The issue of human trafficking has been a cause for concern for quite some time and proposals to raise awareness and move toward its end have spread quite widely in recent years.
When the leadership of HYPF proposed the organization’s involvement in hosting a human trafficking awareness event, I was at first hesitant only because I hoped this wouldn’t be an outreach motivated by what was popular at the time. It’s not that helping out a cause because it’s a popular move is reason enough to not help at all. I didn’t want any positive effect of the event to simply end when the actual event ended. However, after much prayer and discussion, it was decided that this was the right direction for HYPF’s involvement.
The specifics of the awareness event evolved significantly over the course of a couple of months. What started as a plan to show the Sex and Money film turned into a night that involved a human trafficking presentation by Redeemed Ministries, a group here in Houston set on meeting the needs of human trafficking victims in the area.
We also planned to have a segment of the evening dedicated to hearing from a woman we met named Cat French whose work with a group called Exodus Cry also aims to end modern day slavery. She would share her involvement with the sex trafficking industry in the Houston area. However, since she was unavailable to be at the event, we decided to film her talking about her experiences as well as capture a taste of her “Van Tours,” a tour she offers showcasing existing brothels and institutions of commodified sex in the Houston area.
The first time I rode out on a tour with Cat I was deeply troubled to see how prevalent a problem this is in this city. It’s heartbreaking, in a very real way. I feel privileged to have been a part of helping bring Cat’s message to new audiences because this is a cause that needs all the support it can get. Some may argue it’s trendy to do human trafficking awareness events these days. Even still, this problem is real and it’s serious and it’s not too late to be involved in some form to see it come to an end.
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