Resources Related to Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children

This was passed along to me and is a great resource list of how to get involved in Oregon. There's also a few nationwide ideas as well.

Resources Related to Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children

Book titles

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide - written by Nicholas D. Kristof and

Sheryl WuDunn

Renting Lacy: A Story of America’s Prostituted Children - written by Linda Smith with Cindy Coloma

The Road of Lost innocence: The Story of a Cambodian Heroine – written by Somaly Mam

Prostitution, Trafficking and Traumatic Stress - written by Melissa Farley

Films

Very Young Girls – documentary based on the work of the GEMS program. Available at Netflix

Dan Rather Reports’ Dan Rather Reports, Season 5 – Pornland, Oregon. Available on ITunes

Taken (2008) - Available at Netflix

National Resources

GEMS (Girls Educational & Mentoring Services) www.gems-girls.org

National Center for Missing and Exploited Children – www.missingkids.com

OATH (Oregonians Against Trafficking Humans) www.oregonoath.org

Polaris Project – a world without slavery www.Polarisproject.org

Shared Hope International – www.sharedhope.org

Support local efforts

SARC (Sexual Assault Resource Center) providing advocacy and support through programs

specially designed for sexually exploited youth. Volunteer or make a donation. For more information

contact the volunteer manager at 503-626-9100 or volunteer@sarcoregon.org or visit their website at

www.SARCoregon.org

Janus Youth Programs (JYP) contracts with the City of Portland to provide shelter beds for

CSEC victims at its emergency shelter facility. JYP is responsible for the community-wide collaborative

process to develop a comprehensive system of care for victims of child sex trafficking. To make a donation or

learn more go to http://www.jyp.org/, or call 503-233-6090.

Lifeworks NW supporting people who are working towards a better life, through recognized, culturally

responsive prevention, mental health and addiction services and delivering high quality individual and group

treatment. Contact us at 503-710-1513 to get help for yourself or a friend, you may also visit their website at

www.lifeworksnw.org for more information or to make a donation.

More information and training - visit our website at http://web.multco.us/dcj-juvenile/csec

If you or someone you know needs or wants support please contact:

National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 1-888-3737-888 for help 24 hours a day in six languages

SARC hotline 1-800-640-5311 for emergency support 24 hours a day

Lifeworks NW 503-710-1513 for counseling and long term support

This project is supported by Grant #2009-MC-CX-K057 awarded by OJJDP

Steps citizens can take to end Human Trafficking:

•Work to eliminate backpage and similar websites that promote CSEC.

•Support federal and state laws to combat Human Trafficking – contact your representatives

•Support the re-authorization of the TVPA (trafficking victims protection act) in 2011

•Support state laws that address the age mistake defense and those that create safe harbors for victims of CSEC.

•Work to end pimp glorification and the sexualization of children – contact the company responsible for this type of advertising when you see it and share your feelings.

•Challenge inappropriate language on the topic of sexual exploitation.

•Support efforts to cease the practice of arresting youth and women who are prostituted.

•Supports aggressive prosecution and stiffer penalties for people who buy and exploit others sexually.

•Develop creative ways to post the NHTRC hotline (national human trafficking resource center) stickers in your community.

•Financially support programs on the local and national level that support victims of sexual exploitation. Every little bit helps. Everyday staff at Lifeworks NW, Janus youth Programs and SARC (Sexual Assault Resource Center) work to support victims of CSEC. Donations of gift cards to stores or fast food vendors are deeply appreciated. Call these programs directly to find out what additional support they need.

A small break for recycling

I'm not going to lie, I'm more than a little excited about the Oregon E-Cycles program.

Check out Free Geek's page for other cool electronic recycling ideas/advocates.

(Lack of) Food for Thought

"Propaganda, stereotypes, and myth govern our thinking about poverty and poor relief much more than the facts do. By current, official measures, for example, more than one-third of poor Americans are children under eighteen years old, more than 10 percent are over age sixty-five, and nearly 40 percent of the adult poor are disabled-- that is, most poor people are 'deserving' or 'involuntarily' poor due to old age, youth, or infirmity."

A lot of us hold the view that poor people are there because they did something wrong. Because we are capable it's hard to find others as not. This is where we first gained our "common" view of those who live in poverty.

"According to the United Nations, slum dwellers were 30 percent of the world's urban population in 2005. By a slum we tend to mean deeply poor and often squalid cityscapes, and while we may overestimate how many poor Americans live in the city, in 2000 there were nonetheless 2,510 neighborhoods in the United States in which 40 percent or more of the populations was poor; 8 million lived in modern ghettoes. Since the 1970s, the number of Americans in areas of concentrated urban poverty had doubled."

What is the true definition of "poor"? How does this compare to the rest of the world and is the American citizen's definition of poor the same as those worldwide?

"'What is to be said of the character of people who, having the power to end all this, permit it to continue?'"

I challenge you to answer that question for yourself. What, if anything, are you doing to help?

"'Everybody knows that money, fame, and success don't necessarily bring happiness. But the other side of that equation is also true: poverty, obscurity, and failure don't necessarily bring unhappiness.'"

I will no where, no how compare myself to those in poverty, but from recent endeavors and finding myself jobless, I've learned more about what is really important to me. I can have fun and find joy without much discretionary income.

"'A very dear friend of mine and I were talking about work and she remarked to me that her husband was angry when she got home at 12 midnight the day before from work. I asked why she worked so late and she to me, "'Janie, don't you know that just before the first of the month we work late upping the prices. . . . this is the time business is good, when the welfare checks come out and food stamps are most used.'"'"

This quote was from 1967. I wonder if the same still applies today? I want to do a study of the cost of the "basic necessities" over a few months time. Maybe I will write one and conduct the research myself. I foresee a lot of challenges such as defining "basic necessities," determining which grocery stores to evaluate, and so forth. I am open to suggestions.


quotes from A People's History of Poverty in America by Stephen Pimpare.

How's your IQ?

If IQ tests measure acquired information are they realistic of our intelligence?

1. What is gray tape and what is it used for?
2. What does dissed mean?
3. What are the advantages and disadvantages of moving often?
4. What is the main kind of work that a bondsman does?
5. What is a roach?
6. How are a pawnshop and a convenience store alike? How are they different?
7. Why is it important for a non-U.S. citizen to have a green card?
8. You go to the bakery store. You can buy five loaves of day-old bread for 39 cents each or seven loaves of three-day-old bread for 28 cents each. Which choice will cost lest?
9. What does deportation mean?
10. What is the difference between marriage and a common law relationship?

From A Framework for Understanding Poverty by Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D

Could you survive in poverty?

In my recent public policy readings I came across this test of being able to survive in poverty:

Can you agree with these statements?:

1. I know which churches and sections of town have the best rummage sales.
2. I know which rummage sales have "bag sales" and when.
3. I know which grocery stores' garbage bins can be accessed for thrown-away food.
4. I know how to get someone out of jail.
5. I know how to physically fight and defend myself physically.
6. I know how to get a gun, even if I have a police record.
7. I know how to keep my clothes from being stolen at the Laundromat.
8. I know what problems to look for in a used car.
9. I know how to live without a checking account.
10. I know how to live without electricity and a phone.
11. I know how to use a knife as scissors.
12. I can entertain a group of friends with my personality and my stories.
13. I know what to do when I don't have money to pay the bills.
14. I know how to move in half a day.
15. I know how to get and use food stamps or an electronic card for benefits.
16. I know where the free medical clinics are.
17. I am very good at trading and bartering.
18. I can get by without a car.

From A Framework for Understanding Poverty by Ruby K. Payne, Ph.D