Turning Technology Against Human Traffickers- Find out what MIT Lincoln Library is Whipping Up
Sign a Petition to increase the age to determine statutory rape in the Philippines from 12 to at least 16 years old
Hello Activists,
Two weeks ago, we featured a story on a bright group of girls from a Tucker Middle School who created an innovative silent alarm that could be placed like a fire alarm in airplane bathrooms. If a victim of human trafficking triggers the alarm, it alerts flight attendants, pilots, and the authorities. The device also releases an adhesive for the victim to inconspicuously wear so that they can be tracked after getting off the plane. They were selected as 1 of 10 finalists in Samsung’s Solve For Tomorrow, contest and voting is still taking place! If this team wins, they’ll receive a Grand Prize of $130,000! Let’s support these young anti-trafficking activists!
👉 If you’ve not voted, here’s your chance!
Let’s take action together
Increase the age to determine statutory rape in the Philippines
Under the current law, sexual intercourse with a child as young as 12 is NOT automatically considered child rape. We have seen numerous cases of children recounting in court their experiences of abuse at the hands of sexual predators because they still have to prove the absence of consent.
We need to amend the anti-rape law. The Child Rights Network pushes to increase the age to determine statutory rape in the Philippines from 12 to at least 16 years old. For statutory rape, the child only needs to prove 2 things: his or her age and that the sexual act happened.
We must protect our children NOW.
If you wish to ask questions, request for a partnership, or join the Child Rights Network, send an email to crnphilippines@gmail.com.
👉 Please share and sign the petition here.
Click here to learn more about our “why”.
As always, thanks for being part of our growing community of activists and as a reminder, we love hearing from you! All feedback is welcome!
This Week..
ACTIVISTS OF THE WEEK:
Erin Merryn
Photo credit to: WXXI News
Childhood sexual abuse survivor turned author, speaker, child advocate and activist Erin Merryn is the founder and president of Erin’s Law.
See her personal website at ErinMerryn.net
Erin is on a mission to persuade all 50 states to pass Erin’s Law, which mandates that all public schools use age-appropriate curricula to teach students how to tell on anyone who touches or attempts to touch their private parts.
In 2013 Governor Quinn signed Erin’s Law mandating child sexual abuse education in all Illinois public schools. In just a few short years, she has already persuaded half the country to pass similar versions of the law. In 2009 Texas passed a similar law but it was only a task force which did not mandate students being taught personal body safety, making Illinois the first state to require personal body safety education by law. She has now dedicated her life to protecting our nation’s children. She was honored for her efforts in 2012 as one of Glamour Magazine’s 2012 Women of the Year. In 2014 People magazine named her one of fifteen women changing the world along with Oprah and Hillary Clinton.
Erin first gained public attention for this cause when she self-published her first book while still a senior in high school in Schaumburg IL, entitled: Stolen Innocence: Triumphing Over a Childhood Broken by Abuse: A Memoir. Through her personal diary, written during the years of her abuse, Erin shares her journey through pain and confusion to inner strength and, ultimately, forgiveness. After it was republished by Health Communications in early 2005, she began traveling the nation telling her story about the sexual abuse she endured at hundreds of high schools, colleges, sexual assault centers, child abuse conferences and community events. Erin decided at a young age to take a stand against evil and expose the silent epidemic of child sexual abuse in the spotlight. As a result, she has been interviewed by many major news organizations and TV programs beginning in 2006, on Good Morning America, Oprah, CNN, Today Show, Fox, Katie Couric, Nightline, TLC, OWN, MSNBC, People Magazine, Time Magazine, Glamour Magazine, USA Today, London Times, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and dozens more local media.
After graduating with Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in social work from Western Illinois and Aurora Universities in 2008 and 2009, Health Communications published her second book, Living for Today: From Incest and Molestation to Fearlessness and Forgiveness. In it, Erin chronicles how she cultivated the strength to face her abuser and eventually found relief from years of emotional restlessness, while also igniting the beginnings of a new fearless journey. Anyone who has felt victimized, ashamed, isolated, and silenced by their abusers will receive a road-map in the book for self-discovery, forgiveness, and empowerment to overcome trauma and live fully and fearlessly for today.
In 2008, Erin decided to step up her efforts to protect children nationwide and started writing state legislators to ask them to pass laws requiring schools to better educate children, school employees and parents how to prevent and stop child sexual abuse. She told them that, growing up in Illinois, she had experienced tornado drills, fire drills and bus drills; was taught about stranger danger and eight ways to say no to drugs through D.A.R.E., but no one ever taught her how to protect herself from sexual abuse and what to do if a family member or friend molested or raped her.
In April, 2010, Illinois State Senator Tim Bivins agreed to meet with Erin and he became the first state legislator to sponsor “Erin’s Law.” Since that first meeting, Erin has met with hundreds of state legislators, testified dozens of times in front of State Senate and House committees, served on several committees to draft bills and implement the new laws, plus speaks regularly to schools, agencies, conferences and media nationwide.
Check out Erin’s third book, “An Unimagiable Act.” This book describes Erin’s journey across America to get Erin’s Law passed and resources for survivors, parents, and educators.
Erin says she believes everyone is born with a purpose and she has found hers through the events that have occurred in her life. She is not ashamed of the sexual abuse she endured as a child and, instead, feels inspired to put a face and voice on childhood sexual abuse. She is dedicated to taking the stigma and shame away from sexual abuse and giving survivors the courage to speak up as she has. She is at war against this silent evil that is lurking in the shadows and is devoted to opening the eyes of the public to the tens of thousands of children who are being abused right now – silently – in our own communities and backyards without our knowledge.
Every six minutes a child is sexually abused in the U.S. One in every 4 girls and 6 boys will be sexually assaulted before turning 18 – over 90% by a family member or friend. But only 1 in every 10 sexually abused children ever tell anyone about it.
Children must be taught to tell a trusted adult if anyone touches their private parts.
Please join Erin Merryn in her crusade to protect children from sexual abuse and donate to help her with her travel expenses today!
Forgiveness is what set me free. Choosing to forgive has led me to live for today.
-Erin Merryn
👉 Read more about Erin in this article, here.
FOR YOUR EYES:
TIME TO ACT: Joining Forces Against Modern Slavery and Environmental Destruction
The Judicial System Can Mitigate Re-traumatizing Sex and Labor Trafficking Survivors
FOR YOUR EARS:
👉 If you enjoy staying informed about the stories, initiatives, and people within the counter human trafficking movement, share to tell others about it:
FOR YOUR EYES:
Photo credit to: MIT Lincoln Laboratory
Turning technology against human traffickers: MIT Lincoln Laboratory researches and develops advanced technologies to meet critical national security needs. As more attention has been drawn to the problem of human trafficking, Lincoln Laboratory has stepped up to do their part. Leading the research is Matthew Daggett who says “Traffickers are using technology to gain efficiencies of scale, from online commercial sex marketplaces to complex internet-driven money laundering, and we must also leverage technology to counter them.” Read about their progress!
Photo credit to: Freedom Fund
TIME TO ACT: Joining Forces Against Modern Slavery and Environmental Destruction: The link between labor trafficking and the environment are often overlooked. A leading expert and author of “Blood and Earth: Modern Slavery, Ecocide and the Secret to Saving the World”, Kevin Bales, expresses that human slavery and environmental destruction go hand in hand. Kevin writes that “Enforcing and funding existing anti-slavery laws, which are universal, will lead naturally to protection of the environment.” Read more on this topic above!
Photo credit to: Safeline
The Judicial System Can Mitigate Re-traumatizing Sex and Labor Trafficking Survivors: The arduous legal process human trafficking survivors endure can re-traumatize and further deepen the wounds received from the exploitation itself. Check out this long-form article to gain insight on efforts being made to rectify this wrong.
Photo credit to: NY Post
Australian man convicted of possessing child sex dolls: Child-like sex dolls have been banned in South Australia after the State Government agreed to back new legislation. Terry Dunnett, 45, is the first person in Queensland to be convicted after the new federal law banning the possession of child sex dolls. He admitted to two counts of possessing a child sex doll, one count of attempting to possess a child sex doll and a further charge of possessing child exploitation material on a laptop, ABC News reported.
👉 Click here, to sign a petition banning child sex dolls globally.
FOR YOUR EARS:
Photo credit to: NY Daily News
Margaret Hoelzer - From Victim to Olympic World Champion: (Podcast, 51 minutes) Margaret Hoelzer competed in the 2004 Olympics, followed by obtaining gold at the 2007 World Championships and broke her first American record. Hoelzer then claimed two silvers and one bronze in the 2008 Olympics, also breaking the World Record at the Olympic Trials. She’s also a brave child sexual abuse survivor. Listen to her share her story!
Photo credit to: Tech Against Trafficking
How the U.S. is Influencing the Global Fight Against Trafficking: (Podcast, 44 minutes) John Cotton Richmond serves as the United States Ambassador-at-Large to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons and leads the Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. Listen as he discusses the efforts the U.S. is making to fight human trafficking. One suggestion he gives listeners is that if you’d like to gain more insight regarding trafficking, read the intro section of the TIP report over the past few years!