President Abraham Lincoln has been herald as one of the early abolitionists, having drafted and signed the Emancipation Proclamation. While this national symbol of freedom does mark early efforts to abolish slavery, President Lincoln recognized its limitations. Here are a few lessons we learned from Abe:

Though Lincoln believed that slavery was morally wrong, he struggled to identify how to address it within the existing political system. Over 150 years later, we struggle with the same thing. Federal law identifies child sex slaves (rightfully) as trafficking victims; however, in states around the nation child victims fall under contradictory laws that label the child both a victim of trafficking and a perpetrator of prostitution. Their treatment is largely dependent on which label they receive from law enforcement officers, prosecutors, judges and service providers working on their case. Some children are identified as a victim of a crime but are charged with a delinquent offense to keep them in the safety of a detention center if therapeutic shelter options are unavailable. This is why we started the Protected Innocence Challenge. We outlined 41 legal provisions every state should have to protect children from trafficking. Check out how your state scored.

The Emancipation Proclamation did not free all slaves. In fact, the Proclamation specifically freed slaves in only 10 states “in rebellion against the United States,” namely southern Confederate states. Nearly one million people remained in slavery in the United States after the Proclamation was signed. Today, slavery continues to flourish. Sex and labor trafficking is a real and urgent crisis facing America. Experts estimate that at least 100,000 American children are trafficked within the U.S. each year.
Here are a few simple ways to tip your hat to Abe on his birthday by engaging in your own abolitionist efforts:

1. Write your legislator. Send him/her your state report card and ask them to support important bills that relate to human trafficking.
2. Support shelter and services in the United States. Give to Terry’s House, a residential program that offers free housing for survivors of trafficking so they can focus on their education.
3. Teach youth warning signs and indicators of trafficking. Chosen will help this conversation. Order this 20-minute prevention film to show to teens in your community.

“The locusts of everyday violence have been allowed to swarm unabated in the developing world. And they are laying waste to the hope of the poor.” – Gary A. Haugen and Victor Boutros in their new book, The Locust Effect 

As we work to combat sex trafficking in the U.S. and abroad, we come face to face every day with the reality that poor people are vulnerable to violence. Globally, the facts are stunning. According to International Justice Mission, nearly 30 million children, women and men are held as forced labor slaves. One in 5 women will be a victim of rape or attempted rape – and sexual violence makes everyday activities like going to school, gathering water, using a communal restroom or taking public transport dangerous.  IJM states that 4 billion people  – that most of the world’s poorest people – live in places where their justice systems don’t or can’t protect them from these kinds of “everyday violence.”

In the United States, homeless, runaway or impoverished youth are at increased risk of being commercially sexually exploited by traffickers and buyers. They are easily and quickly targeted as vulnerable and needy youth by traffickers seeking to exploit their body for cash. Unfortunately, the U.S. justice system often overlooks these youth, classifying them as delinquent and placing them into a system that only further perpetuates their belief that help is beyond reach.

In India and Nepal, it is not uncommon for women enrolled in our shelters to share stories of being sold into the brothels at a young age so their parents could pay rent or feed their siblings. Our friends tell horrific tales of violence committed by the hands of brutal buyers. Knowing only violence, they live in fear and slavery.

Our friends at International Justice Mission just put together this unforgettable video that shows what the world is up against as we work together to help our poorest neighbors.  You won’t want to miss the powerful moment at 1:48 – – our fight against poverty is worth safeguarding.

Want more? Check out The Locust Effect, by IJM’s president Gary A.  Haugen, which releases today.