Finding Gratitude
How do we reflect on this year -- one that so many are happy to bid farewell and my first at the helm of ECPAT-USA? To date, COVID-19 has claimed over 300,000 lives in the United States and 1.7 million globally. While the first vaccines are administered and we eagerly await the end of this pandemic, it is also clear that its lasting consequences on children have only begun to be uncovered. Research shows that trafficking risks have increased, while the ability to identify and support those who have been trafficked has decreased. And in the United States, we have seen a shocking increase in online child enticement reports.
Yet, as I write this, the word that continues to surface is GRATITUDE. I am grateful to the ECPAT-USA staff for remaining laser-focused on child protection and to our Board of Directors for encouraging ECPAT-USA to innovate our prevention and educational programs in the face of unexpected challenges. I’d also like to share the special gratitude that I hold for Survivors’ Council: when I wrote about these brave individuals during my first newsletter of the year, I could not have foreseen that they would serve as the bedrock of our child protection work during this time of crisis. Together, we have been able to:
Educate the public about the realities of child trafficking and exploitation while defusing conspiracy theories in our “Survivors Get Real About Sex Trafficking” webinar;
Craft online safety guides for students, families, and educators that provide simple, no-nonsense guidance on using the Internet productively while deterring predators;
Share deeply moving insights on the intersection of race, justice, and vulnerabilities to sex trafficking in the powerful Survivor Perspectives Series;
Chart the course on the existence of sex trafficking in all corners of our community, from empty warehouse districts to strip clubs to the most deluxe hotels, for the eye-opening ECPAT-USA Survivor Solidarity Bike Ride;
Remind us that boys are also vulnerable to child sex trafficking, both in the US and abroad, in a heartbreakingly autobiographical post, “American Bacha Bazi.”
ECPAT-USA also is immensely grateful to our community of allies and advocates. During a time in which so many have faced hardships, you continued to support ECPAT-USA’s anti-trafficking work and to unite in educating others about the urgent need for child protection. We are deeply appreciative of the many generous individuals, foundations, and corporate partners who joined with and sustained us through a year of economic hardship.
Twelve months ago, I had imagined that 2020 would be a whirlwind-- but not “a pandemic.” Even so, I look back at this year in wonder. So many of you have offered us your generous, steadfast support, and there is still time to join us in making a difference with our annual fund campaign that runs until Dec. 31. Your gift allows ECPAT-USA to remain committed to protecting every child’s right to grow up free from the threat of sexual exploitation and trafficking. And for that, all of us at ECPAT-USA express our deepest gratitude.
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