Violence. Terror. Pain. Illness.
Rani’s life was agony.
She didn’t know where her parents were, in her homeland of Nepal, or even if they were alive. Her husband was brutal, drinking heavily and beating Rani routinely. She did what she could to protect their baby daughter, Ashish — a name that means blessing.
When her husband suffered a fatal accident at work, Rani was put out on the street with her eight-month-old. She struggled desperately every day, on the dangerous streets, to find enough food to keep herself and Blessing alive. They were both at terrible risk of being abducted by the sex traffickers.
Then came the monsoons. Without shelter, Rani and her daughter both spent long, miserable days in wet clothing. Both fell ill. Ashish was getting sicker by the day.
But by God’s grace, a kind policeman pointed them to our Village of Hope. We had the joy of welcoming them, giving them dry clothing and nutritious food and a safe place to sleep. We got them the medical care they so clearly needed.
It wasn’t a quick fix. But gradually, Rani and Ashish’s conditions improved.
Today, they’re both healthy. Ashish loves playing with the other little children too young for school. Soon Rani will begin skills training and basic education, so someday she can build a future for herself and her daughter.
Medical care is critically important for the women and children in our care. Those victimized by the sex trafficking industry often arrive in terrible physical condition, victims of beatings, burnings, malnutrition, sexually transmitted diseases, and more. But your generous support enables us to connect them to quality healthcare. We see their bodies — and their lives — restored, thanks to friends like you!
God bless you for standing with Shared Hope!
Rescued From the Brothel
Born in a brothel to a mother with AIDS, little Madu was HIV-positive at birth. Her mother was assigned a tiny stall for sleeping; Madu slept under her mother’s bed.
Her mother knew Madu would be in more and more danger as she grew, at risk from the men who prefer sex with children. When finally a customer tried to violate Madu, her mother fought to rescue her.
She had met members of our outreach team — she reached out to them, asking them to take Madu to a place of safety. She couldn’t escape herself, but she could save her child.
Today, Madu is growing up in a home managed by our partner group. She’s safe. She’s in school. She’s getting the medical care she needs. She will have a long life … a life of hope fulfilled!
Thank you for providing help and healing, through your support of Shared Hope.
Getting Medical Leaders Involved
With your support, we’re training medical professionals to respond effectively to victims of sex trafficking across the country.
It’s happening through i:CARE, our highly effective online e-learning platform. This resource is designed to improve identification of and response to victims of sex trafficking by doctors, nurses, and first responders in various healthcare settings.
The content works because it was created by professionals and reviewed by leaders in the health network. i:Care offers a comprehensive understanding of domestic minor sex trafficking including current laws, trafficker tactics for recruitment and control, and victim vulnerabilities.
Most importantly, it provides informed guidance and training on how any health professional can recognize the need and respond in the urgent-care setting.
Thank you for making it possible!
And the winners are…!
Our 2018 Protected Innocence Challenge State Grades have been released! We live-streamed our official presentation of the grades from the annual conference of the National Foundation of Women Legislators in November, highlighting the inspiring effects of grassroots advocacy and stories of our State Grades empowering advocates to take action all around the country.
Tennessee got the highest score. South Carolina and Alabama were most improved in the past year. Vermont moved up from a D to a C. Michigan was most improved over the entire seven-year span of the Challenge. (You can read the full report here.)
But the winners aren’t just states of the Union. The real winners are young women and children who have been rescued, their lives restored — and those who have been spared the agony of victimization — because states have responded to this Challenge by enacting and enforcing better laws.
Shared Hope has been fighting for stronger, smarter legislation to cut demand, to prevent tragedies, to give victims justice — and we’re winning!
What next? With our new tools, you can be a grassroots hero by sharing your state grade with your legislator. Visit our new Advocacy Action Center and tweet your legislator. You can also share the campaign on Facebook, encouraging your friends to get involved as well.
Our work is far from over. Identifying children in the juvenile and child service systems as victims of trafficking — instead of delinquents, criminals, or truants — is absolutely vital for them to be placed on a path to healing. Incredibly, there are still 25 states that arrest the child — an act that denies them access to the services available to the victim of a crime.
We won’t rest until every state gets an A!
Thank you for fighting alongside us … and for joining the effort to end sex slavery.
Please stand with us in this New Year to continue bringing freedom, restoration, and new life to so many, while holding the traffickers accountable: in Congress, in the courts, at the state level, and online.
God bless you for the difference you are making!
