Linda Smith, Author at Shared Hope International

September 9, 2016 by Linda Smith

A Southwest Washington Girl was Rescued and Given Her Name Back

For four long years, Stephanie wasn’t even allowed to use her own name. She was only known by the name her trafficker gave her when he first enslaved her. She was only 13 years old at the time.

“He said I was no longer that girl with my old family,” Stephanie remembers, “No longer a girl who went to weekend retreats with my church youth group. But now a new girl that was a part of his family.”

It was a brutal family. Her trafficker beat her and continually manipulated her emotionally. Even worse than the beatings, Stephanie says today, were his constant reminders that he would go get her 10-year-old sister — unless Stephanie kept the customers satisfied.

Eventually, local law enforcement rescued her but she still couldn’t use her own name. Shared Hope moved her from her home community in SW Washington clear across the country, and gave her a new name for her own protection. And as she was loved, cared for her and counseled, the day came when she determined to share her story boldly, to help fight the scourge of sex-trafficking, to keep other girls from being subjected to what she had suffered.

As she prepared to speak at her first public events, the old shame bombarded her again. But then, something beautiful happened: “I walked to the microphone, looked out, and saw smiles of acceptance. Something had changed. I lifted my chin, stood tall, and said, ‘My name is Stephanie, and I am taking back my name.’ I then proceeded to tell them how the traffickers work, so they could better protect the children in their homes and communities!”

Her story is, in many ways, sadly typical: the older boy taking an interest in the younger girl, persuading her that their relationship is “fate,” promising to marry her, buying her nice things, and then demanding that she dance in a strip club to help him out of a financial jam.

“It was degrading, but I did it ‘for us,’” Stephanie says. When he demanded that she sell herself for sex, she refused — and he threw her out of the house on a bitterly cold night. She could sell, or she could freeze to death.

“I began endless nights of selling myself to make the money my trafficker demanded. I descended into depression. I drank and took drugs to dull the pain. Before I turned 16 all I wanted to do was die. Police picked me up, recognized me as a reported missing child, took me home — but fearing what he would do to my little sister if I didn’t return, I would get in the car when he drove up to my house.”

Arrests and returns became a cycle. At one point, the trafficker brutally assaulted Stephanie in front of her own home. “While I was hospitalized, my probation officer asked Linda Smith of Shared Hope to find a safe place where professionals had the skills to address my many needs,” Stephanie says.

The closest such place was 3,000 miles away. But Stephanie was willing to go. To escape the nightmare.

Stephanie has rebuilt her life, with strong support. Yet, as she often tells audiences, she likely would not have been tricked into the horror she endured if she, her youth leader, coach, or even her mom had known how the traffickers work. The signs were very evident.

Stephanie is one of two girls who tell their story in ‘Chosen,’ a gripping documentary from Shared Hope that opens hearts and eyes to the tragic dangers of sex trafficking and educates youth to recognize the danger signs. This 20-minute film tells the shocking true story of two all-American teenage girls tricked into trafficking. Both were manipulated. Both were exploited. Both were chosen.

“My journey has made me strong enough to be a voice for others,” Stephanie says today. “My faith in God and His way of making beauty from ashes has emboldened me to speak on their behalf.”

Shared Hope International is a global community dedicated to protecting our children on a local level. We’re thrilled to be working alongside the Clark County Sheriff’s office and Southwest Washington Churches on September 22nd to train parents, youth workers, community leaders, and teens how traffickers operate and how they can protect themselves and their friends. We invite those in the Northwest to join us for this event. In equipping our entire community with the proper knowledge and tools, we at Shared Hope believe we can protect our children before they come to harm.

We also invite you, our global community, to support our local efforts by giving to Shared Hope International as a part of Give More 24 on September 22.

May 30, 2015 by Linda Smith

DEAR JOHN: WE ARE ON TO YOU

Dear John,

We are on to you.

If you pay for sex, you might get a child, and be guilty for your role in child sex trafficking– the abduction, rape, and slavery of children.

So hear us when we say: If you shop for our children we will see that you get the justice you deserve.

Sincerely,

Sign the letter

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April 21, 2015 by Linda Smith

For a Bullseye: Keep your Eye on the Target

Today, after over a month of debates surrounding the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (JVTA), members of the Senate announce a bi-partisan agreement. Thankfully, Senators from both sides of the aisle repeated calls for negotiations and persevered to find a creative solution. With the proposed amendment, critical protections for survivors contained in this important bill can proceed, including increased funding for victim services and prevention efforts and clarification that the offenders who drive the demand for sex trafficking victims are committing the crime of sex trafficking.

While the bill has received unwavering support from many advocates and survivors, recent controversies arose regarding the funding mechanism, particularly as it relates to application of the Hyde Amendment, which only allows federal funds to be used for abortions when the life of the mother is threatened or when the pregnancy is a result of rape or incest. The new agreement proposed by Senator Cornyn and Senator Reid was reached with bipartisan support and is expected to satisfy concerns on both sides of the debate. In this agreement no medical services will be provided through monies collected for the Domestic Trafficking Victims’ Fund, but instead these services will be provided through matched financing from another, recently created fund, established last week in the ‘doc fix’ bill. By adding matched funding, the proposed agreement will actually increase funds available for victim services and law enforcement training but will neither increase or decrease federal funding for abortions specifically, nor will it widen or restrict access to abortion. But, with respect to collecting and designating new funds towards restoration for survivors and prevention of human trafficking, the JVTA makes dramatic changes as it ushers in landmark advancements for anti-trafficking efforts.

The Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act accomplishes exactly what its name suggests, increased justice for victims. For 15 years now, advocates have rightfully and loudly criticized empty promises in the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 because its aspirational authorizations receive little or no funding. The JVTA offers a revolutionary solution to generating this desperately needed funding by levying significant fines on convicted perpetrators and funneling the income to victim services and prevention efforts. Programs need increased financial support to meet the needs of sex trafficking victims from investigations and identification to restoration. Survivors should be offered comprehensive services, such as medical treatment, shelter options, and counseling. Particularly, youth who have survived sex trafficking crimes are often in need of specialized services, including access to multidisciplinary services and residential placement options that are designed to help break trauma bonds. This bill also provides for direct services through Children’s Advocacy Centers for victims of child pornography. In addition to increased fines, the bill also facilitates asset forfeiture, the proceeds from which would have to be prioritized for victim restitution, because victims often never see the results of asset forfeiture.

Justice is better served through the victim-centered construct presented in the JVTA, which increases financial penalties for perpetrators by requiring payment for the harms they’ve inflicted, which would then help fund restoration for survivors and enable law enforcement entities to continue complex investigations.

The JVTA also clarifies that individuals are liable as participants in the crime of sex trafficking if they knowingly purchase sex from a trafficking victim or “in reckless disregard of the fact” that the other person is a sex trafficking victim. This provision echoes federal appellate case law interpreting the federal sex trafficking law as applicable to the acts of culpable buyers. This provision in the JVTA reflects wide support for focusing anti-trafficking efforts on demand.

The recent standoff has been threatening to abandon victims of human trafficking by neglecting to fund and secure needed services for restoration and justice systems. But, now is the time! The Senate must accept a bi-partisan agreement so that the JVTA’s groundbreaking improvements for increased, funded services for human trafficking survivors are not lost. We call members of the Senate to do now, what they just did with the ‘doc fix’ bill — that is consider and accept a bi-partisan solution.

Thankfully, the JVTA will likely not be the last bill to address victim services, but it makes key advancements that are needed right now. It will increase accountability for those who exploit sex trafficking victims. It will provide much needed, yet currently missing services for survivors.

To contact your Senator and encourage support for this bill, visit Shared Hope’s Legislative Action Center today and sign the letter.

October 10, 2014 by Linda Smith

AZ Central – ‘Why can’t she run away?’ and other nonsense

The vivid graphic of a fist in the face quickly dispatched the platitudes we offer for domestic violence, especially when it involves a superhero.

It unhinged the “she could have just run” line of reasoning — one that is still prevalent today in the attitude toward child victims of sex trafficking.

The video of Ray and Janay Rice has sparked long overdue re-engagement with the reality of domestic violence as opposed to the words about it now ensconced in law.

Ray is not the first partner to abuse his fiancee, nor is Janay the first woman to stay with a violent spouse. The scene that unfolded in the TMZ video that has racked up 900,000 views is the same scene that plays out in homes across America each day.

So, why did it take this video to reawaken a nation?

The answer is complicated. The outrage is due, in part, to Ray Rice’s celebrity status as a football hero and the graphic video’s power to eliminate ambiguity. There is little room to make excuses for him. Perhaps it is an indication we still have the capacity to recognize injustice and label it as something that should have consequences for the perpetrator, even if he is an object of our hero worship.

But much of the intrigue comes from the uncomfortable, lingering question: Why did she stay? It’s the question everyone feels guilty asking but secretly wonders. Twitter is ablaze with the trending #whyistayed. The reasons victims attribute to staying in a relationship of intimate partner violence include isolation from others, lack of financial independence, broken self-esteem, fear of escalated violence and the psychological bond to the abuser that such trauma creates.

Historically, the term commonly used for domestic violence was domestic disturbance. The violence was masked as simply a “disturbance” that was a private matter. Today, laws and language have evolved to call it what it is: violence.

Progress has been made in addressing domestic violence. Shelters have been built, programs implemented, awareness campaigns launched. Yet countless women still stay in relationships of intimate-partner violence.

Why? Despite laws, we haven’t offered them the justice they deserve. We still blame the victim and fail to recognize abusers as criminals. We still ask why she didn’t leave.

Rice was initially handed a two-game penalty. Only after the video became public did he face a meaningful consequence. Yet supporters arrived for a Feb. 11 game sporting his No. 27 Baltimore Ravens jersey. Some have opposed the NFL’s decision to release Rice, calling his actions “a mistake” and suggesting that everyone “deserves a second chance.” For them, a win for the Raven’s carries higher value than justice.

Advocates address lenient punishments and societal tolerance of people who are caught soliciting a child prostitute.

The social indifference toward the violence of child sex trafficking lies on a dangerous parallel path.

In 2000, the Federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act was passed, defining sex trafficking with a child as the exchange of any item of value for sex acts with a minor under 18 years old. Until recently, however, the crime was more commonly identified as child prostitution. Because of that label, children were arrested, criminalized, racking up criminal histories that included prostitution before they were old enough to vote. Similar to domestic violence, society often placed the blame on the victim and the perceived freedom of “choice.”

We want to believe a wife chooses to stay with her abusive husband rather than recognize that escape comes with the very real threat of murder. We also believe child sex-trafficking victims choose to engage in prostitution to make money. We conveniently overlook the trafficker taking the money and issuing beatings if she doesn’t meet her quota.

The idea that a trafficked child carries enough agency to choose to engage in prostitution but must be protected from other potentially life-threatening decisions, like joining the military, drinking alcohol and renting a car, is illogical and hypocritical.

Like a victim of domestic violence, trafficking victims are kept in isolation, barred from education, unable to obtain employment that will provide financial independence, struggle with extreme abuse and broken self-esteem and live in a constant state of fear. Then, we wonder why the victim doesn’t exercise her “choice” to leave.

A Valley woman says she was snared into a life of prostitution at a young age. Now, she’s trying to help others before it’s too late.

Sadly, whether a celebrity engages in domestic violence or exploits a trafficking victim, the long arm of the law seems to be too short to reach his pedestal.

New York Giants linebacker and Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor purchased sex with a 16-year-old girl from a trafficker operating in New York. In an interview with Fox News’ Shepard Smith, Taylor describes the victim as “a working girl who came to my room.” Under federal law, Taylor could have received 10 years in prison.

2010: Taylor arrested for third-degree rape

Like the fans with Ray Rice jerseys and sympathetic TV interviewers, there are those who say we should go easy on the offenders. And by extension, the pass we give to people like these should be applied to any abuser who similarly claims it was “just a mistake” or “I just couldn’t help myself.” Shopping for sex with a child is never just a mistake — it is a violent crime against that child, and when authorities fail to adequately penalize offenders, they actually encourage the violence.

For child victims of sex trafficking, nothing will change without the kind of public outcry generated by the video of the attack on Janay Rice.

As the Super Bowl approaches, it is encouraging to see key leaders in the sports industry launching offensives against this crime. The “Arizona’s Not Buying It” campaign, organized by the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, includes Derrick Hall, president/CEO of the Arizona Diamondbacks; Anthony LeBlanc, co-owner/president/CEO of the Arizona Coyotes; Jason Rowley, president of the Phoenix Suns; sportscaster Mark Lewis; and Kurt Warner, a retired NFL quarterback for the Arizona Cardinals.

There are men across the nation who shop for sex with children and believe it is just what men do. As Taylor says: “I’m not the cause of prostitution. Sometimes, I make a mistake.”

For these men, Arizona’s law enforcement has a message for you: If you come to shop … plan to stay.

Linda Smith is founder and president of Shared Hope International.

FULL STORY: http://www.azcentral.com/story/opinion/op-ed/2014/09/19/ray-rice-domestic-violence-sex-trafficking/15891303/ | AZ Central

September 10, 2014 by Linda Smith

Shared Hope Files Joint Amicus Brief to Support Justice for Victims

On July 30, 2012, J.S., S.L., and L.C., three juvenile sex trafficking victims, filed a lawsuit against Backpage.com, LLC alleging that the website participated in their exploitation by creating an online marketplace of escort ads where children are sold and bought for sex. Backpage.com claims it is immune from civil liability under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act (CDA), 18 U.S.C. § 230. The trial court denied Backpage.com’s request to dismiss the case and on July 26, 2014, the Supreme Court of the State of Washington granted review of the decision.

Backpage.com is a primary venue for buyers of commercial sex, including with minors who are exploited through trafficking. Just as buyers will continue to seek commercial sex acts with juveniles until we take seriously criminal deterrence efforts, Backpage.com will continue to facilitate these buyers until we stop them.

Shared Hope International joined National Crime Victim Law Institute, Covenant House New York and Human Rights Project for Girls in filing an amicus (“friend of the court”) brief urging the court to allow the case to proceed, giving the child victims in this case the right to seek justice and have their day in court. Other advocacy organizations and the Washington State Attorney General’s Office have filed briefs in support of these children also.

The Washington State Supreme Court will hear arguments in the case on October 21, 2014.

Amicus Briefs in Support of Child Respondents

Case Filings

Federal Legislation

Communications Decency Act – 47 U.S.C. § 230