By Ashlie Bailey
For decades, my family became heavily involved in one of the very worst, most violent child snuff porn and sex trafficking rings that I have ever seen. They and the others in the trafficking organization used brutal military-style enhanced interrogation torture techniques on the children to control their victims. After I was born into the organization, I became one of those children. The crime ring was run by ordinary looking, white, wealthy, well educated, powerful, and successful men and their families, many of whom were part of a Satanic organization and a large worldwide underground pedophile network that had thousands of members. Some of the members worked in government, the military, and the justice system at the time. They weren't just trafficking people through pimping, online sex ads, hotels, truck stops, or strip clubs, but through an underground pedophile ring run by families, in ordinary neighborhoods, out of people's middle and upper-class homes, in their places of business, and on military bases. Beginning at a very young age, on and off, in my childhood and adolescence, I was sold into sexual slavery to groups of powerful, cruel, and extremely violent men who were hurting children and doing things that are unspeakable. My abusers controlled my behavior by force, using threats, coercion, lies, humiliation, shame, brainwashing, isolation, physical restraint, confinement, powerful and dangerous drugs in high doses, sensory and sleep deprivation, and many nights of torture, ritualistic abuse, and mind control programming. What I experienced and witnessed was so violent and horrific that not everyone survived. It was so dark, there were no words to describe it. The closest word I can think of that even comes close is holocaust. The grief and loss I felt over the deaths of other victims were unbearable until my perspective of death was forever changed because Christ took death and turned it upside down. Jesus overcame death: ISAIAH 25:8 HE WILL SWALLOW UP DEATH FOREVER. The Sovereign LORD will wipe away the tears from all faces; he will remove the disgrace of his people from all the earth. The LORD has spoken. 1 COR. 15:54 When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "DEATH HAS BEEN SWALLOWED UP IN VICTORY. 1 SAMUEL 2:6 The LORD brings death and makes alive; he brings down to the grave and raises up. PSALM 116:15-16 Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints. O LORD, truly I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; YOU HAVE FREED ME FROM MY CHAINS. PSALM 23:4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I WILL FEAR NO EVIL, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. PSALM 30:3 O Lord, You brought my soul up from the grave; You have kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit. PSALM 116:3-6 The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the LORD: "O LORD, save me! PSALM 116:8-9 For you, O LORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living. LUKE 17:33 Whoever seeks to save his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. I grew up in the LDS Church. By the time I was six years old, I had been thoroughly indoctrinated by strict, legalistic, fundamentalist religious teachings and worldview, but I had not always held those beliefs. Before I was brainwashed, I knew who Jesus was and talked to him. At only the age of four years old, I knew my future, destiny, and life’s purpose. I knew that when I grew up, I would one day be called to fight against darkness, evil, and crimes against children. I was chosen and meant to be recruited and trained by the elite organized crime ring and religious cult, but they were too late. When I was seven years old and in the second grade, I had already started my own secret society – it was a Barney the Dinosaur Secret Society. Clearly, the mind control did not fully work on me. Even during the years I was being exploited, I still attended school. The majority of my abuse and exploitation happened at night, on the weekends, during holidays, and over summer vacations. During summer vacation when I was 11, I went to a Christian church camp with a friend, where I heard the real message of Jesus. At camp, I was given my very first cross. In the Mormon church, displaying or owning a cross was forbidden. Although I was expected to continue to be a member of the Mormon Church, I secretly kept the cross hidden in my pocket for a long time. It took all of the strength that I had just to survive. Eventually, I had no more strength to try to escape physically anymore, so I found my escape in my art and music. I played piano by ear and was trained in classical guitar from ages nine to seventeen years old. When I was little, I was a real ballerina, but I was only allowed to dance for the men. Until my sophomore year, I did my best to be a good student even during the times that I failed. By my junior year in high school, I had given up. I didn’t get to graduate from high school. On the radio, I once heard a sermon on the life of Joseph. The pastor said, "Sometimes you get an A+ just for surviving." MATTHEW 25:23 His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ By the time I was in foster care and a junior in high school, I was living with a Mormon Bishop and his wife. At the age of sixteen, I was forced to enter into a secret and illegal marriage covenant with the bishop and his other wives. He was over sixty years old at the time. There were so many secrets… secrets I wouldn’t share until almost a decade later. I went through multiple teenage pregnancies. One of my sons was premature enough that he probably didn’t survive. For years, I was led by the Mormon Church to believe that all of my children were no longer alive. In high school, I began to question the Mormon Church and started seeking answers. No matter the consequences, I wanted the truth. More than anything, I just wanted to be closer to Jesus and to know him as well as I did when I was little. Early in the morning on January 18, 2005, I read John 3:16. I realized that if Jesus was the “ONLY begotten Son of God,” then the teachings of the Mormon Church must be false. I also realized that I must believe that Jesus is the one and only Son of God. The very instant I realized this, He was there in a more real way than I had known before. JOHN 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. That morning, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior and told my foster parents I had been saved and was leaving the Mormon Church. In that religious organization, a confession like that can lead to danger. I was a pregnant and scared teenager, so later that day I tried to run away. I was found and taken to a hospital where my daughter Hope was born. Once again, I was led to believe my child did not survive. After my daughter was gone, I was abandoned by my Mormon foster family at the hospital where Hope had been born. I later realized I was persecuted for my new faith. When I aged out of the foster care system at 18, I spent several months in a homeless shelter for women. While I was there, I got my driver’s license and received my GED. In the spring of 2006, I moved from the shelter into a community college dorm. In the spring of 2010, I graduated with an Associate of Arts from Kilgore College. At this time, I began to seek more Bible knowledge. I did not become completely set free spiritually and mentally until I began to pray for my enemies and fight back at the real enemy with spiritual warfare. One time during the message at the new church I was attending, I remember the pastor said, "Christ's followers would be known by their scars and not by their muscles and strengths." I had secretly hidden injuries from my past abuse. For years, I struggled with self-injury and suicide. Through my recovery, I discovered that Jesus had a complete understanding and empathy for the pain I was holding behind my scars because He took my wounds and He has overcome them. No matter how dark and how deep the scars you carry may be, there is absolutely nothing in this world too big for Him to overcome. By his wounds, we are healed. On July 23, 2010, my life changed forever when I found my life's calling. At church one day, while the band was playing the song "Our God is Greater,” I felt God call me to finally come forward about the crimes I had witnessed as a child and to become a survivor leader in the fight against human trafficking. For years, I experienced threats, stalking, vandalism, and break-ins by former traffickers who tried everything to silence and destroy me. It took all the courage I had in the world to speak up, even though I knew it would be a huge risk to my life, because with my decision to come forward came danger and persecution. I didn’t know it yet, but that was the moment I became an abolitionist, and I have been part of the anti-trafficking movement ever since then. ESTHER 4:14 …Perhaps you were born for such a time as this. I spent years going to every law enforcement agency I could find, searching for justice. I may be one of the last trusted living witnesses left with enough intel to take down this crime ring. I prayed every day and waited for God to answer. I asked the Lord for a sign that He would do something. At first, I thought God would answer my prayer through the justice system, but when that didn't happen yet, I felt confused and heartbroken.
GENESIS 50:20 You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives. In the organized crime ring I grew up in, many Hispanic women and children were taken from their homes, brought into the United States, and tragically lost their lives because of violent crime and human trafficking. Because of the things I had seen in childhood, I felt called to begin praying specifically for the women and children going missing out of Juarez Mexico. God revealed to me another sign. Every year since the "End It" movement was started at Passion Conference, thousands of people from all over the world draw red X's on their hands to raise awareness about human trafficking.
Coincidentally, the monument design happened to be the same red X symbol as the one used in the movement to shine a light on the issue of trafficking.
It amazed me to find out that there was a Passion song written about raising a white flag against slavery when the writers of that song could not have known that there was an American flag crime rings used to signal it as a sign they were about to assassinate someone by dropping the flag from its pole.
Seeing this reminded me on a regular basis how much more mighty and powerful God is than the entire human trafficking industry. PSALM 60:4-5 Yet you have raised a flag for those who fear you so that they can rally to it when attacked by bows and arrows. Save us with your powerful hand, and answer us so that those who are dear to you may be rescued. On May 7, 2012, I started praying for God to help me forgive my former traffickers. A few months later, I joined a Bible study over Nehemiah. During the Nehemiah study, the question that was asked over and over was “What has God put on your heart?” I prayed about it, and the answer was that God had put the “oppressed” on my heart. When I wrote that, I knew exactly who I had in mind, the other victims of human trafficking from my childhood who lost their lives. In the story of Nehemiah, it says that Nehemiah asked God to forgive his ancestors who sold their own family members into slavery. They were referred to as the “oppressed”. I was blown away. One night, while I prayed for my former traffickers, I asked God to forgive them. That was my moment of freedom. MATTHEW 5:44 But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you. The next day, the study said, "Nehemiah prayed for four months before approaching the king. How does this encourage you to keep praying for something you have been praying for a long time?" Later on, I realized I began praying on May 7, 2012. Those prayers were answered on Sept 7, 2012. Without even planning it, I had prayed for exactly four months for help forgiving, the exact same amount of time as Nehemiah. GALATIANS 5:1 says it is for freedom that Christ set us free.
My story came out, and I was led through door after door into the ministry I had been equipped for since I was little. JOSHUA 24:14-15 Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. And if it seems evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: BUT AS FOR ME AND MY HOUSE, WE WILL SERVE THE LORD. When I was growing up, some of my handlers practiced Santeria and Baal worship. They used to tease me and call me ash-tree because my first name had the pagan meaning “grove of trees." In the Old Testament, the Babylonians were notorious for Baal worship. The pagan idols of Baal have no power over El Elyon, God Most High. Even Nebuchadnezzar, the King of Babylon himself, ended up acknowledging that God is the Most High. In a Bible study on Gideon, I learned that God gave Gideon a new name, called Jerubbaal, which means Baal fighter. During the Bible study, I found that God was willing to give me a new name, also, and that I, too, was a Baal fighter. In JUDGES 6:25-26, God called Gideon to tear down his father’s altar of Baal and cut down the grove of trees beside it. I realized if Gideon could do it, so could I. JUDGES 6:25b- 26a …Throw down the alter of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it. And build an altar unto the Lord thy God upon the top of this rock. In the lesson, the teacher described the power of prayer for God to do impossible things, and that for us to get to see God do miracles, we need to be willing to pray in impossible situations. The teacher gave us an example of a miracle in an impossible situation. In another country, an anti-human trafficking ministry was trying to rescue trafficking survivors, but there was no help from the authorities. There were no other options but to pray for the men to come forward and rescue the survivors. Not long after, this is exactly what happened. Their prayer was answered. If we are willing to pray in impossible situations, we are more likely to see miracles happen. One time at church, our pastor preached on the story of Nehemiah. He said that “God uses broken people to accomplish big things.” God is calling regular people to be secret agents in an army against evil. Years ago, in Palestine, Texas, around the time I was born, my aunt Michelle, who is another survivor, prayed for God to do something about the trafficking, violent crimes, and injustice in the area. Now, several decades later, I get to see the answers to those prayers take place. I got to see an army of organizations run by passionate people rise up to fight this issue locally. For many of us, the risk was huge. At times, the risk for me was great enough that I once even considered accepting an opportunity to leave Texas permanently and change my identity. The sacrifice was great, but it was worth more than anything in the world and rewarding beyond words to get to see, within my lifetime, that it was possible for my past, all of the hard work, and also countless nights of prayers and tears to make a lasting difference. PSALM 56:8 You have taken account of my wanderings; Put my tears in Your bottle. Are they not in Your book? REVELATION 21:4 And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. In 2014, not long after I was married, I opened up about the loss of my children. At the time, I still believed they were no longer alive. After all those years later, I finally gave them names. The names were Joshua, David, Joseph, Hope, and Grace. That same spring, a ministry in Tyler, Texas that fights human trafficking had an event. The event was called Night Walk for Hope.
That year, on Mother’s Day at church, they handed out flowers to all of the mothers. In the parking lot of the church, there were several magnolia trees in bloom. I was given a magnolia. After church, I went to my favorite turtle pond. While I approached the edge of the pond, most of the turtles ran away and jumped back into the water. Two turtles stayed behind as if they were there to greet me. I left the magnolia in the water. ROMANS 15:13 May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. Soon after that, instead of choosing to change my identity and leave Texas permanently, God led my husband and me to leave Texas temporarily and go on a much needed vacation. As we drove through Birmingham, Alabama, I saw that on both sides of the street, there were trees and trees full of hundreds and hundreds of magnolias everywhere. I felt the promise of Jesus to reunite me with my children one day, even if it meant I had to wait until heaven. MATTHEW 5:4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. Two weeks after we left Texas, we arrived in Nashville, Tennessee. Before we went on our vacation, we were originally planning on going incognito for a while. Ironically, we signed up to go to the KLOVE Fan Awards which we thought was just a concert, but when we got there discovered we had by accident signed up to attend what turned out to be a red carpet event. Incognito quickly went out the window.
While on vacation, some of the places we drove through were Birmingham, Alabama, Atlanta, Georgia, Nashville, and Memphis, Tennessee. I know with all my heart that God is real and He answers prayers. answered prayer of ours was more memorable than the time when as were driving through Memphis, Tennessee. On the way home, we were praying about God ending the human trafficking in that area. While we were praying, we were exhausted and even started to argue. Our prayer fell apart. At that point, we stopped and asked God to honor our prayer request anyway. We said to God "If He honored our prayer request, we acknowledged it would be through no power of our own that the prayer would be answered, but it would be only because of His power." Not long after we got home, I stumbled across a news article about how a huge trafficking ring was busted. The trafficking ring operated out of Birmingham, Alabama, Atlanta, Georgia, Nashville, and Memphis, Tennessee. God is faithful. PSALM 102:17 He will respond to the prayer of the destitute; he will not despise their plea. PSALM 37:4 Delight yourself also in the Lord, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. MATTHEW 6:21 For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. MATTHEW 16:19 I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. I have spent many years praying for families affected by trafficking and Satanic ritual abuse. In 2018, God opened the door for the restoration of my own family. By then, I had become informed enough on human trafficking and the Mormon Church that I realized it was possible my children could still be alive. On January 27, 2018, the woman who wrote the Nehemiah Bible study I had done years earlier was speaking at an event in Tyler, Texas. She was teaching over the life of Joseph. For a few minutes, she spoke about slavery and human trafficking. I was sitting in the very back of the sanctuary. At one point, it felt like she was looking straight at me. She then pointed in my direction and read out loud Genesis 45:26 which said: “Joseph is still alive." I immediately thought of my son Joseph. I am looking for answers and the truth about my children. I am convinced they could still be alive and may have disappeared into the LDS foster care system. I am asking for your help finding them. In November 2018, my aunt Michelle Hoover launched The Henry, Leroy, Oscar Call Your Mom! Campaign to locate her missing sons Henry, Leroy, and Oscar. Now, all these years later, I am trying to find my missing children, Joshua, David, Joseph, Hope, and Grace. They are all now grown adults. Our ministry is called The Finding Hope Project.
One evening, I felt led to go to Reformation House of Prayer in Tyler, Texas. No one knew I was coming. I did not know that they were praying about ending human trafficking. Moments before I walked through the door, they gathered into a circle and placed two chairs in the middle. They felt led by the Holy Spirit to pray for two specific missing children. As I quietly walked in, I heard their prayers. I was amazed.
Together, my aunt Michelle and I worked diligently to raise awareness about all missing children, survivors, and families who have been affected by ritualistic abuse, mind control programming, and human trafficking. During the first few days of spreading missing person flyers for our family, we received a phone call from a young girl looking for help, who we believed was in danger. That week, I was able to report two tips to The National Center For Missing and Exploited Children for two separate missing children's cases. Since then, we came into contact with other parents who are in search of their missing children. In 2016, one law enforcement agency that believed in me awarded me a scholarship to complete my bachelor’s degree. I am a recipient of The Granting Courage Scholarship from The United States Immigration Customs Enforcement Foundation. On November 12, 2018, while I was a student at UT Tyler, I went to the Baptist Student Ministry Center on campus to hand out missing person flyers for Henry, Leroy, and Oscar. One person there prayed for my family. He said out loud, “I pray for Henry. I pray for Leroy. I pray for Oscar, and I pray for hope." I had not told him about my own children. I spent my last semester with UT Tyler serving as an intern with a safe home for my psychology field service credit. On May 4, 2019, I graduated from The University of Texas at Tyler with my Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology. For over three years, I volunteered with domestic minor sex trafficked girls at the safe home and with at-risk girls from foster care emergency shelters. Some of their stories were heartbreaking, yet through Jesus’ power, miracles happened. It was inspiring and encouraging to see that kids who have been through so much can heal and be happy. We did arts and crafts and Bible studies together. I did presentations on animals and brought my iguana, two turtles, and a Russian tortoise to interact with the girls. I could tell the animals and the kids loved the activity and luckily... no one even got pooped on. During the campaign, my aunt and I bravely traveled the nation even though the threats, stalking, and harassment intensified, but I wasn’t scared anymore. One night at our hotel parking lot, two traffickers showed up in an attempt to intimidate us. I laughed and took pictures of them. They both covered their faces and ran away in fear. I’ve joked that the two of them were so ridiculous to me that they reminded me of Nacho Libre and his sidekick from the movie. PROVERBS 31:25 She is clothed with strength and dignity, and she laughs without fear of the future. After they were gone, the hotel manager hid us in his office, called the cops for us, and while we waited, He got on his knees and prayed with us. That year, many people prayed for us, and God continues to answer those prayers each day. Like many others, life during the pandemic held many struggles, grief, and pain. By July 4th, 2021, I moved to Alaska to be with my Aunt Michelle. My marriage and many of my other friendships had fallen apart. My Aunt Michelle was like a mom to me. I am so glad I got to spend that precious time with her. At the end of the summer, she and I went on a road trip to continue to search for and campaign for Michelle’s kids. It felt like we were so close to finding them. Within a week, Michelle and I became too sick to continue to travel and were stranded in a hotel room in Germantown, Maryland, not very far from Washington, D.C. We both tested positive for COVID. She fought in the ICU for months. Tragically, my Aunt Michelle did not recover. On October 29, 2021, she went to be with Jesus. The grief and loss of losing my children, my marriage, and then my aunt Michelle, who was a mother to me, was beyond devastating. I felt like I had lost everything. It seemed like my life’s purpose might be gone. I thank God for all the times in my life that my friends went to battle for me in prayer and that God spared my life from suicide. What also helped me to accomplish victory over suicide, self-harm, and depression is the many hours I spent in prayer and worship. In September of 2021, while my aunt was in the hospital, I started studying and learning to sing worship music in other languages. Now I’ve been learning to dance again but it's not for men. I dance with praise flags for encounters with the Holy Spirit and the presence of Jesus. He makes me feel special, cherished, and loved. He makes me feel close like a real daughter. ROMANS 8:15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father. Not long after my aunt Michelle went to heaven, there was a remarkable transformation in me. I inherited her strength, passion, perseverance, mantle, and anointing and I once again became on fire for Jesus's purpose in my life. While she was in the hospital, I prayer walked Washington, D.C. regularly. During that time, several people were praying for me and my family. I was so sad but the prayer helped so much in my healing. My love for life is reborn. I have started on a new stage in a miraculous healing journey. I feel called to continue the vision, ministry, and legacy of my aunt by one day opening the safe home for survivors we had always dreamt of opening together. I never imagined I would be doing this without her. Every day, I try to remember that I have a promise. For the rest of my life, I will never quit searching until I find my children and Michelle’s children. ISAIAH 61:1 He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners. I feel called to the mission field and want to become a worship leader. I sing praise in Russian, German, Hebrew, and Arabic. Since December 2021, I have often listened to several hours of prayer and worship in Russian a day. I felt led to begin studying the language as part of my training for a future in missions. Because of my childhood encounters with Nazi criminals, I originally wanted to study German first, but that December, I felt it was revealed to me that I needed to focus on studying Russian first. I wondered, “Why God? Why Russia so soon?” I was stunned but chose to obey. This was only a few months before the conflict with Ukraine began. It makes more sense to me now. Every nation needs love and peace. JOHN 3:16 says “For God so loved the world…” The whole world… At the beginning of 2022, I started training in self-defense. When I grew up, I survived both the Mexican and Russian mafia. After the death of Michelle, I went back to her house in Alaska. I expected I might run into someone dangerous, but my fear was gone. I put my trust in God and came prepared for anything. I entered the property with police, a stun gun in one of my pockets, and anointing oil in the other pocket. I was once asked by a fight instructor why I wanted to train in Krav Mega. The answer I gave is that I wanted to be prepared to fight human trafficking globally and be equipped to go to Russia. In the future, I plan on going to a Youth With a Mission Discipleship Training School. My dream for the future is to see this world free from all injustice, slavery, racism, terrorism, war, torture, genocide, thirst, starvation, and disease. But for now, even in the midst of the valley of the shadow of death exists serenity because I find my perfect peace in him. Some people look at suffering, injustice, and human trafficking and wonder how God could be real since these things happen. I look at my past, and I can now say: It is because of how powerfully He reached out to me during my suffering so many times that I know just how real God is. PSALM 103:6-12 The LORD works righteousness and justice for all the oppressed. PSALM 146:7-8 He upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The Lord sets prisoners free, the Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who are bowed down, the Lord loves the righteous. ISAIAH 58:6 Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke? MATTHEW 25:40 I tell you the truth whatever you did for the least of one of these brothers of mine you did for me. There is no one who has ever known better the world of suffering than Jesus, our Lord. In the Old Testament, the Messiah was described as oppressed. ISAIAH 53:7 But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him and by his wounds, we are healed. He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth; he was led like a lamb to the slaughter. Sometimes, when it has seemed impossible to understand why God would allow such suffering and evil to take place on earth, I could only find comfort in knowing that Jesus also endured torture and suffering and that I am not alone. Jesus WAS SOLD by Judas for thirty pieces of silver and handed over to be crucified. MATTHEW 26:14-15. Then one of the Twelve—the one called Judas Iscariot—sent to the chief priests and asked, "What are you willing to give me if I hand him over to you?" So they counted out for him thirty silver coins. MARK 10:33 They will condemn Him to death and will hand Him over to the Gentiles who will mock Him and spit on Him, flog Him and kill Him. Three days later HE WILL RISE. He allowed Himself to face death and came from the grave so that we could have life. He did this to set each of us free. It does not matter what holds you prisoner, or how dark your past may be. If you have never known freedom before, He is here for you. Christ offers everlasting freedom to anyone and everyone who will accept it. Jesus is a mighty Holy King, yet a servant to the oppressed, the afflicted, and the needy. He is a friend to His followers. He is Abba Father. MATTHEW 18:23 Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. MATTHEW 20:26 Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant. JOHN 15: 13-16 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you. HEBREWS 2:14-15 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. I never knew my worth before I met Him. Jesus thought I was worth dying for. If you don’t know your worth, remember he died for you, too. MARK 10:45 For even the son of man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. He bought me for a price. He paid it all. He gave his life to pay my ransom and set me free from captivity. He can set you free too. PSALM 49:7-8,15 No one can ever buy back another person or pay Elohim a ransom for his life. The price to be paid for his soul is too costly…But Elohim will buy me back from the power of hell because He will take me. ROMANS 8:38 And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow- NOT EVEN THE POWERS OF HELL CAN SEPARATE US FROM GOD’S LOVE.
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Today is my daughter Hope's fifteenth birthday. Please pray for her. I know that she is out there somewhere and trust that God will help me to locate her in His timing. Right after her birth in 2005, she was taken from me by traffickers and disappeared into the corrupt Mormon foster care system. From the very earliest age I remember, I was trafficked by members of my family.
Originally, I grew up in the LDS Church. By the time I was in foster care and a junior in high school, I was living with a Mormon Bishop and his wife. I was forced to enter into a secret marriage covenant with the Bishop and his other wives. The Bishop was over sixty years old at the time. I was sixteen. I had already been promised to this man years earlier. One of his wives arranged for me to conceive a child in a ritual to consummate the marriage. In June 2004, my son Joseph was born. Months later, I was introduced to Christianity by a boy I met at my new high school. Early in the morning on January 18, 2005, I read John 3:16. The words "ONLY begotten son" jumped off the page. I realized that if Jesus was the only son of God, then the teachings of the Mormon Church must be false. I also realized unless I believed Jesus was the one and only Son, I was not saved. The very instant I realized this, He was there in a more real way than I had ever known before. I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. That morning, I told my foster parents I had been saved. Later that day, I was taken to a hospital where my daughter Hope was born. I was led to believe that she and my other children were no longer alive. After my daughter was gone, I was abandoned by my foster family at the hospital where she was born. I now believe she survived and was adoption trafficked into the Mormon foster care system. Even though it was heartbreaking, being persecuted for my new faith, abandoned and forced to leave my hometown was a total blessing, and possibly one of the greatest gifts ever. The same day that I received the gift of salvation and freedom in Christ, I also received the gift of my daughter Hope. The boy who originally introduced me to Christianity in high school is now my husband. All these years later, we are trying to find my daughter Hope and my son Joseph. In 2018, my aunt began The Henry, Leroy, Oscar, Call your mom! Campaign to locate her missing sons Henry, Leroy, and Oscar. Now, my family and I are campaigning to find my missing children also. It will be called The Finding Hope Project. Years ago, God began healing me from my family history of child sex trafficking and satanic ritual abuse. In 2010, God called me into the anti-human trafficking ministry. Ever since then, I have dedicated my life to helping others affected by trafficking.
Now, God is doing something new in my life. I have spent many years praying for God to restore my family from the effects of satanic ritual abuse and child trafficking. A long time ago, God gave me a promise that He would answer those prayers and one day restore everything. This year, God has not only made it possible for me to continue to help others, but He has also opened the door for the restoration of my own family. In 2018, I found out that several members of my family who have been missing for many years made it to safety. Now, I am asking for your help finding them. In November, my aunt and I launched a campaign to search for her missing sons Henry, Leroy, and Oscar. They are last known to be located in the Waco, Temple, Killeen Texas area. Their current names are (Donald B.), (Ronald-James B.), (Michael B.) If you have any information, please contact Michelle Hoover (907)-242-1415. If you would like to learn more about The Henry, Leroy, Oscar Call Your Mom Campaign and how you can help, you can go to our webpage or Facebook page. www.henryleroyoscar.com www.facebook.com/Henry-Leroy-Oscar-Call-Your-Mom-Campaign-358906561548271 Resources for Torture, Ritualistic Abuse, Cult Abuse, & Trauma Based Mind Control Survivors8/6/2018 By Ashlie Bailey I am a survivor of child sex trafficking, torture, ritual abuse, and trauma based mind control. I have been a survivor leader in the anti trafficking movement since 2010. A few years ago, I began a search for organizations, programs, resources, books, experts, teachers, pastors, counselors, and survivors who understand this form of trafficking.
I have been to many trainings, spoken to other survivors, contacted many experts on trafficking, and also many other anti human trafficking organizations. Most people who fight human trafficking, are doing a really excellent with prevention, rescue, and raising awareness. However, I have found that very few people in the movement know very much about the type of trafficking that involves wealthy families, organized crime, torture, ritualistic abuse, trauma based mind control, secret societies, religious cults, and government corruption. Although about one fourth of the other survivors I have encountered, lived through this form of trafficking, most organizations I have contacted think it is a myth or doesn’t exist. I want to help change that. This is the reason why I have started a list of resources, and information specifically for survivors of ritualistic abuse, and mind control. While I do not agree with or endorse all the views of those on this list, I did find their information to be helpful. I hope this will be helpful to others also. If anyone knows about any more resources I can add to this list, please do not hesitate to contact me. Click the button below to view more information on SRA & Mind Control or to view resources for Torture, Ritualistic Abuse, Cult Abuse, and Trauma Based Mind Control Survivors. By Ashlie BaileyMost Americans think that the Holocaust ended in 1945 when World War II ended. The truth is the horrors of the Holocaust were continued for years and years later by Nazi scientist who escaped justice and were never charged with a crime. At the end of World War II, the United States Government launched a project called Operation Paperclip. The objective of Operation Paperclip was to smuggle a group of powerful Nazi scientist and war criminals into the US. They were given protection and new identities by the United States Government. Operation Paperclip allowed these war criminals to legally continue doing Nazi experiments and research on US citizens, many of whom were children. Just one of the known Nazi experiments done on US citizens in the United States was called MK Ultra, or Project Birdcage or Project Monarch. MK Ultra is an extreme form of human trafficking, torture, brainwashing, and ritualistic abuse perpetrated by men connected to the Nazis. Operation Paperclip and MK Ultra are not just some myth. It is a documented part of American history. There are many declassified government documents that prove it exists. Eventually, MK Ultra was banned from being used on US citizens. However, MK Ultra continued. Its use on none US citizens has still never been banned. Along with other members of my family, I survived this horrific form of human trafficking. During World War II, thousands of children who were the offspring of Nazi men were bred to become a part of the “master race”. The children of the “master race” were called the Lebensborn children. Many of the Lebensborn children were abducted from their families and trafficked. In some ways, my own background was very similar to the children of Lebensborn. I believe that before I was even born I was chosen for my German family heritage. Like many of the children of Lebensborn, I was trafficked and brainwashed by powerful men. I was born into a trafficking ring run by men in my family who were deeply convicted with Nazi beliefs and claimed to have ties to secret societies and the Nazis. They worked in government and military at the time. They used on their victims a combination of ritualistic abuse, military style enhanced interrogation torture techniques, and trauma based mind control which, is an extreme form of torture and brainwashing. How ironic is it that the government would choose to call their project Operation Paperclip, when originally in World War II the paperclip was worn by the Norwegians as a symbol of resistance to the Nazis. There were six million Jews killed in the Holocaust. Years ago a group of eighth grade students began collecting paperclips from all over the world for a memorial to Holocaust victims. After the students received six million paperclips, more kept coming in. Eventually they had enough paperclips for all of the millions of other people killed in the Holocaust, but even more, paperclips kept coming in the mail. At last count, over 30 million paperclips have been received. Although it probably was not the intention of the creators of the memorial, they now have enough paperclips to include the hidden holocaust victims of Operation Paperclip and MK Ultra. One of the common symbols used to represent MK Ultra or Project Monarch victims is a butterfly. Even though it probably was not intentional, you can only imagine how touched I felt to see that butterflies were included in this memorial for Holocaust victims. It was a reminder to me that the victims of this type of injustice are not completely forgotten. I am reclaiming the paperclip back from the Nazi war criminals of Operation Paperclip. You can be a part of a movement to raise awareness and show your support to MK Ultra and ritualistic abuse victims everywhere by wearing a paperclip. I will now wear one in honor of all the children who are still being tortured and trafficked to this day by men who call themselves Nazis. To them, the Holocaust isn’t over. I will continue to remember them and fight for them always. Works Cited Children's Holocaust Memorial in Whitwell, TN. http://www.oneclipatatime.org/paper-clips-project/ Operation Paperclip Declassified Papers Show U.S. Recruited Ex-Nazis By SAM ROBERTS December 11, 2010 After World War II, American counterintelligence recruited former Gestapo officers, SS veterans and Nazi collaborators to an even greater extent than had been previously disclosed and helped many of them avoid prosecution or looked the other way when they escaped, according to thousands of newly declassified documents. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/12/us/12holocaust.html The report, “Hitler’s Shadow: Nazi War Criminals, U.S. Intelligence and the Cold War,” ( HITLER’S SHADOW Nazi War Criminals, U.S. Intelligence, and the Cold War Richard Breitman and Norman J.W. Goda Published by the National Archives http://www.archives.gov/iwg/reports/hitlers-shadow.pdf MK Ultra Declassified MK-Ultra Project Documents: http://web.archive.org/web/20130210215221/http://www.michael-robinett.com/declass/c000.htm MK ULTRA Documents http://web.archive.org/web/20041217144356/http://www.hiddenmysteries.com/freebook/mk/ List of MKULTRA Unclassified Documents (including subprojects) http://web.archive.org/web/20080613034340/http://www.nemasys.com/rahome/library/programming/mkultra.shtml 1995 U. S. congressional hearing: MKULTRA Victim Testimony A: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iflBkRlpRy0&feature=related MKULTRA Victim Testimony B: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eXDASDDrDkM MKULTRA Victim Testimony C: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F-ES8Bv0_8w 1977 Congressional Hearings Project MKULTRA, The CIA’s Program Of Research In Behavioral Modification http://www.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/national/13inmate_ProjectMKULTRA.pdf Mind Control Documents & Links Proof mk-ultra exists This page includes information on mk-ultra, the CIA, mind control, Operation Paperclip and the Nazis, the 1995 congressional hearings, the 2010 veterans vs CIA court case, Artichoke, the CIA Supreme Court cases, Ewen Cameron and the Sleep Room and the MK/Naomi project. https://ritualabuse.us/mindcontrol/mc-documents-links/
Since I was nine years old, when I began playing classical guitar until the age of eighteen, music was my whole world. For most of my childhood, I was a victim of child trafficking. When I realized I couldn’t escape physically, I began to find my escape and my voice through my art and music. Even though I was being trafficked, I still went to school and was in choir and band. There were times, that I could say for certain art and music saved my life. Without it, I wouldn’t have been able to find the strength to get through those difficult years.
A few months after I became a Christian, escaped child trafficking, turned eighteen, and moved into a homeless shelter; I played hymns for a short time during worship at my first Christian Church. Not long after that, I quit playing music for several years, because playing was too painful and brought back too many memories of my childhood. God still used that experience to bless someone else by giving away all of my instruments. I felt that if God wanted me to ever play again, He would confirm it by bringing me back new instruments in just the right timing. Even though I wasn't playing music anymore, worship was still a huge part of my life. While I was in college, there was a K-love radio station behind my dorm. For the first time, I had discovered Christian radio and it was life changing. When I was growing up, the only styles I knew how to play was classical music and old classic rock. After I discovered my love for Christian radio, it was a relief to get rid of all my classic rock CDs. Before this, the only Christian music I was exposed to was old church hymns. I remember one day while I was driving, Revelation Song came on the radio. In the same exact moment as the part in the song where the lyrics said "clothed in rainbows of living color", I glanced up into the sky and there was a rainbow. That was the first time I had experienced a moment that just burst into worship and intercessory prayer. If ever there was a moment in my life I would describe as baptism in the holy spirit, that was it. In 2010 during worship at church, the band played the song "Our God is Greater". It was during that moment, God revealed my life’s calling. On July 23, He called me to come forward about my trafficking experience as a child, and to become a survivor leader in the fight against human trafficking. Everywhere I went during the fight to expose a child trafficking ring, I listened to a Passion Conference CD on the way, which had the song "Our God" on it. It was worship through that music, that gave me the courage come forward, even though I was in danger from former traffickers who wanted me to keep silent. At first, it seemed like my choice to speak up wasn't making a difference. Yet, at the time I had no idea that the very CD I took with me everywhere, was recorded at an event which raised awareness and funds to fight human trafficking. At Passion Conferences, thousands of people from all over the world would gather during a time of worship to pray for the fight against slavery. Their prayers were an answer to my prayers. In 2012, a new song was written about raising a white flag against slavery. The writers of that song could not have known, that there is an American flag trafficking rings would use to signal it as a sign they are about to harm someone, by dropping the flag from its pole. When that song came out, thousands of people gathered outside of the Georgia Dome at a Passion Conference to raise white flags in the representation of each of the estimated 27 million people currently trapped in slavery. In front of the property where that flagpole is located, there is a billboard that for many months said in huge letters the name of Jesus. Seeing this reminded me on a regular basis how much more mighty and powerful God is than the entire human trafficking industry. It only occurred to me years later, where I was driving past when I had that private worship encounter with God while listening to Revelation Song on the radio. I was driving past that flag pole. That rainbow was the sign of a promise. In 2014, I started to feel the urge to use my music to grow closer to God through worship. A missionary friend prayed for God to bring me back my music. At that time, I was also receiving threats from former traffickers. Two weeks later, instead of taking an opportunity to change my identity and leave Texas permanently, my husband and I felt lead to leave Texas temporarily and go on a vacation. Originally, we were planning on hiding out for a while. Ironically two weeks later while on vacation, we signed up to go to K-love fan awards which we thought was just a concert, but when we got there discovered we had by accident signed up to attend what turned out to be a red carpet event. Incognito quickly went out the window, but that was okay because that summer turned out to be an incredible answer to prayer. That summer, we got to meet two of the people who wrote the passion conference songs that had such a huge impact on my life. At K-love fan awards, my husband placed a bid on a guitar. Not only did God answer my prayer by bringing me back a guitar, but it was also signed by one of the artists who wrote the songs "Our God" and "White Flag". That day God brought back my music. Near the end of that vacation, we got to go to Passion City Church. That night they played "Our God" and "White Flag for me". I felt that God was reminding me His promises, when I realized that by no plans of man, God made this happen on July 23, the same date that a few years earlier God first used the song "Our God" to inspire me to come forward, speak up, and become a survivor leader in the fight against trafficking. Since then, I have slowly begun to relearn to play the guitar again and also a keyboard I was given. At first, I didn't know where to start. It was hard to figure out how to transform my style from classical to contemporary Christian music. Then, I remembered my love of hymns. Through the sheet music, I felt like I was rediscovering what I had once lost. I have felt called to learn to become a worship leader, but have only been playing music in secret and haven't felt ready to play in front of anyone yet. I started to wonder if I would ever feel ready. Through a family member, God kept reminding me to never give up on that dream. For the last few months, my prayer to God has been that even if I don’t feel ready, I would do anything, anything at all to be able to worship Him completely openly if He would show me how. Recently, I was listening to a local Christian band play at a house of prayer. My artwork was hanging on the walls in that building. The band asked if I would paint while they played for a night of worship. I may not have felt ready to play music in front of others yet, but I learned God can use anything to draw us closer to him, even painting. During this time of praise, God has used a night of music, painting, and dance to help me overcome my fears of worshiping in front of others. Watching others praise God with dance while twirling flags was also another reminder to me, that God has raised a flag and the Lord is my banner. PSALM 60:4-5 Yet you have raised a flag for those who fear you so that they can rally to it when attacked by bows and arrows. Save us with your powerful hand, and answer us so that those who are dear to you may be rescued. By Ashlie BaileyI ask that each of you take a moment today on behalf of all of my survivor brothers and sisters to remember them and lift them up in prayer. Many of you do not know, that I often drive to trafficking hot-spots to intercede for the freedom of those who are still being bought and sold. Today is Christmas. On a day like today, it is even more important to me that they are not forgotten.
Those of you who have heard my testimony, know that there is an American flag my former traffickers used to signal they are about to harm someone, by dropping the flag from its pole. Even though that flagpole still stands to this day, it no longer holds in my life the same power of death that it used to. In front of the property where the flagpole is located, there is a billboard that for many months said on it the name of Jesus. Today, I drove past the flagpole in honor of my survivor brothers and sisters. When I got there, the flag was down. Praise God that instead of being overcome by utter heartbreak, I was able to thank God for my freedom, and look up into the sky with complete confidence and peace knowing that death is conquered, God is greater, and He has not forgotten them. By Ashlie BaileyForced labor is the most common form of human trafficking and affects many areas of life. One of the areas of life that forced labor affects is the food industry. A lot of people are familiar with human trafficking in cocoa farming for chocolate manufacturing, but forced labor has an impact on all kinds of foods from all over the world. Slave labor is used extensively in the fishing industry and those who are exploited in this way are almost all men and boys.
Produce comes from many places. It is not uncommon at all for slaves to be used in agriculture to grow and harvest produce. This impacts migrant workers who are mostly males and are promised payment but never receive it. Not only are these slaves forced into labor unpaid, they are treated badly and forced to work nonstop under dangerous conditions. The same toxic chemicals and pesticides that are used in agriculture end up poisoning the slaves who work to grow the food. Why would we be willing to trust certain foods to be fit for consumption, when it is clear that those who manufacturer it doesn’t care about human life. A food company who has no problem with poisoning slaves would have no problem with allowing the population to be poisoned with their products. Manufacturers who have no ethics can’t be trusted with the responsibility of feeding the public. Another indicator of whether a food manufacturing company can be trusted or not is how they treat animals. A company that treats animals ethically is also more likely to treat people well. Why would a company who is responsible for treating animals cruelly and keeping them in overcrowded and filthy conditions care about producing food that is healthy? This is why I prefer to find fair trade food whenever possible, or locally, or organically grown and animal cruelty free food. Making healthy choices in our diet doesn't just impact you it affects the world. Companies that go through the trouble of growing organically grown and cage free food follow ethics. A company who demonstrates ethics such as growing organic food is far less likely to be involved in using slave labor. When you buy products from companies who care you are lessening the demand for slave labor and you are helping to change the world. By Ashlie Bailey In a world where the majority of the world's wealth stays in the hands of a handful of men, it should come as no surprise at all that the elite have been exploiting women and the poor since the beginning of time. It is one thing when a trafficker forces someone into slavery. It is an entirely different monster when a government or military forces someone into slavery and it still happens all of the time. To some, it may sound like a conspiracy theory but it is the truth.
We mainly think of this occurring in other countries but it can happen in the United States too. Since governments get their funds from taxpayers, that can mean that taxpayers have the ability to influence the government. Giving citizens some control over what goes on in government can be a good thing if the citizens have good intentions. But what happens when a particular candidate is funded by powerful and wealthy people who have an agenda? That agenda can make its way into government policies. In the United States especially; candidates are funded by wealthy people who run corporations. In a way, because of this, the United States government itself has begun to function and look more and more like a corporation. For instance, most Republican candidates are in support of free trade. Could this be because they are funded by businessmen who use slave labor in their manufacturing? I think that the wealthy businessmen who fund candidates wouldn’t be very happy if candidates didn’t support policies that keep the corporations making money. The truth is that businesses make more money if they can rely on slave labor. The demand for slave labor and the supply for it are high. When businesses use slave labor they may make more money but they are not only hurting the slaves; they are hurting America. They are promoting corruption and causing there to be fewer jobs available here. Most people know that retail stores in the United States sell slave made products yet they don’t seem to have very much of a problem with retailers who do business this way. Taxpayers need to demand that retailers sell fair trade products. This will lessen the demand for labor trafficking not only in the United States but it will lessen the demand for slave labor all over the world. Citizens need to hold governments accountable and governments should hold businesses accountable. Where there is no accountability there is corruption. Corruption in government and corporations is what makes labor trafficking possible. If there were solid accountability than trafficking would occur far less often. By Ashlie Bailey People think of organ trafficking as a myth or as something that only happens overseas. In reality, it can happen anywhere. It isn’t that shocking that organ trafficking happens in places like China or that in the Chinese prison system some inmates are forced to donate their organs without consent. In other countries, poverty is what drives organ trafficking. This form of trafficking impacts men. Men and women are promised payment for their body parts. Victims of this crime end up severely wounded and many times the promise for payment is broken.
What is shocking to Americans is that organ trafficking can even happen in the United States. Everyone has heard the news about body parts harvesting in the abortion industry. While most organ trafficking happens in other countries the United States is vulnerable. The main reason why isn’t because of the abortion industry. What makes the United States vulnerable is that the Organ and Body Part Harvesting system here has become a for profit making industry that is barely regulated and highly flawed. In the United States, it is legal for everyone involved in the body parts harvesting industry to get paid except for those who donate their organs. People think they are donating body parts when the reality is that they are giving away body parts so that corporations can sell them to doctors, hospitals, and clinics who sell expensive surgery to the patients. None of the body parts are actually really donated and the majority of the parts are used in unnecessary super expensive cosmetic surgeries. This industry exists to make money. Some corporations in the United States even accept unidentified body parts that come from other countries. Corporations that sell body parts aren’t even required to use barcodes. Some corporations don’t even show any identification indicating the exact source of the parts. They become untraceable. This is dangerous and unacceptable Where ever there is a demand for body parts organ trafficking can happen. Most people think that the demand for body parts is only for transplants and research but the truth is that there are other more sinister reasons for the trafficking of body parts. Even in the United States body parts can be used for other purposes than for transplants. This is where organ trafficking and sex trafficking overlap. One of the horrors of underground trafficking rings is that there is a growing demand for the illegal use of body parts in gonzo pornography, snuff films, and religious cults. And I know for sure it isn’t just a rumor. Not only does this affect the people who have had their body parts harvested; it is a whole world of horrific trauma for everyone who is exposed to it. This must come to an end. In the whole world, there is hardly any treatment or aftercare available for victims of organ trafficking. Not only do those who have become victims of organ harvesting need treatment and aftercare; everyone who is exposed to it in any way including those who were exposed through violent pornography needs treatment for trauma. By Ashlie BaileyWe typically think of child soldiers as existing only in faraway places under extreme circumstances if we even believe it exists at all. The reality is that anywhere in the world where there is government corruption, it is possible for children to be used in war. The roles that slaves are expected to serve as in wars is diverse. This form of trafficking affects boys more than any other group.
Children can be forced into labor serving soldiers, or they can be forced to become soldiers themselves, and are likely to get killed. Forced labor in farming and agriculture can take place as a result of war when a government forces farmers to give up their land and crops to feed the military. Sex trafficking can take place as a result of war when a government provides prostitutes for men in the military. This happened in Japan during World War Two. This is not just a thing of the past. Trafficking by military continues to take place all over the world today. It is far worse than the type of trafficking that regular human traffickers perpetrate because it is governments who are doing the trafficking which means the chances for help or escape are far less likely. To the kids, this may seem like an opportunity at first. They are brainwashed into believing that they are meant for this role. This is a whole-nother type of evil because it puts children at risk of encountering military torture and being killed. Even worse than being killed is the chance that a child soldier will be captured or imprisoned by an enemy that will not hesitate to inflict the worst kind of torture on them and their families. The type of trauma that this can cause is unfathomable. Killings can serve as the first required initiation task in their training. It is not unusual for corrupt military men to also be into other illegal activities. The kids are conditioned to not only fight but are used as spies, sex slaves, and drug mules. Some of them may be forced to act as assassins not only in war, but they may be forced to assassinate the competition in the drug trade. The trafficking of boys is less known than the trafficking of other groups. Trafficking of boys in wars is far too common to keep silent on this issue. Governments need to be held accountable. Peace needs to be worked towards. It is only with peace that the demand for child soldiers will be solved. By Ashlie Bailey Domestic servitude is a type of labor trafficking that in the United States mostly takes place in businesses and the home. Domestic Servitude mostly affects vulnerable and poor people who belong to one or more minority group. To the outside world, they look like ordinary employees working in ordinary businesses and homes but they are being exploited behind the scenes and many of them aren't even aware that they are being mistreated. This can affect both women and men. Victims of domestic servitude are normally recruited through a job offer that is too good to be true.
The vulnerable and poor are affected more because they are more likely to go to desperate measures to find any kind of employment. Once they are promised a job, the traffickers require them to travel to unfamiliar places and usually hide their documentation and identification. Victims of domestic servitude don’t run away because they may have been threatened with deportation, don’t know English, and fear ending up in a worse situation. They know if they disobey, their trafficker will punish them with physical abuse or by taking away what little earnings they have. This is called debt bondage. Some of the most common areas that victims of domestic servitude work are as maids, servants, and as brides for sale in a forced marriage. Maids and servants work in homes under difficult conditions or you may find them working in hotels. In the United States, both survivors of sex trafficking and survivors of labor trafficking end up working in hotels. Another area where both labor trafficking and sex trafficking overlap is when a child bride or a bride for sale is forced into an unwanted marriage. We typically refer to this as a type of sex trafficking but it is more than that. It is also labor trafficking because usually these young brides are not only forced into an unwanted sexual relationship; they are also expected to perform the exact same kind of work as a maid or servant in domestic servitude. Their husband becomes both the client and the trafficker at the same time. When I first wrote this article, underage marriage was allowed in all fifty states under special circumstances. Recently, this has begun to change. In some states, it is allowed for a twelve year old to marry a forty year old. Believe it not in the United States, judges allow several cases of child marriage like this to happen each year. By Ashlie Bailey Another way that the fashion industry fuels human trafficking is by using slave labor to manufacturer clothing jewelry and accessories. Through the demand for slave made textiles, sweatshops, and the demand for slave mined diamonds, gemstones, and gold; the Fashion Industry also is one of the worlds largest contributors to the problem of labor trafficking and its no secret.
In fact, the majority of all clothing items for sale in retail stores in the United States are made from slave labor. In places like Bangladesh and China, women are locked in dangerous factories or are chained to sewing machines for more than sixteen hours a day for pennies a day if they even get paid anything at all. In the textile making process, women are forced to dip their arms into metal barrels filled with toxic fabric dyes. Their skin becomes permanently stained with the toxic chemicals. The textile industry isn’t just bad for women, it is bad for animals and the environment. The toxic chemicals from textile making end up poisoning the environment. In the leather industry, countless animals are inhumanly tortured and killed. In the silk industry, millions of caterpillars are boiled while they are still alive to harvest their silk. In the gold and diamond industry slaves, miners are killed because of the dangerous conditions just so that a piece of jewelry can be made. This is why I am passionate about the gradual positive change that the growing popularity of fair trade merchandise is having on reducing the demand for the supply of slave made products in the fashion industry. This is also one of the reasons why I enjoy finding ethically made supplies for my art and jewelry crafting. It is one small way I can make a difference in the world and fashion industry. To view more of my handcrafted, survivor made art and jewelry go to my Beauty for Ashes Designs> page. By Ashlie Bailey The fashion industry is responsible for fueling both the labor trafficking industry and also the sex trafficking industry and is guilty of promoting and perpetrating both. Over the years the fashion industry has begun inventing and promoting revealing sexy clothing on tiny models who are getting younger and younger. It has become more popular than ever for retail stores to sell sexy looking clothing for teens and children. Not only that but many of the young women who have joined or have a desire to join the modeling industry ultimately end up having their bodies exploited.
Young women are asked to pose in sexually provocative poses in barely any clothing for secular magazines. These are the norms of the fashion industry but is it really healthy to normalize the objectification of the young female body. It isn’t when these kinds of experiences become a gateway to the door into a future career in pornography and the commercial sex industry. Young males who view the photos come to expect their peers of the opposite sex to look like the women in the photos. Young females who look at the magazines desire to be like the women in the photos and many of them will resort to drastic and unhealthy measures to obtain a certain appearance. Obtaining that sexy appearance puts girls at a greater risk of being objectified or exploited; which fuels the cycle of the sex industry. Another way that the fashion industry fuels the human trafficking industry is through modeling and modeling agencies. At best the legitimate modeling agencies only fuel the demand to objectify the woman's body. The other scenario is when a modeling agency coerces a young woman entering the modeling world into gradually moving from softer core photo shoots to posing nude or nearly nude but they don’t know its pornography because the fashion industry tells them it is art. One of the worst case scenarios is when a corrupt or illegitimate modeling agency introduces an underage girl into performing in pornography. The very worst case scenario is when the agency either introduces the model to a trafficker or when the entire agency is run by a trafficker who is posing as a modeling agent or photographer. This is a combination of both labor trafficking and sex trafficking. The very worst case scenario is far more common than the public is aware of. There is an entire website that exists solely for the purpose of connecting hundreds of aspiring models under the age of eighteen to modeling agents and photographers who haven't been through any kind of screening process or even had a background check. It should come as no surprise then that the site is notorious for traffickers using it to meet young girls. Read the rest of this article continued on the next post Fashion Industry Part Two> By Ashlie BaileyPrevention- Prevention of human trafficking typically focuses on girls and sex trafficking. Most of the time prevention programs work by raising awareness and educating youth on the red flags of a possible trafficking situation, and the tactics pimps and traffickers use. Even though this type of program may prevent some youth from being trafficked; it is not as effective as it could be because it only focuses on helping girls; and because it mostly places the responsibility to prevent and fight trafficking on the shoulders of children. Children should never be expected to carry the majority of the responsibility to prevent human trafficking. The reality is that there are some trafficking situations even an aware and educated child cannot prevent or escape. Prevention programs that only focus on teaching children how to avoid being trafficked only helps some of them. For the children who were not able to avoid being trafficked; prevention programs like this place the blame on the child. For prevention to be most effective it needs to get rid of the blame and put the responsibility back where it belongs.
Root Causes and Demand- There need to be more prevention programs that focus on solving the root causes of human trafficking. The main root cause of human trafficking is the demand. Without the demand for trafficking victims, there would be no human trafficking industry. To help solve this, prevention programs need to focus more on reaching out to the potential clients or johns, and those who are most likely to fuel or contribute to labor trafficking. The Nordic Model- In the United States, it is common for even young victims of domestic minor sex trafficking to be arrested for prostitution. Typically when a trafficking ring gets busted the traffickers or pimps are rarely charged with a crime, the clients or johns face no consequences, the girls may be sent to a recovery program if they are lucky, and the boys and LGBTQ victims are either released back onto the street where they are likely to be re-trafficked or they are arrested for petty crimes and sent to juvenile detention. In Sweden, they have adopted a new approach called the Nordic Model. Instead of blaming or arresting the victims they now offer them help to exit the sex industry. They are able to effectively make a lasting impact on the epidemic of human trafficking by going after the Demand. Law enforcement in Sweden now arrest the traffickers and also the clients or johns who are causing the demand. This is effective because now that being a trafficker or client comes with consequences fewer men in Sweden risk participating in the sex industry. With less demand, there are now fewer traffickers, clients, and victims on the streets of Sweden. Awareness- In the United States the majority of the funding for fighting human trafficking is spent on awareness, but it is only effective if it comes with real training on the issue. A lot of people feel that awareness is the key to fighting trafficking and it may be, but only if it inspires people to action. To fight human trafficking awareness is just the beginning. Awareness should go beyond just telling people slavery still exist. Training- Awareness should come with training on not only what trafficking looks like and all its forms. More people need to be trained on how to effectively prevent and fight human trafficking. The areas of society that need training the most are those who directly interact with survivors on a regular basis such as law enforcement, the justice system, the medical and mental health field, other government agencies, and nonprofits who provide aftercare. Intervention and Rescue- The majority of anti-human trafficking organizations focus on awareness and prevention. Only some anti-human trafficking organizations are involved in the rescue of survivors. Most people think of rescue as a one time overnight intervention that involves law enforcement. Some rescues turn out this way but most of them do not. Rescue could happen overnight or it could take a decade to pull someone out of their trafficking situation. Rescue isn’t always successful at first and usually takes more than one intervention or rescue attempt because of the lack of aftercare available. Without aftercare, it is common for victims to be re-trafficked even if they have escaped or been rescued. Males are more difficult to rescue than female trafficking victims because they are hard to identify and there is almost no aftercare available for them. For a rescue to succeed the survivor must be provided Support, Rehabilitation, and Aftercare. Rehabilitation- The success of rescue and recovery for a survivor depends greatly on the quality of Support available to them. Rehabilitation could include placement into a Residential Program or a Safe Home. Most safe homes for survivors of human trafficking only accept female victims who are ages 18-25. There are few aftercare programs that specialize in care for victims of labor trafficking, child soldiers, or the illegal organ trade. These three forms of trafficking greatly affect males. There are just a handful of aftercare programs in the United States for victims of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking who are girls. There are currently no residential programs in the United States available for trafficked men, or for male victims of Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking. There is one safe home for boys that plans to open this year. It is estimated that half of the estimated 27 million victims of human trafficking are male. That is millions of males who need rehabilitation. By the end of this year, there will be only six spots available in the United States for boys who need residential care in a safe home. For a rehabilitation program to succeed they must offer a holistic approach and trauma informed care. Trafficking not only effects the survivor Physically but also affects the Mind and Spirit. A good residential program treats the whole person and addresses each of these areas. This is called a Holistic Approach. The treatment for the mind should be Trauma Informed. Generally, counseling only helps a survivor of trafficking if the counselor thoroughly understands trauma and has previous experience treating it. Trafficking causes trauma and this trauma needs to be addressed for a survivor to heal. Even though most survivors of trafficking struggle with addiction, most residential programs for survivors of trafficking do not treat addiction. If a survivor needs treatment for addiction they will most likely not be accepted into a safe home unless they go through a drug treatment program first. If a survivor applies to enter a drug treatment program they may not be accepted because they are a trafficking victim. There needs to be a way to fill this gap. A good program should offer education, job training, and employment opportunities, however addressing the trauma should come first. Some programs overemphasize job training, don’t offer psychological care and push survivors into employment too soon. Survivors who go through programs like that don’t get their full healing. The greatest reason for there being so few recovery programs for survivors of human trafficking in the United States is the lack of funding. This is the reason why I feel that fewer dollars should be spent on awareness and more funds should be made available for residential care and aftercare programs. Reintegration- Reintegration is the part of recovery where the survivor moves from a residential program to transitional housing, a specialized foster home if they are a minor, or to independent living. For reintegration in this stage of recovery to be successful a survivor may need assistance finding Employment and Housing. No matter where a survivor goes during this stage of recovery, it is imperative that they receive continued aftercare. Aftercare- For a survivor of human trafficking, recovery doesn’t end after reintegration. Recovery is a lifelong process. A survivor needs continued psychological and physical care no matter what stage of recovery they are in. After reintegration survivors need to follow up with outpatient medical care and counseling. Twelve step programs and support groups can also be helpful during this stage of recovery. This stage of recovery is more crucial than most people realize. It is during this phase of recovery that a survivor goes from surviving to thriving. By Ashlie BaileyWhen someone tries to picture what human trafficking looks like they typically envision women and children trapped in sexual slavery. While many victims of human trafficking especially domestic sex trafficking fit this image, this stereotype is only half of the picture. Half of all sex trafficking victims are male. Globally labor trafficking is even more common than sex trafficking. It is estimated that there are more males affected by labor trafficking globally than there are females trafficked for labor.
If there are that many trafficked males out there than why doesn't the awareness movement reflect the truth of their existence. When I first tried to title this article I was going to call it the forgotten survivors of human trafficking. Then I realized that referring to these boys and men as survivors doesn't fit because a huge number of the never survive their trafficking experience. I believe it is because of violence that so few male survivors live to tell their story. Even males who do survive their trafficking experience, are reluctant to publicly come forward because of fear of violence. One of the other reasons males are reluctant to report their trafficking experience is because of the shame, secrecy, and stigma. Males are more likely than females to blame themselves for the abuse and exploitation that they lived through. In countries like the United States, it is far easier for women and girls to find support and recovery from the abuse they have suffered than it is for men and boys to find a nonjudgmental support team. Few people are aware that males are even affected by trafficking and abuse. When someone becomes aware that this issue also affects males; their typical response is to blame the victim. When someone thinks of an abused woman it is easy to understand how she could be physically overpowered by her abuser. Because of stereotypes such as this male victims are blamed for the crimes committed against them more often than female victims are blamed for the crimes committed against them. People imagine trafficking victims as being held by physical force. Traffickers do use physical force but more often they resort to other tactics. They use coercion and psychological control. Even if a male trafficking victim is physically stronger than their trafficker, escape still may be difficult for other reasons. These reasons are why male victims blame themselves. Even the trafficked males themselves may not be aware of how common it is for this issue to affect boys and men. They don’t know that there are others who have gone through the same thing that they went through. They feel that they are alone in this fight. Society blames them for the abuse and they blame themselves. Everywhere they turn there is judgment. They feel a deep sense of shame, and societies view of masculinity adds to the shame. They feel that if they were strong or masculine enough than they wouldn't have been exploited. They think this happened because there is something wrong with them. All of this judgment and shame gives them more reason to keep their trafficking experience and abuse a secret. People wonder why someone would want to become a trafficker. In the same way that a little girl does not dream of becoming a prostitute when she grows up; little boys do not dream of becoming a trafficker. I know a secret about traffickers that most people aren't aware of. In my trafficking experience, I observed a pattern. In the underground trafficking ring that I grew up in the vast majority of the other victims were boys. What is surprising to most is that a lot of the male traffickers in that ring started out as trafficked little boys. The ring recruited a lot of their traffickers by offering the young victims what they thought was their only chance of freedom. For boys, they were given a choice of traffic or continue to be trafficked. It turned out it wasn't really a choice at all. Those boys became traffickers because they were forced into it. No recovery program for men forced into this kind of situation exists. If we as a society are going to stop trafficking in all its forms then we need more than just recovery for the victims. We need to also offer some kind help for pimps and traffickers. When problems like this are so well hidden it is almost impossible to solve them. That is why one of the first steps to helping trafficked males is awareness. Once this problem is exposed, society will have no choice but to find a way to solve it. Awareness is important but the solution doesn't end there. Awareness will only make a difference if it inspires us into action. For more information on the solution read part two of this post The Forgotten Victims of Human Trafficking Part Two The Solution> "Although I do not agree with, support, or endorse all of the views presented in the content from the list of links, articles, documents, videos, and books contained in this list, I did find the content to be helpful. I found that the majority of the facts listed in this material is remarkably consistent with, and confirms nearly everything I had already known, and observed to be true based on my own personal past experiences with ritualistic abuse, mind control, and child sex trafficking."
- Ashlie B. |
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