May Meeting Recap

Please take a few minutes to answer the Community Outreach Survey questions below this post. Send your answers/opinions to us at info@u-act.org! Thank you!

Upcoming Events:
1. Purchased 5K Run/Walk @ Eagle Creek Park → June 11, 2011 @ 8am
Registration opens at 8am that morning, and the run/walk begins at 9am. Download and print the attached file if you would like to help hand out fliers during the next few weeks to inform the community of the event!
2. RideFor146 Bike Ride → Sept 12-17, 2011
This year the ride will begin in Indianapolis, travel through Cincinnati, Ohio and end in Toledo, Ohio. If you are interested in participating as a bike rider, please contact Kaylin Linnemann at k.linnemann7@gmail.com.
**If anyone has connections with churches in Madison, Cincinnati, Dayton, Toledo, at Hanover College, or in any other cities along that route, please also contact Kaylin.
3. NFS Global Forum in Silicon Valley → October 21-22, 2011
Register now at www.notforsalecampaign.org for the lowest rate possible!

Volunteer Opportunities:
1. **Superbowl 2012**
Many of you have expressed interest in volunteering to raise awareness prior to or during Superbowl 2012 in Indianapolis. Please read below for available volunteer positions and contact info:
1. Professional volunteer media designer
2. Volunteer contact person for churches interested in helping with Superbowl 2012 Campaign
3. Volunteer contact person for colleges/college groups interested in helping with Superbowl 2012 Campaign
**Email Valerie Schmitt at vschmitt@exodusrefugee.org for more info on these opportunities!

2. Not For Sale is still searching for a State Director for the fall. If you are interested in this volunteer position, follow this link:
http://www.facebook.com/notes/not-for-sale-indiana/become-the-next-not-for-sale-indiana-state-director/180640645318801

3. Become a “nomad” this fall for LiNK, or Liberty in North Korea! Travel across the U.S. and host film screenings for LiNK! Learn more at www.linkglobal.org.

4. Help U-ACT organize an annual events calendar by sending us emails about annual events around the city that we could participate in!

5. Contact Carol Hall at cahall726@gmail.com if you are interested in helping compile a list of trucking companies and/or truck driver training schools in the state of Indiana. We are working towards a partnership with Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT), an organization that strives to educate truck drivers and other travelers about human trafficking and who to contact if and when they encounter human trafficking. Learn more about TAT at www.truckersagainsttrafficking.com.

6. We're looking for someone to step up and lead the brainstorming, organization, and hosting steps of planning a summer benefit event for Love146. This benefit could take many forms—be creative! If you would like to spearhead this benefit event, or if you have a great idea for this benefit, please contact Kaylin Linnemann at k.linnemann7@gmail.com.

Community Outreach Survey

WE WANT YOUR OPINIONS!

In an effort to provide you with opportunities you are interested in pursuing, please help us by completing the following survey and sending us your opinions via email at info@u-act.org. Thank you for your time and ideas!

Community Outreach Survey
1. What types of community outreach activities would interest you?
2. Do you have conflicts/hesitations/concerns about participating in community outreach? If yes, can you elaborate?
3. If we choose to organize a door-to-door outreach event, what items would be helpful to bring with us?
4. Do you have any suggestions for outreach guidelines? i.e. safety, courtesy, distribution of accurate information?

Upcoming "Purchased" Events

Purchased, a faith-based anti-trafficking organization here in Indy, is hosting a three part series of movie and discussion nights to educate the community about human trafficking. The films and discussions will focus on demand, rescue, and restoration, and guest speakers will accompany each film. To learn more about Purchased, visit www.purchasedevents.org.

Part 1: Friday, May 27 from 7-9pm @ Common Ground
Part 2: Friday, June 24 from 7-9pm @ Common Ground
Part 3: Friday, July 29 from 7-9pm @ Common Ground

Moving Forward!

As many of you may know, U-ACT is nearing it's 2 year anniversary, and we could not be more excited. We also could not be more thankful to and appreciative of our many, many talented volunteers who continually offer their time, energy, creativity, and resources to fight human trafficking. Thank you thank you thank you!!

In light of U-ACT's growth over the past few years, we are happy to announce that U-ACT now owns the domain www.u-act.org! As of now, this domain will redirect to this blog site, but it also leaves room for us to expand in the future. Along with this domain, we have acquired a new email account, so please direct all future email inquiries to info@u-act.org.

As always, if you have questions, comments, or ideas, please contact us! We value your input!

Sarah and Laura
co-founders, U-ACT

March Meeting Recap

Freedom Weekend was a great weekend of community awareness and fundraising! A huge thank you to Susan Oliver and everyone who participated, organized, planned, or donated items for this weekend.

On May 7, 2011, U-ACT will be raising awareness in various locations around downtown Indianapolis to educate and raise funds for TraffickJam 2011, a benefit to support Hard Places Community in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Please respond to this email if you are willing to help at TraffickJam on May 7! 

Love146 maintains a safe shelter in the Philippines for trafficked girls. Last fall, a small group of brave bike riders made the trek from Indy to NYC to raise awareness and funds for Love146. This year, the ride will be more localized…the bikers will be riding from Indianapolis, IN to Toledo, OH. In preparation for this year’s bike ride, the Love146 team will be hosting three events. If anyone is interested in participating in or planning these events, please contact Kaylin Linnemann at k.linnemann7@gmail.com.

The first Superbowl planning meeting has been scheduled for this month, so please watch for new and exciting opportunities in the near future! We will need your time and talents to make next year’s Indianapolis Superbowl a safe and slavery-free event!

We would like to extend a big thank you to LiNK (Liberty in North Korea) representative Wyatt Walker for attending and speaking at this month’s meeting. Wyatt showed a film called “Hiding,” which provides a brief background on LiNK’s work with North Korean refugees. Currently, the living and social conditions in North Korea are so deplorable that North Koreans are desperate to leave. This is not an easy feat. When leaving North Korea, citizens have two options: try to reach safety in South Korea by crossing the very dangerous DMZ, where snipers, guards, electric fences, and hidden land mines lay in wait, or travel through icy waters to China, where North Koreans are ignored, forced into hiding, or trafficked. 70-90% of all women and girls escaping North Korea thru China are sold into the Chinese sex industry, some for as little as $15. LiNK works on the ground in China and throughout Southeast Asia to help guide North Korean refugees escape lives of oppression and begin new lives in Southeast Asia, the U.S., or South Korea. To learn more about or donate to LiNK, visit www.linkglobal.org. If you would like to volunteer with LiNK within the U.S., contact Kira Wheeler at kira@linkglobal.org.

January U-ACT Meeting Re-Cap

Happy January! We hope everyone is staying warm and safe this winter! **If road conditions force us to cancel the February meeting, we will email you 24 hours prior…so watch your inbox on Sunday February 20th.

January Meeting Update:
- Julia Spangler is hard at work compiling her ethical shopping guide and is still in need of volunteers to help research store merchandise. If you are interested in working with Julia, please contact her at spanglerjl@gmail.com. This is an amazing opportunity to help change the way consumers view shopping…don’t miss out!
- Valerie Schmitt of Exodus Refugee has the new INATP website up and running! Add www.inatp.org your favorites list and check it often for updates and upcoming events.
- We would like to extend a HUGE thank you to our newest friends who braved the cold and drove all the way from Muncie to attend our meeting!

- Thank you to Amanda Bocik for regaling us with tales from the
RideForLove146 bike ride last fall!

**The Love146 bike ride from Indy to NYC will become an annual ride, and new cyclists are welcome to join the team this fall. Want to participate? Start training this spring or summer and contact Amanda at ajbocik@gmail.com let her know you’re in!

- We will be emailing soon with a list of needs for Freedom Sunday (March 13th).
- New legislative opportunities coming your way very soon…watch your inbox!

**Action Area Leaders**
We are still looking for people to take charge of specific action areas and report to the group during monthly U-ACT meetings. We are tremendously thankful to Sharon and Abby for spearheading Julian Center/Exodus outreach trainings, to Carol for taking charge of a fall 2011 event, and to Emily for staying on top of current HT news from around the world.

If you are interested and able to commit, or would simply like more information about leading an action area, the following areas are still in need of
leadership:
1. Legislation
2. Not For Sale Campaign
3. Speaking Engagements
**Upcoming Events**
3.12.11 Freedom Weekend Art Event 3.13.11 2nd Annual NFS Free2Walk event, 2pm @ Friedens UCC -Contact Sarah Haas at pastorsarah@friedensucc.org to help organize.
3.13.11 Freedom Sunday: day to spread awareness about slavery and trafficking.
-Contact Susan Oliver at susangeeoliver@gmail.com help organize.
5.7.11 TraffickJam 2011: national walk event to spread awareness of HT across the U.S. and financially benefit Hard Places Community in Phnom Penh, Cambodia.
-Contact Laura Pope at laura.pope@yahoo.com uact.indy@yahoo.com help organize.

An article from Emily - http://www.rutherford.org/articles_db/commentary.asp?record_id=696

Looking forward to seeing you soon!

December 2010 Update

This will be our last email update for 2010...can you believe how quickly time flies?! Here are a few updates to keep you up to speed! :)

First, upcoming events!
** 1.17.2011 - next U-ACT meeting
** 3.13.2011 (Freedom Sunday) - 2nd Annual NFS Free2Walk event @ Friedens UCC
--> hosted by U-ACT to benefit the Not For Sale Campaign

** 5.7.2011 - TraffickJam 2011 --> 10 mile walk to benefit the Hard Places
Community.

See below for further info.


New opportunities to fight against trafficking:
1. Julia Spangler is in the process of planning and organizing an ethical
shopping guide! If you would like to be a part of the guide's creation, please
contact Julia.

2. Our friends at the Julian Center and Exodus Refugee have so kindly offered to
bring their volunteer training to us! Our goal is to utilize the January or
February U-ACT meeting for this training. It will be specialized to HT
community outreach. We will update you as soon as we set a definite training
date.
*You no longer need to complete a volunteer application with the Julian Center
or Exodus Refugee if you plan to attend the training during a U-ACT meeting.
However, if you would like to complete the training at the Julian Center or at
Exodus on your own time, you will need to complete and submit an application to
JC or Exodus.

3. Our friend Emily (thanks Emily!!) introduced us to the Pepsi Refresh Project,
an online opportunity for innovative individuals to win grant money for their
great project ideas. Starting February 1st, vote for up to 10 of your favorite
ideas every day. View, vote, and learn more at
http://www.refresheverything.com/. Or, to view HT-specific ideas, follow this
link: http://www.refresheverything.com/search/?q=human+trafficking

4. If you would like to host a fair trade jewelry party, Destiny Rescue is your
contact! Visit
http://www.destinyrescue.org/us/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=41&Itemid=54

For further info, contact Barbie at usa@destinyrescue.org or call 574-834-1109.

5. Kaylin asked us to share the attached information about an event this Friday.


Other important info:
**Current details on 2011 NFS Free2Walk:
This will be a 3 mile walk located near Friedens UCC. The route
follows the same path as the 2009 NFS walk. If you are interested in helping
plan or organize Free2Walk, please contact us asap!

**Current details on TraffickJam 2011:
TraffickJam 2011 is a Walk-A-Thon event to benefit the Hard Places Community, a
ministry with locations in literal "hard places" of the world...places where
others are too fearful or too unwilling to go and help those who need it most.
One Hard Places Community exists in Cambodia, a country in southeastern Asia
whose sex trade and human trafficking industries are astounding. TraffickJam
2011 will be a nationwide event to raise awareness, spread hope, and raise funds
for the Hard Places Community in Cambodia. U-ACT has decided to act as the
Indiana event coordinator for this walk, so if you are interested in planning,
organizing, or even participating in this event, please contact us asap! :) We
will begin work on this project in January 2011.

**Some members expressed interest in a recent news article...so here it is! :)
FBI: 69 children, 99 pimps found in national bust
(AP) – Nov 8, 2010
WASHINGTON (AP)
More than five dozen child prostitutes have been found in the last three
days as part of a nationwide crackdown on the sexual exploitation of children,
the FBI said Monday.
FBI spokesman Jason Pack said 69 children were removed from prostitution and 99
suspected pimps were arrested in 40 cities across 30 states and the District of
Columbia. Authorities arrested 785 other adults on a variety state and local
charges, Pack said.
All the children found in the last three days have been placed into protective
custody or returned to their families.
The children were found during Operation Cross Country V, a three-day
roundup targeting child traffickers and pimps. The largest group of child
prostitutes, 24, was found in and around Seattle, according to the FBI. FBI
executive assistant director Shawn Henry said the children found ranged in age
from 12 to 17. Authorities are working with the National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children to confirm their identities.
Henry said child prostitutes are often recruited by loose knit groups
that seek out kids who may be involved in drugs or runaways looking for a
"responsible adult" to help them.
"There are groups of people out there preying on naive kids who don't have a
good sense of the way of the world," Henry said. "Sometimes there's a threat of
force, threats of violence. A lot these kids operate out of a sense of fear."
Since 2003, when the FBI and the Justice Department launched the
Innocence Lost National Initiative, about 1,250 child prostitutes have been
located and removed from prostitution.
Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

This is an article from Sojourners that several U-ACT Members asked us to include - Child trafficking arrests. FBI: 69 children, 99 pimps found in national bust “More than five dozen child prostitutes have been found in the last three days as part of a nationwide crackdown on the sexual exploitation of children, the FBI said Monday.” Federal crackdown on child prostitution results in 884 arrests “A three-day federal crackdown on child prostitution rings across the country has resulted in the recovery of 69 children and the arrest of 884 persons, including 99 pimps, federal authorities said Monday.”

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We hope everyone has a very merry and safe Christmas and a happy New Year as
well :)
Thank you for a wonderful year! And, as always, WE LOVE TO HEAR YOUR IDEAS! So
send them our way! :)

Sarah and Laura
co-founders, U-ACT
www.unitedagainstcontemporarytrafficking.blogspot.com
pastorsarah@friedensucc.org
317-709-5857