the road |

The Growing Family

21-12-2011

(The panel at University of Houston.)

After finishing a pleasant Thanksgiving holiday on the Gulf Coast, we headed east into Texas. Our gracious hosts shared their cozy home with us, and got us into the Christmas spirit with some of their decorations. On Monday, Nov. 28, we showed the film at Iglesia Bautista de Houston. Tuesday we showed the film at University of Houston. Our panel for the university included an FBI Agent; Dennis Mark, the Director of Redeemed Ministries, an aftercare provider for adult victims of sex trafficking; Kellie Armstrong, the Executive Director of Freedom Place, a home that will soon be opening for juvenile victims of sex trafficking; Kendra Penry, from the Houston Rescue and Restore Coalition, a sex trafficking prevention program for youth; and Dawn Lew, a Senior Staff Attorney for Children at Risk. Mr. Mark focused on the need for aftercare that is specific to the needs of each victim. Though the restoration community would benefit from some broadly defined protocols for best practices, in the end, services need to be catered to the needs of each survivor. Additionally, Ms. Perny shared about the mandatory training for law enforcement in Texas, as all new officers have to receive at least four hours of training on human trafficking. By the end of the next fiscal year, Perny said, every single officer in Houston will be trained to respond to the issue.

It took a couple days to make it from Houston to Albuquerque. On the way we encountered much colder weather than we initially expected. Thankfully we weren’t entirely immobilized by the snow we encountered. By the time we made it to the East Gate Church in Albuquerque for the screening, we were all too pleased to find some warm (New) Mexican food prepared by our kind hosts.

(Waiting for the film to begin at East Gate Church in Albuquerque.)

(The snowy desert.)

(Morgan introducing the film at Scottsdale Bible Church.)

The next day, Saturday December 3, we woke up around 5 AM in order to make it to our screening in Phoenix that evening. Due to the snow, we took an alternate route, which, though longer, allowed us some scenic views of the snow-laden desert landscape. Returning to the Phoenix area was like a homecoming of sorts, as a lot of the prosecutors, vice officers, and service providers we worked with to make the film are from Phoenix; and Streetlight USA, the restoration home that we highlight in our film is based in the Phoenix area as well. Saturday evening we showed the film at Scottsdale Bible Church, and Monday, December 5^th we showed the film at Arizona State University.

(Introducing the film at Arizona State University.)

The panel at ASU included Lieutenant Jim Gallagher of the Phoenix Police Department; Lea Benson, the President and CEO of Streetlight USA; Carolyn Jones, a survivor of sex trafficking from Phoenix; and a Supervisory Special Agent with the FBI. A good part of the conversation focused on the growing momentum of law enforcement in getting the greater community of Phoenix involved in addressing sex trafficking. Instead of waiting for adequate victim services to be in place before taking the sex trafficking victims off the streets, law enforcement in Phoenix is taking the girls off the streets as a catalyst to spur the community to establish adequate aftercare provisions for the victims. The approach seems to be working, as the community is starting to respond with greater urgency. Phoenix Police are trained to accurately identify victims of sex trafficking. Then, as stronger witness protection leads more victims to testify against their traffickers, prosecutors are able to win more cases against traffickers and johns. Victims are then given access to aftercare services like Streetlight, and eventually they might even have access to job opportunities with local businesses.

While we were in Phoenix, a few of us were able to go visit the Streetlight facilities. Though they aren’t yet running at their full capacity of 48 kids, we were able to meet a couple of the girls that are being rehabilitated there, and hear some of the writing they’ve been working on in their schooling. As our group has been sharing and learning so much about victims of sex trafficking, meeting the victims face to face and witnessing even a sliver of their recovery makes the information and statistics all the more tangible. Lea Benson, the President of Streetlight, who spends time with the girls on a daily basis, shared with us how a huge part of restoration involves creating a family environment for the girls; but she also noted how a similar family environment has to be created within the anti-trafficking community if our efforts are going to be successful. It was exciting to hear the vision of how Streetlight is taking steps towards establishing a sort of family in their work with different members of the community in Phoenix as well as like-minded people around the country.

(A few from our team drove through the night to catch sunrise at the Grand Canyon.)

(Waiting for the sunrise.)

(Morning from the south rim of the Grand Canyon.)

(Sarah Jo introducing the film at YWAM Las Vegas. Photo: tcd.)

From Phoenix we drove north to Las Vegas, Nevada, making a quick stop on the way to visit the South Rim of the snow-accented Grand Canyon. On Wednesday the 7^th, we showed the film at the Youth With a Mission base; and on Thursday the 8^th we had a screening at University of Nevada, Las Vegas. For the panel at UNLV we were thankful to have Dr. Alexis Kennedy, an assistant professor in the Department of Criminal Justice at UNLV, who makes a few appearances in our film; and Detective Chris Baughman, the head of the Las Vegas Pandering Investigative Team. (Pandering is basically just another word for pimping.) Detective Baughman explained how more and more gangs are transitioning from trafficking in drugs and weapons to trafficking humans, largely because the penalties associated with trafficking in drugs and weapons are far more severe than the penalties for sexually trafficking and violently abusing human beings. Dr. Kennedy mentioned a statistic estimating that illegal prostitution, in Nevada alone, is a multi-billion dollar industry.

(Dr. Alexis Kennedy introducing the film at University of Nevada, Las Vegas.)

Considering the violence and massive profits that hold these crimes in place, Detective Baughman called for greater levels of compassion in law enforcement, saying that officers need to be willing to place themselves at least a little bit below those they’re trying to serve (in this case, victims of sex trafficking). Dr. Kennedy pointed out a need for new “alternative families” to be created for survivors of sex trafficking. The conversation seemed to show that while the ravenous pursuit of profit and power hold these violent crimes in place, generosity and compassion can impede and even reverse their growth.

(A bustling Las Vegas.)

(We dropped the bus off at its home in Las Vegas.)

On Friday, December 8^th we drove to Orange County in California, where we held the final screening of the tour at Newsong Church in Irvine. We were surprised and blessed by the amount of friends and family who were in the area and were able to make it to the screening. Though the screening itself was similar to most of our church screenings, being surrounded by so many of the people that have supported us from the beginning stages of planning and making the film gave us eyes to see just how far the Sex+Money project has grown. While our project started with a small group of young people, we are now seeing it expand into a broad network of activists around the country who are catching visions of spreading freedom in their own communities.

(Morgan introducing the film at Newsong Church in Irvine, California.)

(Erica Greve, the Founder and President of Unlikely Heroes, shares about her organization’s work with victims of sex trafficking.)

(Venice Beach, California. Photo: tcd.)

Photos by Samuel Taipale and Timothy C. Dyk .

Through the Blue Ridge Mountains

By: timothycdyk

09-11-2011

Church Screenings, the road, Travel, universities

(Passing by St. Louis and their famed arch.)

After screening the film at Community Christian Church in Kansas City, Missouri towards the end of last week, part of our team stayed in the area for a screening at Tivoli Cinemas on Thursday, October 27^th. The other half of our team made the ten-hour drive ahead to Lexington, Kentucky where we had a screening on Friday.

For the screening at Tivoli Cinemas, we were pleased to have some of the same panelists that were at Kansas State University from a couple days before. After the screening, the FBI Supervisory Special Agent, and Kristy Childs of Veronica’s Voice, along with Morgan Perry and Scott Martin from our team, addressed questions from the audience. Much of the conversation centered on the importance of viewing prostituted women and girls as victims. The FBI Special Agent described how, due to the psychological manipulation of trafficked persons, teaching them to see themselves as victims is often a lengthy process.

(Autumn Mason, Dr. Claire Renzetti, and Robin Valenzuela serving on the panel at University of Kentucky.)

On Friday, October 28^th the other half of our team that didn’t stay back in Kansas City was in Lexington, Kentucky, screening the film at the University of Kentucky. Our panel after the film included Autumn Mason from our team; Dr. Claire Renzetti, a Professor of Sociology from the Center for Research on Violence Against Women at University of Kentucky; and Robin Valenzuela, from Rescue and Restore, a branch of Catholic Charities. Panelists discussed how if we don’t understand the heavy psychological bondage that keeps victims from understanding the reality of their own victimized state, we won’t understand the sort of services that need to be made available to them. Whether due to drugs, fear of violence, or other factors, it is difficult for trafficked persons to think of themselves as victims—but this doesn’t mean they don’t need services. It just means that the care we offer needs to be rooted in an understanding of the nature of abuse that has created victims in the first place. Such stories of hurt are often difficult to envision when we have the comforts of food, shelter, and warm communities of friends; but it is possible to awaken our senses when we are willing to position ourselves in environments that might stretch the bounds of our comfort.

(Sunset drive from Lexington, Kentucky to Louisville.)

(Gallery space at Sojourn Church in Louisville, Kentucky.)

Later Friday night, the two halves of our team rendezvoused at a church in Louisville, Kentucky that was gracious enough to host our team for a couple nights. Saturday, October 29th, we took the film to Sojourn Church in downtown Louisville. The location where the church meets has been converted from an old brick school building into a beautiful mash-up of settings: one part church, and one part art gallery. Sojourn spends a lot of time thinking about how their faith affects the way they interpret art and act out in their surrounding community, so they’ve created a space where their meetings are surrounded with different art exhibits. We were honored that such an intentionally-minded congregation would go through the effort of hosting a screening of our film for their community.

(Morgan introducing the film at Sojourn Church.)

(A warm welcome from Abolition! at Westover Church in Greensboro, North Carolina.)

Sunday, October 30th, we left Louisville at 4 AM and drove about nine hours to Greensboro, North Carolina, so we could show the film that evening at Westover Church. It would be hard to adequately describe the amount of preparation that the host team, Abolition!, put into the event. Abolition! was formed in 2009 by a group of people at Westover who wanted to make their congregation more aware of human trafficking. The group now includes members from other churches in the area as well. After such a long drive we were thankful to see swarms of people in yellow shirts with walkie-talkies running around setting up for the evening. And their work was well worth it, as they counted over 350 people who attended the event, including a plethora of representatives from local human trafficking organizations.

(A full audience for the screening at Westover Church.)

(Scott introducing the film at University of North Carolina.)*

(Screening at UNC.)*

Our next screening was Tuesday, November 1^st, in Chapel Hill, at the University of North Carolina. The event was sponsored by Carolina Against Sex Trafficking (CAST), and the panel afterwards included Dr. Donna M. Bickford, the Director of the Carolina Women’s Center; two FBI agents; and Andrew Castle from World Relief. Dr. Bickford acknowledged how in some ways North Carolina is ahead of the game with human trafficking, while in others they are behind. Specifically, on July 1^st of this year, North Carolina made training about human trafficking a mandatory part of orientation for law enforcement officers. Bickford went on to describe how when our communities know what they’re looking for, they will find it more often. Though finding the victims is something to seek after, Bickford reminded the audience that currently, if victims are found, there is not sufficient shelter space to house and keep them in secure environments.

Initially it can feel overwhelming to see the extensive roots these crimes have in our society, but airing the problems is a key step in the process of change. As we become more aware of the ramifications these crimes have in victims’ lives, we can glean vision for the many branches of creative solutions that must result.

(Selling gear outdoors at UNC.)*

In other news, we’re excited and thankful to share that we were the recipient of the Win $1000 To Change The World prize from Print 4 Change. See the announcement on their website here.

Photos by Samuel Taipale and *Timothy C. Dyk

From the Mountains to the Prairies

By: timothycdyk

27-10-2011

50 State Tour, the road, Travel

(Estes Park, Colorado.)

On October 14^th, we arrived in the Denver area, where we were blessed to stay for a little over a week. With brisk mornings, comfortably warm afternoons, and yellow leaves, we were blessed to begin experiencing the beautiful season that is autumn.

On Monday, October 17^th part of the Sex+Money team drove north to Laramie, Wyoming to show the film at the University of Wyoming. Panelists for the event included Detective Joel Senior, from the Laramie Police Department; Jason and Michelle Korth, the founding directors of Restore Innocence, an organization based in Denver that is spreading awareness and developing aftercare facilities for girls that will be rescued from trafficking; Supervisory Special Agent Robert Leazenby, who is assigned to the Computer Crime Team within the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation, which is a member of the Federal Government’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force; and Attorney Elisabeth M.W. Trefonas, who represents individuals dealing with immigration concerns, domestic violence, and other severe crimes.

While Wyoming doesn’t necessarily draw a lot of people to their state for conventions or large sporting events, Detective Senior and Special Agent Leazenby described how the Internet puts Wyoming on the same footing as any other state in dealing with sexual crimes against children. Mrs. Korth acknowledged the heaviness of dealing with lives that have been destroyed for the sexual appeasement of others; but being someone who is whole, and has the resources to help, Korth spoke of how she can’t ignore or forget the victims. She said, “You look them in the eye and it keeps you going because you want to help.”

(Sarah Jo introducing the film at the YWAM base in Colorado Springs, Colorado.)

On Tuesday the 18^th we drove down to Colorado Springs to show the film at the Youth With a Mission (YWAM) base. The base is currently home to different students and staff who are participating in a Discipleship Training School, a Culinary Arts School, and other projects. A lot of the audience stuck around for an extended time of prayer after the film, to process what they had just seen. Led by the band that has been directing the audience at our faith-based screenings, it seemed that many in the audience were moved to walk away from the event with a renewed sense of hope.

(Promoting the film on Pearl Street in Boulder, Colorado.)

Thursday the 20^th, we went over to University of Colorado in Boulder to do a bit of promotion in the morning and afternoon before the evening’s screening. The event was put on in partnership with Students Against Modern Slavery (SAMS). While we didn’t necessarily have a panel to follow the film, a couple of us from Sex+Money, and a representative from SAMS, fielded audience questions at the end of the meeting. As many questions arose about trafficking in the areas around Boulder and Denver, it became apparent that people were present who either had contact with or were representing human trafficking organizations in the area. While our team relayed what we knew of human trafficking on a broad national level, it was encouraging that the attendees could hear about and connect with the constructive initiatives already at work within their midst.

(Fielding questions after the screening at University of Colorado.)

(Estes Park, Colorado.)

(Colorado bird life.)

(More Estes Park, CO.)

After a restful weekend spent around Denver, the morning of Monday the 24^th, it was back to the grind as we hit the road around 4:30 AM in order to make it to Kansas State University for a screening that evening. Freedom Alliance, a student group from the campus, did a great job promoting the event, as there was still a respectable crowd in the middle of the University’s homecoming week. Serving on the panel we were fortunate to have FBI Special Agent Benjamin Kinsey, who created the Kansas City Division of the FBI’s Innocence Lost Task Force; Dorthy Stucky Halley, the Director of the Victim Services Division of the Kansas Office of the Attorney General; and Kristy Childs, the founder of Veronica’s Voice, a Kansas City based recovery program dedicated solely to victims of prostitution and commercial sexual exploitation. Ms. Childs also makes a couple appearances in our film, sharing the knowledge she’s gleaned from working so closely with victims of these crimes.

(Tim introducing the panelists at Kansas State University.)

Overall, while panelists discussed the diversity of the challenges that the state is facing with the issue, Mr. Kinsey’s comments suggested that Kansas’ approach towards human trafficking is growing more effective. Traveling around the country we’ve heard so much about the need for consensus building and cohesion between the different levels of government. As a federal agent working closely with local law enforcement, Mr. Kinsey spoke of the increasing cooperation that is starting to take place between federal and local levels of law enforcement. The panelists are certainly aware that there’s much room for progress in their state, but nonetheless, it’s easy for hope to grow when we see people who are committed to taking steps in the right direction.

(Isaac and the Sex+Money band taking the stage after the screening at Community Christian Church in Kansas City, Missouri.)

(Selling merch. Have you checked out the Sex+Money Online Store recently? 75% of proceeds go to Streetlight Phoenix…)

On Tuesday the 25^th, Community Christian Church in Kansas City, Missouri hosted a screening of the film. Afterwards, we heard an audience member talk about some of their experience in caring for children in their vocation. It’s exciting when people find that their everyday vocations can often be a means of practically addressing the needs of vulnerable children in our nation. We’re continually reminded that there is a plethora of ways that our interests and skill sets can be used in this movement.

Happy Fall!

All Photos by Samuel Taipale.

Driving the Dakotas (And Then Some…)

By: timothycdyk

29-09-2011

50 State Tour, Church Screenings, the road, Travel, universities

(Long drive from Bismarck, ND to Rapid City, SD.)

When we showed our film in Milwaukee, Wisconsin last week, we were working as a skeleton version of the normal team. As our team was en route to Milwaukee on a highway in western Wisconsin, the bus suddenly lost power, and had to stay behind at a nearby Wal Mart parking lot until we could take it into a mechanic the next day. We fit all the people we could into our two cars to go to the event in Milwaukee. The rest unfortunately, had to stay behind with the bus in rural Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin. Over the following week they perused pretty much every nook and cranny of the small town while the bus was getting repaired.

(Posting fliers around Madison, WI.)

(Tim introducing the film at University of Wisconsin.)

On Monday, September 19, the part of the team we could fit into our two cars arrived in Madison, Wisconsin to put on our screening at the University of Wisconsin that evening. The film was followed by a panel that included Attorney Natalia Walter, who is the Senior Advisor on Human Trafficking and Migrant Children for the Latin American Health Institute; JoAnn Gruber-Hagen, the Chair of Slave Free Madison; and Jan Miyasaki, Director of Project Respect, which works with sexually exploited adults in Dane County. Panelists emphasized how sex trafficking doesn’t just affect a foreign group of people we can’t understand; it affects people that aren’t altogether unfamiliar to ourselves. Gruber-Hagen stated, “It’s US; it’s citizens; it’s white; it’s African American; and that takes about everyone in this room right now.”

(Panel discussion at Augsberg College in Minneapolis, MN.)

Driving northwest to the Twin Cities area of Minnesota, we showed the film at Augsberg College in Minneapolis on Monday, September 21st. For the screenings put on in Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota, we would be assisted by the staff of The God’s Child Project, a project of the Institute for Trafficked, Exploited and Missing Persons (ITEMP). The panel at Augsberg College included Heather Callier, the Marketing & Development Coordinator for Breaking Free, a Minneapolis organization that works with adult and adolescent victims of prostitution; Heather Weyker, an investigator with the St. Paul Police Department’s Vice and Human Trafficking Unit; Attorney Beatríz Menanteau, who represented the Women’s Human Rights Program of The Advocates for Human Rights; and Charles Moore, the Director of Operations for The Institute for Trafficked, Exploited, and Missing Persons. Callier reminded the audience that victims are in need of housing, resources (for recovery), and jobs in order to reintegrate back into society. Furthermore, she encouraged the audience to see that it is not just adolescents that are victimized by these crimes; because one day, the victimized adolescents will be adults. How do we choose to view them then?

As a side note, last Thursday afternoon, we commissioned four of our gentlemen to an arduous mission out to Ft. Wayne, Indiana to pick up a 15-passenger van that will help to carry a lot of our merchandise, musical instruments, and crew members. Though our RV was repaired and caught up to us in Minneapolis by Thursday night, our team would remain divided until the latter part of the week.

(Inside Westminister Presbyterian Church in Minneapolis, MN.)

Thursday evening we had another screening in Minneapolis, at the Westminister Presbyterian Church. It was a beautiful building of elaborate design, intricate stained glass, and shimmering wooden pews. It is a striking contrast to compare the nature of these crimes with the beauty of such a setting – but maybe it is that very contrast that will push the church to begin addressing that which would tarnish the identity of the fellow humans in our communities.

(Outside Westminister Presbyterian Church.)

On Friday we pulled into a blustery Fargo, North Dakota for a screening at North Dakota State University. The panel that followed was comprised of First Assistant United States Attorney Lynn Jordheim, who is very experienced in the prosecution of child exploitation cases; Heidi DeKok, a licensed social worker who has committed to educating the people of North Dakota about Human Trafficking; and Patrick Atkinson, the founder and International Executive Director of The God’s Child Project and the Institute for Trafficked, Exploited and Missing Persons. Assistant US Attorney Jordheim shared how his work focuses mainly on crimes that involve interstate commerce. Because the Internet connects people in so many different physical locations, the online viewing and/or exchange of child pornography can often be tried on the federal level. Jordheim went on to say, “We have a category of criminals today we wouldn’t have had 20 years ago.” Specifically to North Dakota, all the panelists agreed that sex trafficking will probably increase in the western part of the state due to an influx of predominately male labor that will be employed by the oil companies that are beginning to extract oil in the area.

(Spending time with the Bison at North Dakota State University in Fargo, ND.)

(Dynamic promotion.)

On Saturday we drove west to Bismarck, the capital of North Dakota, to share the film at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church. We parked the bus on the corner of a nearby intersection so it would serve as a billboard for the evening’s event. The strategy proved effective, as the event was well attended with people members of Good Shepherd Church, in addition to people from the greater community of Bismarck.

(Bear Butte, SD.)

Sunday morning we woke up early, and drove south to Rapid City, South Dakota for an afternoon screening at Elks Theatre, sponsored by Project Church. The event drew over a hundred people, thanks largely to the local news media that promoted the event. You can see an article in the Rapid City Journal here. Sunday’s event was also the rendezvous point for our scattered team. We even welcomed a new member to the family: The Black Mamba – the new (to us) 15-passenger van! For a community that we just met, Project Church was quite welcoming, and even hosted a bar-b-que for our team after the event, which provided a great chance to catch back up with our Sex+Money family that had for too long been dispersed. Burgers, hot dogs, corn on the cob, and watermelon were a wonderful background for reunion.

(The Elks Theatre in Rapid City, SD.)

(Morgan talking for the local news station in Rapid City, SD.)

(Sunset in Rapid City, SD.)

All Photos by Samuel Taipale.

From Michigan, The Great Lakes State

By: timothycdyk

12-09-2011

50 State Tour, the road, Travel

On Friday September 2, Virginia Commonwealth University hosted a screening of the film on their campus in Richmond, Virginia. After the film we had a panel that ranged from local activists to state level politicians. Panelists included Josh Bailey, founder and director of The Gray Haven Project, a Richmond-based non-profit that serves survivors of sex trafficking; Sarah Pomeroy, the director and founder of the Richmond Justice Initiative; Assistant Attorney General Erin Kulpa, who works in the Criminal Litigation Section of the Office of the Attorney General, specializing mainly in human trafficking; Major Steve Drew of the Richmond Police Department; and Virginian Delegate Vivian Watts. Assistant Attorney General Kulpa emphasized how the lack of victim services (restoration homes) is the biggest obstacle to prosecutions in Virginia. Essentially, if our communities can’t help to provide basic necessities (food, shelter) for victims of child sex trafficking, those victims will continue to return to their captors, as their captors are providing those resources. The child will return to their exploitation, and any legal case against the pimp will crumble. While it wasn’t necessarily encouraging to hear of a lack of resources for survivors of sex trafficking, there was a hint of hope in that local and state leaders are up front about the need for community-backed restoration facilities. Panelists also emphasized the necessity of partnerships between local advocates, law enforcement, and state and federal politicians. And this isn’t to say that Virginia is more behind the game than other states, but each state in our country has some sort of journey to travel in addressing the complexities of domestic minor sex trafficking.

(Part of the audience at VCU.)

(Lake Toano, VA.)

On Monday September 5^th, we woke up before dawn to drive to Liberty University, the largest Evangelical Christian University in the world, in Lynchburg, Virginia. We had a lot of help promoting the screening there, as three Liberty students (Tara Muller, Tony Stimson, and Heather Zentz) have been volunteering as interns since last spring. The screening of the film was well attended, with over 800 students coming out even during the other festivities of the beginning of their school year.

(Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA.)

(Getting ready to show the film at Liberty.)

After hearing Executive Producer Morgan Perry speak at Liberty last spring, Sex+Money intern Tony Stimson felt burdened to help with the cause, and began volunteering his time with seemingly mundane (but crucial) logistical details of helping to plan for the 50 state tour. As Tony was helping with Sex+Money, he also came in contact with Beauty for Ashes, a group of girls from Liberty who had been praying about sex trafficking, waiting for direction to the next point of action they should take. Seeing the need for a faith-based organization that reaches out to women in the commercial sex industry and provides rehabilitation services if they are able to exit, Tony and the girls started to move forward with the vision. With sufficient precautions, the girls from Beauty for Ashes have started to go into local strip clubs to connect and build relationships with the girls in the clubs. Stimson states, “[We want] to show [those in the commercial sex industry] true love, not a false idea of love that they’ve experienced throughout their lives.”

(Morgan introducing the film at Cedar Creek Church.)

Though the late screening at Liberty didn’t allow us to get back on the road until 1AM on Tuesday morning, we journeyed through a rainy night to make it to the Toledo, Ohio area for a screening at Cedar Creek Church last Tuesday evening. The event was put on in partnership with The Daughter Project, an organization based in Ohio that will soon be opening a recovery home for six adolescent girls who have been rescued from traffickers by law enforcement agents. The Daughter Project is truly a community response to trafficking in the Toledo area, as volunteers and contractors have donated their skilled labor, materials, and time to build the actual home where the girls will stay, not to mention all the volunteer hours that go into making the project financially, legally, and socially viable.

(Listening to the panel discussion at Ball State.)

On Wednesday the 7^th, we made a quick jaunt over to Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Following the film we had a panel that included Sergeant Jon Daggy, an Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department Vice Officer who leads Marion County’s human trafficking task force; Laura Pope, the director and co-founder of U-ACT (United Against Contemporary Trafficking); and Erin Davis, a counselor who specializes in working with victims of sexual abuse. Panelists agreed that because it is so difficult to bring a victim of trafficking to admit to being trafficked, it is often a hidden crime, similar in nature to domestic violence. As part of the discussion turned towards statistics about sex trafficking, Sgt. Daggy reminded the audience that aside from the often-debated statistics and definitions of “trafficking,” one victim of sex trafficking is too many.

(Merch and Mingling at Ball State.)

Over this last weekend we spent some time with some of our team members’ relatives just outside of Detroit, Michigan, but today we will be heading to Ann Arbor, Michigan to show the film at the University of Michigan. This week we will head through Chicago, Iowa, and Wisconsin by next weekend, so please check our tour schedule if you’d like to connect with us in one of those places.

Hangin’ in Vacation Land

By: timothycdyk

11-08-2011

Church Screenings, the road, Travel

(Life Center Ministries in Harrisburg, PA.)

When this blog last left you, we were in the process of screening the film at Life Center Ministries in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. For many of the people on our team it was like a mini-reunion/homecoming of sorts, as many of our friends from University of the Nations in Kona, Hawaii are now living in or near Harrisburg; and even a couple of the people from our team call the area home. The event was one of our largest turn-outs so far with close to 500 people, a good portion of whom stayed around to process, pray, and talk with us about the ideas that they had just seen in the film.

(Isaac Gill.)

From Harrisburg, we then traveled east to Resting Place House of Prayer, based in West Paterson, New Jersey. Since the people at Resting Place already focus a large portion of their prayers on justice-based issues, we were excited to share the film with a group of people who understand that their prayers are an important part of seeing an end to child sex trafficking. After the screening, we spent a couple days working out of Hawthorne, NJ, which is only about 30 minutes out of New York City. As some of us made errands into and around the city, we quickly found that complicated networks of intertwined transportation systems can quickly turn seemingly bland outings into interesting adventures.

(Resting Place House of Prayer in West Patterson, NJ.)

(Our temporary dwelling in New Jersey.)

After a short drive on Sunday, we arrived at Gateway Christian Fellowship in West Haven, Connecticut. Gateway was actually one of the first tour stops we booked back in February, so it was fun to finally turn the plans into the actual event. We were excited to be joined by Love 146—a trafficking organization that is based nearby in New Haven—as well as other local providers of aftercare for human trafficking victims.

(Gateway Christian Fellowship in West Haven, CT.)

(Scott Martin introducing the screening in West Haven.)

Last night we showed the film at Renaissance Church in Providence, Rhode Island. Though there wasn’t a huge turnout, it was still a very successful event in terms of the way in which the audience was able to process and respond to what they learned from the film.

(Sarah Jo introducing the screening in Providence, RI.)

At each event, people are experiencing freedom to address areas of sexual brokenness from their past. Both men and women have confessed to addictions to pornography, expressing the desire to walk in a new direction. Some have shared how they were involved in pornographic films against their will, while others have shared how they had been sexually abused or forced into prostitution. As we listen and pray with people at each event, we’re witnessing the reality of the hurt that is derived from sexual exploitation, but we continue to believe that God is able to offer healing on the deepest levels, both emotionally and physically.

Last night we drove through some heavy rain to get to Biddeford, Maine where we’ll be through the weekend. This author is relieved that the climate of “the Pine Tree State” is sufficiently cool to wear a shirt without getting heatstroke. We’ll be showing the film this Friday at Eastpoint Christian Church in Portland, and on Saturday at the Selah T Café in Waterville. On Sunday, we’ll finish off our time in Maine with a beach bar-b-q for the ages.

All Photos by Samuel Taipale.

Pig-Pickin’ and Packin’

By: timothycdyk

04-08-2011

Church Screenings, churches, screening, the road, Travel

Last week the Sex+Money crew began to stream into Toano, Virginia from all corners of the US, and even some distant corners of the globe. On Thursday and Friday we began orientation to go over the details of the vigorous travel and event schedule that is to come. Even though most of our team members have met before, it was a good time for us to grow together as a family and community, as we sang songs, ate homemade food, drank sweet tea, explored the spacious Virginian outdoors, and tried our best to stay sheltered from the sweltering humidity. Sunday night we had what the Virginians like to call a pig-pickin’, which is basically a bar-b-q where the attendees work together to consume a slow-roasted pig and other tantalizing potluck dishes and refreshments. Guests from Williamsburg and the surrounding areas came together to hang out with our team, eat, and pray for us before we headed out on tour. As we gathered with old friends and new acquaintances in the shade of a giant pecan tree, our team was encouraged to know that we were being sent out with the support of such a warm community.

We’ve also been developing new skills in packing, as we’ve filled the RV with all the “necessary” accouterments for the four-and-a-half month journey that lies ahead. On Monday, our 15 team members officially set to the road, traveling north on interstate 95 to screen the film at Trinity Church in Lutherfield, Maryland, just outside of Baltimore. On Tuesday we woke up and traveled into one of the last un-developed areas of Baltimore to see the property of The Samaritan Woman, a ministry that is getting ready to host 16 survivors of sex trafficking, beginning October first of this year. On a tour around the property, we were inspired by the stories of provision and restoration that have taken place on the once neglected property. There are still some preparations that need to be made before they open their doors, but as they recover the land and rehabilitate antiquated Victorian-style buildings, the staff of The Samaritan Woman are reminded of the renewal that will take place in the lives of the women that will soon call the property home.

Last night we screened the film at Calvary Assembly of God in Dover, Delaware, and this evening we’re showing the film at Life Center Ministries in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. We plan to travel north through New England for the next few screenings at churches, and we plan to head back down through New England by the time Universities are in session. Even so early in our trip we’ve been surprised by the hospitality of our contacts and the willingness of people across the US to welcome us into their communities, universities, churches, and homes. We intend to drive in three giant swaths across the nation: west across the northern states, back east through the central states, and back west again through the southern states. Putting it simply, we are running from the cold and chasing the sun. We hear it’s hard to drive large recreational vehicles in snow and ice.

In other news, the Sex+Money store has officially launched! 75 percent of the proceeds from our merchandise will go towards Streetlight Phoenix, a restoration home that can serve up to 48 survivors of domestic minor sex trafficking. So please, get some hip gear, help support an awesome restoration home, and look good in the process.

All Photos by Samuel Taipale.

The Growing Family

Through the Blue Ridge Mountains

From the Mountains to the Prairies

Driving the Dakotas (And Then Some…)

From Michigan, The Great Lakes State

Hangin’ in Vacation Land

Sex+Money Tour

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