Human Trafficking is Hidden Even From Us

I know I've been remiss, but starting a new grad program -- completely outside one's previous field -- at 49, in the same month moves and one's mother moves in, is tough.

That said. I met with Becky today, another MSW student here are The Brown School (TBS) to talk about our studies and practicums. I was very, very heartened to hear that she too has been overwhelmed and lost-ish, feeling that she's floating out here on her own, since our field is so new and there is really not a codified program or library or even that much research in it yet, and yet she is making headway. She's working for in a position with a legal and victim's services focus, and I think I may follow her there. She does get to work with women and little girls coming out of prostitution/trafficking. Also, she and I seem to agree on the issues of demand (buyers of sex services should be prosecuted, not sellers), denial (no one want to know how many slaves there are in the world), and what's wrong with the trafficking law.

Last week I met with Peter, the third trafficking student in the school. He was very helpful as well.

I think we've all agreed that we should form a little support group -- one another -- and meet regularly. Before I set about seeking them out none of us even knew about one another.

And so now I go back to slogging my way through this paper. I'm analysing that law, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act, for my policy analysis class. It's tough. There's way too much in the law to cover in 15 pages. I think, after speaking with my prof and TA that I will look at either prosecution or, even more narrowly, the military aspect. It's just, well, is there enough literature on the former? Off the search -- we'll see.

Keep the faith.

NO, thank YOU!

Gee whiz, it was really great to see all these thank you notes, from volunteers, to the organizers who worked in the Obama campaign's Pershall office in North County (St. Louis). I was only an organizer there a little while, and there are others much more deserving of accepting such thanks, but I do recognize many of the names on the list, and am really touched by notes, nonetheless.

Here's the link to the thank you's: http://pol.moveon.org/thx/office.html?office_id=12021