hope,
steady their shaken spirits with faith.
Grant them justice for their cause,
enlightened by your truth. Holy Spirit, comforter of hearts,
heal your people’s wounds
and transform brokenness into wholeness.
Grant us the courage and wisdom,
humility and grace, to act with justice.
Breathe wisdom into our prayers and labors.
Grant that all harmed by abuse may find peace in justice.
We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen. - USCCB View Our Faith Resources |
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Human Trafficking: Sex Trafficking of Native American/Indigenous/First Nations |
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Human trafficking is the illegal buying and selling of human beings for commercial sexual exploitation or forced labor. It is human slavery. Other forms of trafficking include forced and bonded labor, child brides, forced begging, and sale of human organs. It is the second largest criminal activity globally and generates $150 billion a year in revenue. An estimated 40 million people (including children) are held in slavery worldwide, despite the fact that slavery is outlawed in every single country. No country or community is safe. Victims are trafficked in urban areas and rural communities, at casinos and pow-wows, resorts and hunting lodges, truck stops and port cities, and over the internet. Why are Native women & children being trafficked in epidemic numbers? “Life in a Native American reservation is among the most hopeless I have ever witnessed as a reporter. The lack of basic necessities, sex trafficking, absence of culture, fetal alcohol syndrome, drunk violence, joblessness, and mere desperation are daunting.” -Mariane Pearl, Journalist and Managing Editor, CHIME FOR CHANGE Exploitation of Indigenous/Native Peoples According to the United Nations, there are more than 370 million indigenous people worldwide. Read more |
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Special Message for Our Members Do you know other members who would like to receive this newsletter or need to update your contact information, email us at Info@SistersAgainstTrafficking.org and we will add them to our newsletter listing. Thanks! |
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Thank You Conrad N. Hilton Foundation The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation is a Proud Sponsor of The Alliance To End Human Trafficking Monthly Newsletter. Thank You For Your Support!! "Love one another, for that is the whole law; so our fellow men deserve to be loved and encouraged – never to be abandoned to wander alone in poverty and darkness." –Conrad N. Hilton |
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Thank Your for Supporting the Work to End Human Trafficking! Alliance to End Human Trafficking is a 501-c-3 not-for-profit organization. We welcome your tax-deductible contribution. |
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I PUT THE NATIONAL HUMAN TRAFFICKING HOTLINE
IN MY CELL PHONE, WILL YOU?  |
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Alliance To End Human Trafficking
7575 Grand River Avenue Suite 1-009 | Brighton, Michigan 48114
267-332-7768 | info@alliancetoendhumantrafficking.org |
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Alliance To End Human Trafficking
7575 Grand River Avenue Suite 1-009 | Brighton, Michigan 48114
267-332-7768 | info@alliancetoendhumantrafficking.org |
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