Be a voice for victims, activist implores

Pasco Tribune

By GEOFF FOX

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Published: September 20, 2009ST. LEO -

Are you a proponent of slavery?

Do you think forced prostitution is acceptable?

Is it right to exploit impoverished young women and children in the worst ways imaginable?

If your answer to those questions is no, you should be concerned about human trafficking, a worldwide scourge that is more rampant in the United States than most people think.That was the message delivered at Saint Leo University last week by Nola Theiss, executive director of Human Trafficking Awareness Partnerships Inc. in Sanibel."Human trafficking is modern-day slavery," she said.Theiss delivered a roughly one-hour presentation filled with facts on trafficking and a tape-recorded testimonial by a young Guatemalan girl lured to America and forced into prostitution.As the five-minute recording played Wednesday night, the students - notoriously restless at events involving long periods of sitting and listening - seemed captivated by the story of "Lucia," who said she and others were "raped and wounded as if we were animals" in the desert."We didn't know we had rights," Lucia said in the message to her mother. "Now we know that if immigration authorities catch you, they will send you back home, not to prison."Theiss said Lucia's story outlines the mindset of human trafficking victims, many of whom are young women from Third World countries. They are often lured to other countries with promises of work or easier lives for their families, but are instead often forced into prostitution.They can also be forced into labor, whether that means construction or agricultural work, or a job in a nail salon.Most Americans don't realize how big a problem human trafficking is in the country, Theiss said."It is a hidden crime. Victims rarely turn themselves in," she said. "They've been taught to lie when they're rescued. They don't have access to help. They're lured away from home with the promise of good jobs and better lives, then they're forced to work under brutal and inhuman conditions."It's not an illegal immigration issue. It's a human rights issue."She also characterized it as a nonpartisan political issue, noting that Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama have made efforts to curb the problem."It's not your job to rescue anyone," she told the crowd. "It's your job to see when something's wrong. A red flag is when a victim does not speak for him or herself. It's your job to report things."The talk in the university's Student Community Center was attended by about 235 people, not all of them students and faculty at Saint Leo.Terri O'Brien of Sunrise Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault Center in Dade City took notes as Theiss spoke and nodded along with many of her statements. O'Brien said she thinks Theiss is correct that most U.S. residents don't understand the scope of the trafficking problem in the country."Every time I go to a hotel, I look at" the workers, she said. "You see them working in the back, or in the kitchen, and you wonder if they're safe. I thought the recording of the young woman was very powerful. I thought (Theiss) did a good job," O'Brien said.David Persky, assistant to Saint Leo's president and a past chairman of the speaker series, seemed excited and surprised by the standing room-only turnout."This attendance tonight exceeds the attendance from all of last year," he said.A former mayor of Sanibel, Theiss implored those in attendance to demand more action from lawmakers."I used to be a public servant, and the issues that got dealt with were the issues that our constituents demanded" we address, Theiss said. "If you use your political power and clout, that's how you exact your authority."You are voters. You have a voice; use your voice. These (victims) don't have a voice. You're their voice."Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 731-1239.