Shileen's Blog

I knew that one of these days I was going to have to talk about what we learned in Greece, but I really haven't wanted to. The reality is just too much to think about sometimes. But once you see and know, you are responsible for doing something. And we are now responsible. These young girls are waiting for someone to come find them.
A21 works through the local police department in each country they work in. The reason for this is that without prosecution of the ring leader, there is no purpose. We would rescue a girl and she would simply be replaced with another. That just creates more victims. There has to be an official "raid" and arrest. And then a trial; so that these men can't continue. Also, if the police are rescuing the girls, there isn't really a trail as to what happens to the girls afterwards. The police hand them over to A21 who then places them in a safe shelter. The police don't even know where this safe house is, for safety reasons. We weren't even allowed to go there. We saw pictures though, and met some of the girls. The  girls that are trapped in this sex slave industry average only 12 yeas old. They are either kidnapped, or lured under false pretense, or falsely offered a job in another city or country and are captured once they arrive. They are beaten, abused, and sometimes drugged into complying. They break them down emotionally and physically until they have no will left to fight their captors. They are sold to as many as 40 men per day. Locked in one room, usually, and never let out.
Once rescued these girls need extensive medical treatment and intense psychological help. Not to mention a safe place to recover. They are typically in a shelter for 6 months before either returning to their hometown or moving to a transition house and finding employment with a new skill they've learned. This is not just a problem overseas. It is worldwide. The numbers in America are skyrocketing.
  The I10 corridor (running from California to Florida) as well as I35 corridor running from Canada to our borders with Mexico are a huge factor. I10 corridor is said to be the most travelled highway in the United States for human traffickers. The third worst city in the United States for human trafficking is Austin, it is quickly becoming a hub for human trafficking in Texas because of its large events including ACL, SXSW, and Formula 1 US Grand Prix which draws both large crowds, as well as a demand for trafficked victims. Houston, TX is the largest port in the United States, making this a target location for traffickers bringing girls from overseas.
Lack of shelters is a big problem here in the US. We have spoken with the Austin division of human trafficking and they confirm that there is a need for more shelters. A21 only has 2 offices so far in the US, one on either coast. The organization is only 5 years old and rapidly growing, but Austin isn't on the radar quite yet.
We knew that our trip was for a purpose and we have discovered that purpose. We are starting a non profit here to help take care of these rescued girls. We have been meeting as a team since we got back and have finalized the name, the paperwork has started, our website is under construction, and we have begin to organize fundraisers. God is opening doors as fast as we can handle them. The name will be released as soon as we are ready to go public, and our websites are ready. We are all very excited about getting started and have plans to go visit the American A21 offices that have been open for a while, to learn even more. The plan is to hand all of this over to A21 when they do finally make it here. Our church is supporting us in this endeavor, and that means the world to us.
We would appreciate your prayers as we start on this journey. It's a big one, but even if one girl is saved, it will be worth all the effort.