October 2009 Mission Voice Page 3
Human Trafficking: Missouri United Methodist Women Can Supply Hands that Heal
-Rachel Bachenberg, Social Action
awareness to being able to help formulate an action plan for In 2005, I was visiting a friend in a Houston suburb. She
what we can do in Missouri. shared with me that a house on her block…“that house”…
had been involved in some kind of prostitution ring. The
Through the brief training, I learned that we ARE able to do young Asian women were hidden in plain sight until an alert
something as United Methodist Women. The reality is that neighbor reported their illegal activity. We never used the
human trafficking exists in the areas where we drive and term “Human Trafficking” in our discussions, but I do re-
live. It is not just something present in Atlanta and LA. It is member how odd that ‘it’ had happened—and in Houston!
also in Missouri cities. Missouri United Methodist Women My friend from United Methodist Women in Houston never
need to be willing to network with women of other faith knew what happened to the young women hidden inside that
communities. In Atlanta, women from diverse backgrounds home. I just knew it was sad and hopefully an isolated inci-
and many denominations and secular groups were at the dent on the coastline of Texas, so far away from the heart-
training. From the Salvation Army to the Presbyterian land of America I call home.
women, they are already acting out of faith. We, too, can
network and act with them. From mayors’ offices to the And yet, a year later, on the front pages of the Kansas City
state offices, we can network and act. From the Salvation Star, I read about another hidden ring; but this time it was in
Army in LA to the offices of ICE and the FBI, we can learn a Kansas City suburb. Two years later, the FBI had prose-
how to coordinate our concern. From the Domestic Shelters cuted the guilty, but I remember feeling like there was noth-
in LA to the shelters in the Kansas City area, we can be-ing I could do as a United Methodist Woman concerned
come aware that women already have been working together about women, children and youth. It made no difference if I
to do something to help stop human trafficking. And now was “Helpless in Houston” or “Hopeless at Home.”
there is something we as the Missouri Conference UMW
could do also. “Hopeless and Helpless in the Heartland” can What can one or two UMW friends do against this organ-
take some corporate responsibility as Missouri United Meth-ized crime of ‘human trafficking’ that occurs on such an
odist Women to join existing networks. international scope? Many people do not even understand
what it involves. The definition listed below may help.
We were called to act out of our faith rather than our fear as
we developed an action plan. The Missouri action plan from The United Nations defines human trafficking as “the re-
this training will be to join Kansas West Conference in orga-cruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of
nizing a regional conference. The goal is to educate others persons, by the means of threat or use of force or other
in our area about the reality of human trafficking. Hope-forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of
fully, we can lead other United Methodist Women in the the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the
Midwest to become advocates in this area of concern. It will giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the
be important to work together and join with the efforts of consent of a person having control over another person, for
others to stop human trafficking. I realize that there are ecu-the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a
menical and secular networks already working together lo-minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or
cally, nationally, and internationally. We can join their ef-other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labor or services,
forts to stop human trafficking. But the first step is to recog-slavery, servitude or the removal of organs.
nize human trafficking when we see it and realize that we
can help to stop it. In this context of “Hopeless and Helpless in the Heartland”,
I have been serving as a conference social action coordina-
Within a week of returning home from the training, I tor. We have had a concern for violence against women in-
learned that there had been a 45 count indictment on human ternationally and locally. Because of this conference-wide
trafficking, involving 12 persons and three companies in the concern in Missouri, I was asked to be part of the Human
Kansas City area, in May of this year. The human traffick-Trafficking Conference: Training the Trainers….Hands that
ing had been going on since 2001 in the Westport area of Heal. During the training at Candler School of Theology in
Kansas City (which is right in my back door) and I had not Atlanta, GA , conferences from every jurisdiction were rep-
even heard about it. According to The Wichita Eagle, the resented. As we began the process of education about this
operation had been supplying 14 states with people. The complex issue, I became convinced that women, children
first step is recognizing a business for what it is— even and youth are being exploited and need someone to speak
when it is hidden in plain sight. Pray with me that in the out on their behalf. There were times when the extreme pain
next year, we will be able to carry out our plan of action and of the victim-survivors of human trafficking had everyone in
educate more United Methodist Women about this real and tears. In the course of the training, I went from virtual un-
present issue. May our hands join in the healing that is
needed.

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