O.A.T.H. Conference

I am new at this whole blogging thing so bear with me :). Yesterday I attended the Oklahoman's Against Human Trafficking Conference. I will NEVER be the same. The things I learned are going on right here in Oklahoma shook me to the core, disgusted me, broke my heart, and filled me with righteous anger. I listened to three middle aged women tell horrific stories, each different but all the same in that they were sold as modern day slaves, or trafficked. Two of them from Oklahoma, the other also from the USA. Only now can they talk about what happened to them , each of them in their teens when it occured. They have layers upon layers of trauma they have had to work through, two of them crediting their very lives to the Lord.

The conference was for professionals looking to gain CEU's and for those who want to minister to these girls and in some case boys. I left saying I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS!

Here is what I learned:

1) The USA is the #1 destination for child sex trafficking

2) 90% are female

3.) 300,000 children are exploited annually

4.) Every 20 seconds a child is reported missing

5.) Every day 4300 children are reported missing

6.) Every year 2 million are reported missing and an estimated 500,000 are not reported..

7.) We in Oklahoma and in the Midwest hold the majority, and are responsible for the most trafficked victims

8.) There are 4 types of traffickers: Pimps; Large national or International Crime Networks, and Small networks in in multiple areas

9) The vulnerable are targeted for example: inner city kids;runaways/throaways; those from low income homes; kids whose parent's are addicts; troubled or unhappy; insecure teens; minors that are groomed through social networks; legal,illegal, undocumented foreign nationals

10.) Children as young as infants are used for pedophiles pleasure, the growing trend is the younger the better because they are more "pure"

11.) Demand is extremely high, for example a 5yr old can be expected to service 10 to 25 men/day

We have to put an end to this! I am currently working with others from my church to raise awareness, please pass this information on! There are many ways to get involved, please let me know if you are interested and I can help you find a good fit for helping. There are so many roles to play and so many children to help... The Lord has placed a huge burden on my heart to serve in this cause. It is our responsibility to protect these children, if we don't who will!