ZOE International | Episode 10
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ZOE International | Episode 10
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- it sounds so unbelievable to-to even think
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- that something like that could be true.
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- DAVE: They just rescued two kids.
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- This lead law enforcement official came to ZOE.
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- He's like, "You got to take 'em.
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- "They're gonna need a padded room, basically,
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- for 24 hours, they've been so drugged up."
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- They're like, "We can't do it. We-we don't have enough staff
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- to even pull this off." He goes, "Listen..."
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- He goes, "Let's just see what your God can do."
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- I'm Kirk Cameron, and I get to meet
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- some pretty amazing people.
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- These are people who totally inspire me
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- with their hearts full of faith,
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- character and courage.
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- They push their limits, they think outside the box
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- and bravely use their gifts and talents
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- to bless others.
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- And today, we get to spend some time...
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- In today's fast-paced culture,
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- we can get so wrapped up in our own personal lives
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- that sometimes it's easy to miss
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- major problems happening in the world.
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- And not just in the world, but also in our own community.
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- Sometimes in our own backyard.
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- That's why I invited over some of my friends
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- who have literally dedicated their lives to addressing
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- one of the most serious problems in the world today,
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- human trafficking.
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- David Cox, Ester Yu and Dr. Jason Plunkett.
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- They work with ZOE International, a nonprofit
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- who works with law enforcement
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- to rescue young people out of human trafficking
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- and bring them hope, healing and restoration.
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- Hey, guys. Welcome.
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- -Thank you. -Thank... thanks so much.
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- -Great to see you. Hey, Dave. -Good to see you.
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- -How you doing? Hi. -Hey, Jason.
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- Great to see you guys. I am so inspired
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- by the work that you do.
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- And I think a lot of people would just like to know, um,
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- how you got involved in this particular kind of work.
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- Jason, what-what's a little of your background,
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- and how did you get involved with ZOE's work?
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- I've actually been a therapist working
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- with juvenile sex offenders and with gang members.
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- And if you put those two risk... risk factors together,
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- that's actually human trafficking.
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- I went to a ZOE walk two years ago, and after,
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- I was... I was so inspired,
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- specifically by hearing our founder Carol speak,
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- that I literally just asked the Lord, how can I be a part?
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- Months later, uh, I had the opportunity to, uh, meet Carol,
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- and I then became one of the United States directors.
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- And ZOE International is-is obviously international
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- all over the world.
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- David, how did you get involved in this work
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- of-of, uh, human trafficking?
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- Yeah-- really unexpectedly.
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- Uh, so I... you know, I was a pastor for many years--
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- I have background in law enforcement and also ministry--
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- and I was a pastor going out to vet ZOE as an organization.
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- I'd just heard about it and was checking it out for a church,
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- and as I went out there,
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- I was really overcome and surprised by...
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- the level of work that I saw.
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- It was much more expansive, powerful.
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- And I started by bringing some
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- law enforcement teams over to Thailand,
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- uh, at the request of Royal Thai Police,
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- to do training, so I've got law enforcement connections here.
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- So they actually asked ZOE if they could provide
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- some tactical training
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- from U.S. to supplement the-the work that they're doing
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- and train their officers, so I brought a team over,
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- began working with them.
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- There's a call that God gives to each of us,
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- and I ended up getting called in to ZOE.
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- But it was so unexpected.
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- -I didn't know that going over there. -Hmm.
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- And-and, Ester, h-how did you come together
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- with these guys and start working with ZOE?
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- Uh, my husband is a pastor at a church,
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- and we'd always wanted to do, um,
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- work that involved social justice and gospel work.
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- We went on a scout trip
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- to ZOE Thailand, heard about
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- human trafficking there and the work that they were doing.
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- So our family went out there for five years as missionaries
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- and have returned for the last two years here
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- -in L.A. -What does ZOE mean, by the way?
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- That's-that's got to have a special meaning to it.
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- You know, it's-it's a Greek word, so when Jesus said,
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- "I've come to give life, and life abundant,"
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- he's come to give zoe.
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- So it represents the life of God that's transformative,
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- and so that's the definition of ZOE.
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- So tell us what ZOE actually does to help rescue these kids.
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- NARRATOR: We've been able to reach thousands of people
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- with the gospel both here in Thailand and in Japan.
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- Through our Mercy Network ministry, we've been able
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- to partner with local pastors all around Thailand,
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- empowering them to reach their community.
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- NARRATOR 2: Our grand opening for our new child protection center
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- this past year was amazing.
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- I would like to offer my heartfelt congratulations
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- and appreciation to ZOE's staff,
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- because the work you do is incredibly important.
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- NARRATOR 2: We have been getting more and more requests
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- from the Thai government to take more children
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- into our Child Rescue Center.
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- NARRATOR 3: ZOE Mexico has been strategizing
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- with local government
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- and national anti-trafficking leaders,
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- and we are in the process of establishing
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- our ZOE offices located in the city center of Oaxaca.
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- NARRATOR 4: ZOE Los Angeles was able to help Los Angeles County
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- provide trauma-informed activities
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- and resources throughout the year
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- to over 100 youth survivors.
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- NARRATOR 5: ZOE is the first nonprofit in Northern Thailand
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- to be officially licensed as a child protection center
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- for human trafficking.
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- We have a three-prong approach.
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- It's prevention, rescue and restoration.
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- -Hmm. -So, in prevention, we do
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- a prevention campaign to bring awareness
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- about human trafficking.
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- We go to remote parts of, um, villages
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- and communities where they may never have heard
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- of human trafficking.
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- Oftentimes, um,
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- families are approached by even sometimes someone they know
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- and, um, deceived-- you know, offered a job
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- or schooling for their child, and instead, this, um,
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- child is put into exploitation, and so we're raising awareness.
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- In schools, we do campaigns in schools.
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- So we do prevention as well as rescue.
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- Going in and working with law enforcement,
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- social welfare, other nonprofits,
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- and helping to identify and investigate any cases
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- that are existing with child trafficking,
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- and then going and rescuing these children
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- from those situations.
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- And then restoration.
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- Oftentimes, these children
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- are then placed in Thailand
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- at our children's home there, and...
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- where they're able to receive
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- care, love and restoration.
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- KIRK: When you just say the-the phrase,
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- "human trafficking," it-it just...
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- it sounds so unbelievable to-to even think
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- that something like that could be true, that human beings
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- are being bought and sold and trafficked
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- and used for horrific purposes.
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- Would you just-just clarify for everybody who's listening,
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- what exactly is human trafficking?
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- I mean, it's the buying and selling o-of children.
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- Similar to drug trafficking,
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- the illegal sales of drugs or weapons.
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- I mean, how-how does this even exist in the year 2019?
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- What-what... what do you attribute that kind of evil to?
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- It's the business model. It's the business model concept
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- of it, and it dehumanizes a person.
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- So what it does, it looks at a human being much as an object
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- and not a human anymore.
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- Much like Dave said, the number one return on investment
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- is stealing.
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- So what happens is that these individuals steal these people.
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- They steal individuals. They steal their identity.
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- Whether they be children or adults.
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- They utilize force, fraud or coercion to be able to do so.
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- There is traffickers that are making up to
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- $1.000 a day off of just one person.
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- And they have multiple people.
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- So, what they've identified is that they're being able
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- to profit more off of human beings
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- than objects.
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- So we-we've identified this as, uh, abuse for profit.
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- And I... and I understand that sometimes, when the children
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- are, um, brought into the custody of law enforcement,
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- that they're actually being prosecuted as prostitutes
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- and put in jail sometimes, rather than receiving the help
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- and the rescue that they need.
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- That is exactly what was happening.
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- The-the poor child was getting abused
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- by the person trafficking.
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- They were getting abused by the judicial system
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- of identifying them as a prostitute.
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- They were being abused by, sometimes, the law enforcement,
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- identifying them, um, by some derogatory name
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- that-that... in regards to prostitution as well.
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- Right now, there's a huge campaign
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- that we've been standing behind our L.A. supervisors,
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- that there is no such thing as a child prostitute.
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- A child cannot give consent over their body,
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- much less give consent over their abuse.
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- -Mm. That's a good point. -So we've identified that
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- -it's child abuse for profit. -So, in California,
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- a law was passed where children are no longer arrested
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- for being trafficked, really, and this whole campaign of
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- "no such thing as a child prostitute," so now,
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- when a child is recovered off the streets,
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- after having been exploited,
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- they are provided victim services.
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- Rather than being prosecuted for prostitution.
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- Right. It's a child welfare issue at this point.
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- LAPD, th-their human trafficking division,
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- which launched three years ago,
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- they have over 1.700 arrests, but when they...
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- when you're taking custody of a child, it's a...
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- it's a child welfare issue now.
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- They've been victimized, and they're trying
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- -to get those kids help. -JASON: So it's an empathic approach,
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- in regards to identifying the person
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- as not "What did you do?" but "What happened to you?"
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- Th
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- That
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- That's
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- That's a
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- That's ama
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- That's amazi
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- That's amazing
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- That's amazing,
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- That's amazing, an
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- That's amazing, and
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- That's amazing, and I'
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- That's amazing, and I've
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- That's amazing, and I've h
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- That's amazing, and I've hea
- 00:08:42.060 --> 00:08:42.070
- That's amazing, and I've heard
- 00:08:42.070 --> 00:08:42.080
- That's amazing, and I've heard
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- That's amazing, and I've heard
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- That's amazing, and I've heard st
- 00:08:42.100 --> 00:08:42.110
- That's amazing, and I've heard stor
- 00:08:42.110 --> 00:08:42.120
- That's amazing, and I've heard story
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- That's amazing, and I've heard story af
- 00:08:42.130 --> 00:08:42.140
- That's amazing, and I've heard story afte
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- That's amazing, and I've heard story after
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- That's amazing, and I've heard story after st
- 00:08:42.160 --> 00:08:42.170
- That's amazing, and I've heard story after stor
- 00:08:42.170 --> 00:08:42.180
- That's amazing, and I've heard story after story
- 00:08:42.180 --> 00:08:42.190
- That's amazing, and I've heard story after story af
- 00:08:42.190 --> 00:08:42.200
- That's amazing, and I've heard story after story afte
- 00:08:42.200 --> 00:08:42.210
- That's amazing, and I've heard story after story after
- 00:08:42.210 --> 00:08:42.220
- That's amazing, and I've heard story after story after st
- 00:08:42.220 --> 00:08:42.230
- That's amazing, and I've heard story after story after stor
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- That's amazing, and I've heard story after story after story
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- about this oasis in Thailand
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- where these children are protected and they're nourished
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- and they're restored, and so much healing comes to them.
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- The main concept behind it is really just love.
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- It's God's love and being able to just shower them
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- with God's love.
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- Our approach is a lot-- it's a family...
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- it's a family-oriented approach, but still utilizing
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- concepts in regard to therapy
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- -and biblical counseling. -ESTER: Oftentimes, when they
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- first arrive, um, they've sometimes
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- been told by law enforcement
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- that they would only be with us for a couple days.
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- They've often been told different stories,
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- and they don't know who to believe,
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- and they're trying to run away.
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- So, oftentimes, when they're with us in our safe house,
- 00:09:14.000 --> 00:09:17.060
- um, we are-are there next to them 24 hours,
- 00:09:17.070 --> 00:09:19.110
- um, just providing care, trying to assure them
- 00:09:19.120 --> 00:09:21.010
- that we're-we're safe people.
- 00:09:21.020 --> 00:09:22.200
- -KIRK: Yeah. -And that we love and care for them.
- 00:09:22.210 --> 00:09:25.060
- And providing them with whatever they need immediately
- 00:09:25.070 --> 00:09:28.090
- in terms of any medical needs or clothing or food.
- 00:09:28.100 --> 00:09:32.170
- Oftentimes, their days and nights are flipped.
- 00:09:32.180 --> 00:09:34.260
- A lot of the young girls, they're up all night,
- 00:09:34.270 --> 00:09:37.050
- and they sleep through the day,
- 00:09:37.060 --> 00:09:38.160
- and so there's a time of adjustment.
- 00:09:38.170 --> 00:09:40.060
- -Yeah. -Our social workers will stay up with them
- 00:09:40.070 --> 00:09:42.070
- through the night, making sure that they're okay,
- 00:09:42.080 --> 00:09:44.010
- and just being there with them if they need
- 00:09:44.020 --> 00:09:46.010
- to talk through anything, helping them to
- 00:09:46.020 --> 00:09:47.210
- explain the process of what's gonna happen.
- 00:09:47.220 --> 00:09:49.230
- Once they're ready to move from the safe house
- 00:09:49.240 --> 00:09:51.150
- into the children's home, they're placed in family units,
- 00:09:51.160 --> 00:09:54.050
- where they have caregivers, um, that really want to create
- 00:09:54.060 --> 00:09:57.210
- -an atmosphere of family... -KIRK: Right.
- 00:09:57.220 --> 00:09:59.200
- ...with-with other children that are there.
- 00:09:59.210 --> 00:10:00.280
- They are provided with
- 00:10:00.290 --> 00:10:02.090
- extracurricular activities, schooling,
- 00:10:02.100 --> 00:10:04.090
- uh, vocational training if needed,
- 00:10:04.100 --> 00:10:06.110
- um, counseling, as well as, um, visits with their family
- 00:10:06.120 --> 00:10:08.210
- if it's safe for them
- 00:10:08.220 --> 00:10:10.010
- to visit their family.
- 00:10:10.020 --> 00:10:11.150
- With the kind of abuse that they have experienced--
- 00:10:11.160 --> 00:10:14.220
- and we're talking about things that most of us,
- 00:10:14.230 --> 00:10:16.190
- uh, have never even heard of or-or would even conceive
- 00:10:16.200 --> 00:10:19.230
- that these things could be real for these children--
- 00:10:19.240 --> 00:10:22.110
- is it possible to rehabilitate them?
- 00:10:22.120 --> 00:10:24.100
- Is it possible for them really to have a restoration
- 00:10:24.110 --> 00:10:26.230
- and-and be healthy kids again?
- 00:10:26.240 --> 00:10:28.260
- Through counseling and, um,
- 00:10:28.270 --> 00:10:31.060
- sharing their stories, we provide a safe setting
- 00:10:31.070 --> 00:10:32.290
- in terms of, like, art therapy,
- 00:10:33.000 --> 00:10:35.030
- and our key is really building relationships.
- 00:10:35.040 --> 00:10:38.000
- And I think that's really the healing that happens. It's...
- 00:10:38.010 --> 00:10:41.130
- We've realized through the trauma that they've experienced,
- 00:10:41.140 --> 00:10:44.020
- um, healing can happen through relationships and love.
- 00:10:44.030 --> 00:10:47.040
- And that's really some of the... the trouble that's there
- 00:10:47.050 --> 00:10:49.180
- is children who don't feel capable of receiving the love
- 00:10:49.190 --> 00:10:53.020
- that's offered to them.
- 00:10:53.030 --> 00:10:54.100
- Um, you can provide the best facilities,
- 00:10:54.110 --> 00:10:55.280
- have the best staff, but if a child doesn't feel safe,
- 00:10:55.290 --> 00:10:59.140
- and if they don't feel like they can trust you,
- 00:10:59.150 --> 00:11:01.130
- they won't receive that.
- 00:11:01.140 --> 00:11:02.170
- We've seen children who are violent and,
- 00:11:02.180 --> 00:11:05.020
- um, who are angry, who had nightmares,
- 00:11:05.030 --> 00:11:07.270
- and really received healing through God.
- 00:11:07.280 --> 00:11:10.100
- And-and the love that they've received at the care at ZOE.
- 00:11:10.110 --> 00:11:13.140
- And, Dave, I know that-that you say that there's a powerful
- 00:11:13.150 --> 00:11:17.060
- spiritual component to their healing.
- 00:11:17.070 --> 00:11:18.230
- -Oh, yeah. -Could you talk a little bit more about that?
- 00:11:18.240 --> 00:11:20.260
- Absolutely. You know, it's holistic.
- 00:11:20.270 --> 00:11:22.020
- You know, we're whole people.
- 00:11:22.030 --> 00:11:23.100
- There's emotional, there's physical,
- 00:11:23.110 --> 00:11:25.200
- but there's a spiritual aspect to it.
- 00:11:25.210 --> 00:11:27.220
- One of the thing... I remember being in a training, actually,
- 00:11:27.230 --> 00:11:30.000
- in L.A., and I heard one of the... somebody said,
- 00:11:30.010 --> 00:11:32.070
- "Well, the best we can do is teach them coping mechanisms."
- 00:11:32.080 --> 00:11:35.050
- But Jesus goes well beyond a coping mechanism.
- 00:11:35.060 --> 00:11:37.190
- He does life transformation. That's His specialty.
- 00:11:37.200 --> 00:11:39.170
- That's God's specialty. That's what He does.
- 00:11:39.180 --> 00:11:42.030
- And we believe it, and we see it, so...
- 00:11:42.040 --> 00:11:44.020
- part of it is, we will care for the whole person.
- 00:11:44.030 --> 00:11:46.150
- We'll give 'em the best of the best.
- 00:11:46.160 --> 00:11:48.030
- We'll give them the best counseling,
- 00:11:48.040 --> 00:11:50.030
- psychological help and assessment,
- 00:11:50.040 --> 00:11:51.270
- and we will equip 'em physically, vocationally,
- 00:11:51.280 --> 00:11:54.150
- but at the end of the day,
- 00:11:54.160 --> 00:11:56.000
- there's also a spiritual component.
- 00:11:56.010 --> 00:11:57.160
- We'll never force it on a child, but we will
- 00:11:57.170 --> 00:12:00.030
- give them an opportunity to know God and to experience God,
- 00:12:00.040 --> 00:12:03.050
- and especially in Thailand where
- 00:12:03.060 --> 00:12:05.020
- these kids are often living with us for many, many years.
- 00:12:05.030 --> 00:12:07.240
- And they're put in a family environment.
- 00:12:07.250 --> 00:12:09.210
- And it takes love to transform a life--
- 00:12:09.220 --> 00:12:13.150
- the love of God and the love of the people of God.
- 00:12:13.160 --> 00:12:16.040
- And it is one of the things that has turned heads left and right.
- 00:12:16.050 --> 00:12:19.080
- In fact, there was an investigation going in Thailand
- 00:12:19.090 --> 00:12:21.240
- that went for six years.
- 00:12:21.250 --> 00:12:23.110
- They just rescued two kids.
- 00:12:23.120 --> 00:12:25.120
- This lead law enforcement official came to ZOE,
- 00:12:25.130 --> 00:12:27.250
- and this was before we had our licensed rescue center open.
- 00:12:27.260 --> 00:12:31.100
- He's like, "You got to take 'em.
- 00:12:31.110 --> 00:12:32.240
- "They're gonna need a padded room, basically, for 24 hours,
- 00:12:32.250 --> 00:12:35.040
- they've been so drugged up."
- 00:12:35.050 --> 00:12:36.220
- And ZOE was not fully equipped.
- 00:12:36.230 --> 00:12:38.020
- They're like, "We can't do it.
- 00:12:38.030 --> 00:12:39.130
- We-we don't have enough staff to even pull this off."
- 00:12:39.140 --> 00:12:41.180
- And they were going back and forth, and this guy just said...
- 00:12:41.190 --> 00:12:44.030
- he goes, "Listen."
- 00:12:44.040 --> 00:12:45.110
- He goes, "Let's just see what your God can do.
- 00:12:45.120 --> 00:12:47.170
- "I've watched this over the years,
- 00:12:47.180 --> 00:12:49.050
- "and I've never seen your God not do
- 00:12:49.060 --> 00:12:52.070
- something radical in the life of a child."
- 00:12:52.080 --> 00:12:54.150
- And so, with that, they-they looked.
- 00:12:54.160 --> 00:12:56.050
- It's like, "Wow." They're...
- 00:12:56.060 --> 00:12:57.140
- It's like he just... he laid it down.
- 00:12:57.150 --> 00:12:59.030
- -Yeah. -He-he's not even a believer,
- 00:12:59.040 --> 00:13:00.260
- but he has seen the evidence
- 00:13:00.270 --> 00:13:02.020
- of what God has done in the life of a kid,
- 00:13:02.030 --> 00:13:04.090
- and I think that's the evidence that you see.
- 00:13:04.100 --> 00:13:06.190
- When God can get a hold of a life, no one's too far gone
- 00:13:06.200 --> 00:13:09.160
- to experience life transformation,
- 00:13:09.170 --> 00:13:11.050
- and that's what Jesus does.
- 00:13:11.060 --> 00:13:12.220
- That's why He's a specialist.
- 00:13:12.230 --> 00:13:14.200
- You're also having some major success in...
- 00:13:14.210 --> 00:13:16.260
- right here in the Los Angeles area, too.
- 00:13:16.270 --> 00:13:18.180
- -Can you talk about maybe some of the stories? -JASON: Yeah.
- 00:13:18.190 --> 00:13:20.280
- Some of the individuals that have received help
- 00:13:20.290 --> 00:13:22.200
- through ZOE here in L.A.?
- 00:13:22.210 --> 00:13:24.050
- Well, just yesterday, I was at a group home,
- 00:13:24.060 --> 00:13:25.210
- working with some youth identified as CSEC.
- 00:13:25.220 --> 00:13:28.160
- "CSEC" is the term, "commercial sexual exploitation
- 00:13:28.170 --> 00:13:30.060
- of children." Same thing as trafficking,
- 00:13:30.070 --> 00:13:31.210
- but it's a term that we use in Los Angeles.
- 00:13:31.220 --> 00:13:33.250
- And we're playing this game where you blindfold someone,
- 00:13:33.260 --> 00:13:36.180
- and there's a-a partner that walks you
- 00:13:36.190 --> 00:13:39.180
- from-from one space to the other.
- 00:13:39.190 --> 00:13:41.130
- That takes a lot of vulnerability,
- 00:13:41.140 --> 00:13:42.240
- and it takes a lot of trust, and the young girl who...
- 00:13:42.250 --> 00:13:44.220
- At first, she didn't want to do it.
- 00:13:44.230 --> 00:13:46.110
- So our approach is being able
- 00:13:46.120 --> 00:13:47.210
- to meet a child exactly where he or she is at
- 00:13:47.220 --> 00:13:49.290
- and to be able to have an empathic approach
- 00:13:50.000 --> 00:13:51.250
- and to be able to use, like,
- 00:13:51.260 --> 00:13:53.090
- something we call "motivational interviewing."
- 00:13:53.100 --> 00:13:55.040
- And what that is, is really just use...
- 00:13:55.050 --> 00:13:57.000
- utilizing their words.
- 00:13:57.010 --> 00:13:58.090
- She saw other youth doing it all at the same time
- 00:13:58.100 --> 00:14:00.180
- to the point where she then did it.
- 00:14:00.190 --> 00:14:02.060
- She was able to have her peer walk with her,
- 00:14:02.070 --> 00:14:04.140
- blindfolded from one side of the room
- 00:14:04.150 --> 00:14:06.020
- to the other side of the room, and build trust immediately.
- 00:14:06.030 --> 00:14:08.280
- Now, this is a child that has been abused.
- 00:14:08.290 --> 00:14:10.280
- This is a child that has been, um...
- 00:14:10.290 --> 00:14:12.200
- that has been trafficked through various situations,
- 00:14:12.210 --> 00:14:14.110
- but she was able to trust us just because we were able
- 00:14:14.120 --> 00:14:16.250
- to meet her exactly where she was at.
- 00:14:16.260 --> 00:14:18.230
- In California and nationwide,
- 00:14:18.240 --> 00:14:20.190
- there's a shortage of placements for youth
- 00:14:20.200 --> 00:14:22.280
- who have been trafficked.
- 00:14:22.290 --> 00:14:24.060
- There aren't safe places, as well as places
- 00:14:24.070 --> 00:14:26.100
- that know how to work with these youth,
- 00:14:26.110 --> 00:14:28.130
- and so that's what ZOE's trying to do here in Los Angeles.
- 00:14:28.140 --> 00:14:30.290
- We've purchased 50 acres of land in north L.A. County.
- 00:14:31.000 --> 00:14:33.180
- And we're working closely with the county
- 00:14:33.190 --> 00:14:35.090
- to insure that this is a place that is suitable
- 00:14:35.100 --> 00:14:37.190
- for the kids that come through the child welfare system...
- 00:14:37.200 --> 00:14:39.290
- -KIRK: Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. -...as well as through probations.
- 00:14:40.000 --> 00:14:42.090
- And, um, we're currently in the process
- 00:14:42.100 --> 00:14:44.040
- of hoping to build this year, and...
- 00:14:44.050 --> 00:14:46.050
- we are hearing from the county
- 00:14:46.060 --> 00:14:47.230
- that they need placement for-for these youth.
- 00:14:47.240 --> 00:14:50.160
- And so, currently, while we're waiting
- 00:14:50.170 --> 00:14:52.000
- for our home to be built, we go to group homes
- 00:14:52.010 --> 00:14:54.250
- and help the county, um, provide activities for these youth.
- 00:14:54.260 --> 00:14:58.120
- -Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. -And we hear, time and time again,
- 00:14:58.130 --> 00:15:00.150
- that the activities that we're bringing and the ways
- 00:15:00.160 --> 00:15:02.190
- that we're connecting with the youth--
- 00:15:02.200 --> 00:15:04.030
- it's having girls who normally don't participate in groups...
- 00:15:04.040 --> 00:15:07.050
- -Mm-hmm. -...come out and-and willing,
- 00:15:07.060 --> 00:15:09.130
- and seeing and discovering things about themselves.
- 00:15:09.140 --> 00:15:12.010
- We have a strengths-based approach, so if you...
- 00:15:12.020 --> 00:15:14.090
- if you're looking for bad things, you'll find them.
- 00:15:14.100 --> 00:15:16.190
- But we're really looking to find the strengths
- 00:15:16.200 --> 00:15:18.180
- and help the youth discover the strengths within them
- 00:15:18.190 --> 00:15:21.110
- so that they can really cultivate that
- 00:15:21.120 --> 00:15:23.240
- and-and grow and flourish and find the-the strength
- 00:15:23.250 --> 00:15:27.100
- to come out of... of that life.
- 00:15:27.110 --> 00:15:29.040
- And oftentimes, with this population,
- 00:15:29.050 --> 00:15:31.050
- the victims don't identify themselves as being victims.
- 00:15:31.060 --> 00:15:34.070
- Um, they're often protecting their traffickers.
- 00:15:34.080 --> 00:15:36.050
- They don't recognize that they've even been victimized...
- 00:15:36.060 --> 00:15:38.050
- -Mm-hmm. -...because they've been in a romantic relationship
- 00:15:38.060 --> 00:15:40.080
- with their traffickers.
- 00:15:40.090 --> 00:15:41.220
- And so, it's really in that process we've had
- 00:15:41.230 --> 00:15:45.040
- in the times that we've met with these youth in these activities.
- 00:15:45.050 --> 00:15:48.060
- In the beginning, they-they'll share in ways that...
- 00:15:48.070 --> 00:15:50.290
- that they are not a... have been involved in trafficking.
- 00:15:51.000 --> 00:15:53.140
- And through our activities
- 00:15:53.150 --> 00:15:54.270
- and the ways that we engage with them,
- 00:15:54.280 --> 00:15:56.170
- eventually, they will share with us
- 00:15:56.180 --> 00:15:58.090
- that they are actually victims of trafficking.
- 00:15:58.100 --> 00:16:00.060
- -Mm. -And that's the first step,
- 00:16:00.070 --> 00:16:02.060
- because here in L.A.,
- 00:16:02.070 --> 00:16:04.010
- you have to first identify yourself as a victim,
- 00:16:04.020 --> 00:16:06.150
- and then say that you want services.
- 00:16:06.160 --> 00:16:08.040
- And so, in order for them to receive services,
- 00:16:08.050 --> 00:16:10.070
- workers need to be skilled
- 00:16:10.080 --> 00:16:11.170
- and know how to help the youth identify themselves.
- 00:16:11.180 --> 00:16:14.260
- Right. You've got to build that trust
- 00:16:14.270 --> 00:16:16.210
- and give them that safe place where they can open up,
- 00:16:16.220 --> 00:16:19.100
- and then they can receive help.
- 00:16:19.110 --> 00:16:21.020
- Now, I also understand that parents
- 00:16:21.030 --> 00:16:23.120
- who are willing to give foster care to these children...
- 00:16:23.130 --> 00:16:27.160
- -JASON: Yes. -...are a key component
- 00:16:27.170 --> 00:16:29.070
- to the restoration of these kids,
- 00:16:29.080 --> 00:16:30.280
- -and that we need more and more of these parents. -Mm-hmm.
- 00:16:30.290 --> 00:16:33.050
- I remember my mom, uh, foster-cared for several kids
- 00:16:33.060 --> 00:16:36.040
- when we were little, and that was so important.
- 00:16:36.050 --> 00:16:38.210
- Those kids would come back and say, you know, those years
- 00:16:38.220 --> 00:16:41.030
- spent with-with my mom and with my dad were so crucial.
- 00:16:41.040 --> 00:16:44.050
- Are there a lack of foster parents right now?
- 00:16:44.060 --> 00:16:46.110
- So there... there are foster parents.
- 00:16:46.120 --> 00:16:47.240
- So, what we're trying to do is that we try and train them
- 00:16:47.250 --> 00:16:50.100
- so they can be trauma informed.
- 00:16:50.110 --> 00:16:51.220
- So there's lots of... there's lots of families who want
- 00:16:51.230 --> 00:16:53.210
- to take in kids, but sometimes it's very hard for them.
- 00:16:53.220 --> 00:16:55.240
- They don't know how to react to the behavior of the child.
- 00:16:55.250 --> 00:16:58.070
- So we do different training,
- 00:16:58.080 --> 00:16:59.200
- trauma-informed training to... so that they can
- 00:16:59.210 --> 00:17:01.280
- know various copings, coping mechanisms,
- 00:17:01.290 --> 00:17:04.080
- and, um, learning how to show empathy and love
- 00:17:04.090 --> 00:17:07.010
- in certain... in certain situations.
- 00:17:07.020 --> 00:17:08.240
- The youths sometimes don't come in with open arms
- 00:17:08.250 --> 00:17:11.020
- saying, "I want the help." Sometimes they're identifying,
- 00:17:11.030 --> 00:17:13.020
- saying, "I don't want to be here."
- 00:17:13.030 --> 00:17:14.160
- Or, "What do you want to do to me?"
- 00:17:14.170 --> 00:17:16.120
- Some of the youth... youth have been
- 00:17:16.130 --> 00:17:17.220
- -abused in the welfare system. -Hmm.
- 00:17:17.230 --> 00:17:19.100
- So our goal is to be able to equip
- 00:17:19.110 --> 00:17:21.060
- and give the tools that the...
- 00:17:21.070 --> 00:17:22.220
- that these various families need.
- 00:17:22.230 --> 00:17:23.270
- So we go into the various churches,
- 00:17:23.280 --> 00:17:25.240
- and sometimes we recruit various families.
- 00:17:25.250 --> 00:17:27.190
- Then we can train them so they'll be
- 00:17:27.200 --> 00:17:28.290
- fully equipped to be able to foster these youths.
- 00:17:29.000 --> 00:17:30.290
- And you're also doing work in... in schools.
- 00:17:31.000 --> 00:17:33.000
- Is that high schools, elementary schools,
- 00:17:33.010 --> 00:17:34.240
- and is that to... to bring awareness to this whole subject?
- 00:17:34.250 --> 00:17:37.110
- We have a program called
- 00:17:37.120 --> 00:17:38.240
- My Generation, My Fight, and we go into schools
- 00:17:38.250 --> 00:17:42.150
- and help young people understand
- 00:17:42.160 --> 00:17:44.130
- this problem of human trafficking.
- 00:17:44.140 --> 00:17:45.230
- Sometimes, if they want to start
- 00:17:45.240 --> 00:17:47.190
- an awareness club on their campuses,
- 00:17:47.200 --> 00:17:49.110
- then several of the high schools
- 00:17:49.120 --> 00:17:51.110
- and colleges have started clubs to raise awareness
- 00:17:51.120 --> 00:17:53.270
- about human trafficking. But we will go... Teachers have
- 00:17:53.280 --> 00:17:56.150
- invited us to come to their classrooms,
- 00:17:56.160 --> 00:17:57.290
- sometimes, um, transforming an English lesson
- 00:17:58.000 --> 00:18:00.080
- on a book about abuse or trauma.
- 00:18:00.090 --> 00:18:02.050
- And then we'll come in and also share about human trafficking.
- 00:18:02.060 --> 00:18:05.120
- -It's vital for us to go into... -Hmm.
- 00:18:05.130 --> 00:18:07.150
- ...this middle school age and the high school age
- 00:18:07.160 --> 00:18:10.050
- when traffickers are... are going
- 00:18:10.060 --> 00:18:12.210
- and recruiting young people.
- 00:18:12.220 --> 00:18:14.060
- So that they're aware of the problem
- 00:18:14.070 --> 00:18:16.020
- and they can protect themselves.
- 00:18:16.030 --> 00:18:17.130
- The work of rescue is very intensive.
- 00:18:17.140 --> 00:18:19.210
- It's-it's hard to do that.
- 00:18:19.220 --> 00:18:21.020
- 16 years ago, there'd be menus on the street corner
- 00:18:21.030 --> 00:18:23.160
- of kids, in Thailand, for example.
- 00:18:23.170 --> 00:18:25.170
- Now it's much more subversive.
- 00:18:25.180 --> 00:18:28.120
- Everywhere you're working, it's harder to find them.
- 00:18:28.130 --> 00:18:30.180
- So instead of, you know, putting so much effort
- 00:18:30.190 --> 00:18:32.270
- in rescue, which we will, we'll keep working,
- 00:18:32.280 --> 00:18:35.260
- uh, with all the good guys to do that,
- 00:18:35.270 --> 00:18:37.260
- but if we can prevent it,
- 00:18:37.270 --> 00:18:39.260
- then we're saving hundreds and thousands of kids.
- 00:18:39.270 --> 00:18:41.230
- That's why we do it in every nation we work in.
- 00:18:41.240 --> 00:18:44.040
- Japan's got it in schools.
- 00:18:44.050 --> 00:18:45.210
- Australia's working on that.
- 00:18:45.220 --> 00:18:47.110
- Mexico's got a junior high to high school curriculum
- 00:18:47.120 --> 00:18:49.210
- that's getting released down there that we're working in.
- 00:18:49.220 --> 00:18:53.020
- The prevention, really, is the key.
- 00:18:53.030 --> 00:18:54.150
- Someone said, "Is it better to build a hospital
- 00:18:54.160 --> 00:18:56.160
- "at the... at the bottom of a canyon
- 00:18:56.170 --> 00:18:58.060
- or to b-build a bridge over the canyon?"
- 00:18:58.070 --> 00:19:00.040
- Well, if you can build a bridge,
- 00:19:00.050 --> 00:19:01.180
- you're gonna have a lot less victims.
- 00:19:01.190 --> 00:19:03.070
- And our hope through prevention
- 00:19:03.080 --> 00:19:05.170
- is that we'd save people before they get caught.
- 00:19:05.180 --> 00:19:07.220
- What we stand on is that
- 00:19:07.230 --> 00:19:09.030
- every generation has stopped something.
- 00:19:09.040 --> 00:19:10.150
- In the transatlantic slavery, there was probably
- 00:19:10.160 --> 00:19:12.090
- slaves who said, "This will never end."
- 00:19:12.100 --> 00:19:13.230
- But it was in that generation of people who said,
- 00:19:13.240 --> 00:19:15.270
- "It's gonna end in my time. It's gonna end."
- 00:19:15.280 --> 00:19:18.060
- So we believe the same thing with human trafficking:
- 00:19:18.070 --> 00:19:20.110
- that it's gonna end in our time.
- 00:19:20.120 --> 00:19:21.260
- And we just have to be a generation of people
- 00:19:21.270 --> 00:19:23.290
- and teach in pre... in prevention and awareness
- 00:19:24.000 --> 00:19:26.110
- to the youth so that they can stand up and say,
- 00:19:26.120 --> 00:19:28.150
- "This is my... this is my fight.
- 00:19:28.160 --> 00:19:29.250
- It's my generation. We're gonna end it in my time."
- 00:19:29.260 --> 00:19:31.220
- Back in the day, the traffickers would go
- 00:19:31.230 --> 00:19:34.050
- where children are, and that was at the malls,
- 00:19:34.060 --> 00:19:36.200
- -at the bus stops and parks, 7-Elevens. -Mm-hmm.
- 00:19:36.210 --> 00:19:40.120
- Nowadays, where the children are is the Internet.
- 00:19:40.130 --> 00:19:42.010
- -And so that is a huge place... -KIRK: Mm-hmm.
- 00:19:42.020 --> 00:19:43.270
- ...where it's difficult for even
- 00:19:43.280 --> 00:19:46.020
- law enforcement to see what's going on.
- 00:19:46.030 --> 00:19:47.220
- It's hidden, similar to what you shared
- 00:19:47.230 --> 00:19:49.280
- in your movie, Connect, and raising awareness
- 00:19:49.290 --> 00:19:52.170
- -about Internet safety. -Mm-hmm.
- 00:19:52.180 --> 00:19:54.000
- MAN: He had this whole digital life
- 00:19:54.010 --> 00:19:56.130
- that I'd had no idea even existed.
- 00:19:56.140 --> 00:19:58.130
- KIRK: I decided I needed to get to the bottom
- 00:19:58.140 --> 00:20:00.240
- of understanding how technology and my kids were interacting.
- 00:20:00.250 --> 00:20:04.070
- It's critical for young people
- 00:20:05.250 --> 00:20:07.280
- to understand how to use the Internet safely
- 00:20:07.290 --> 00:20:09.260
- and to understand how exploiters will recruit them
- 00:20:09.270 --> 00:20:13.000
- and trick them and deceive them
- 00:20:13.010 --> 00:20:14.250
- into coming out of the safety of their homes
- 00:20:14.260 --> 00:20:17.250
- and starting relationships that are not safe.
- 00:20:17.260 --> 00:20:20.030
- But the Internet is a...
- 00:20:20.040 --> 00:20:21.070
- is a huge part of the problem right now.
- 00:20:21.080 --> 00:20:23.120
- What do you think is the role of the church in this?
- 00:20:23.130 --> 00:20:25.150
- People can... can be listening to us and saying,
- 00:20:25.160 --> 00:20:27.180
- "Th-that's horrible, you know, a-and we're gonna...
- 00:20:27.190 --> 00:20:29.080
- we're gonna pray that this ends."
- 00:20:29.090 --> 00:20:30.230
- But what can they do, practically, to get involved?
- 00:20:30.240 --> 00:20:32.250
- Sharing awareness.
- 00:20:32.260 --> 00:20:34.100
- Sharing awareness is the-the answer to prevention.
- 00:20:34.110 --> 00:20:36.160
- Thinking outside of just where we're at.
- 00:20:36.170 --> 00:20:38.110
- Thinking, also, thinking outside of the fact
- 00:20:38.120 --> 00:20:40.050
- that this can't happen to us.
- 00:20:40.060 --> 00:20:41.290
- We want people to stand up against this and to share this.
- 00:20:42.000 --> 00:20:44.250
- We have this one concept that we're-we're doing right now.
- 00:20:44.260 --> 00:20:46.160
- It's called Party with a Purpose.
- 00:20:46.170 --> 00:20:47.280
- What happens is that someone will bring all their friends
- 00:20:47.290 --> 00:20:49.230
- and say, "You know what, this is something I stand against.
- 00:20:49.240 --> 00:20:51.230
- "Here, I'm gonna bring Dave. I'm gonna bring Ester.
- 00:20:51.240 --> 00:20:53.100
- "I'm gonna bring Jason to speak against this
- 00:20:53.110 --> 00:20:54.280
- and teach you what human trafficking is."
- 00:20:54.290 --> 00:20:56.270
- So that the perspective changes.
- 00:20:56.280 --> 00:20:58.090
- I would say ten... seven to...
- 00:20:58.100 --> 00:21:00.120
- seven to ten years ago, even as a therapist,
- 00:21:00.130 --> 00:21:02.190
- I didn't look at... look at trafficking to what it was.
- 00:21:02.200 --> 00:21:05.280
- I just didn't know.
- 00:21:05.290 --> 00:21:07.040
- I didn't have that awareness.
- 00:21:07.050 --> 00:21:08.090
- So I-I can only imagine other people just...
- 00:21:08.100 --> 00:21:10.180
- they don't know, so the answer to be able to do that,
- 00:21:10.190 --> 00:21:13.010
- come together-- we believe that the church is the answer.
- 00:21:13.020 --> 00:21:15.110
- Even just outside of the awareness piece,
- 00:21:15.120 --> 00:21:17.120
- which we push that so heavily, the awareness piece,
- 00:21:17.130 --> 00:21:20.080
- the idea that for the church...
- 00:21:20.090 --> 00:21:21.180
- the church is the most powerful force on the planet.
- 00:21:21.190 --> 00:21:24.040
- It just is. It's-it's powerful.
- 00:21:24.050 --> 00:21:25.210
- And everyone who gets involved in this,
- 00:21:25.220 --> 00:21:28.130
- there's a brokenness there somewhere.
- 00:21:28.140 --> 00:21:30.050
- What if they could be caught before they even got into it?
- 00:21:30.060 --> 00:21:32.120
- How do they get help? How do they get rehabilitated?
- 00:21:32.130 --> 00:21:34.250
- How do you help kids who are vulnerable
- 00:21:34.260 --> 00:21:37.050
- because they've lost connection with their family?
- 00:21:37.060 --> 00:21:39.200
- Often, kids who are most vulnerable
- 00:21:39.210 --> 00:21:41.220
- are the ones disconnected,
- 00:21:41.230 --> 00:21:43.120
- so as a church, what's a church offer?
- 00:21:43.130 --> 00:21:45.290
- It offers help to families.
- 00:21:46.000 --> 00:21:47.120
- It shows what a mom and a dad and a home could look like.
- 00:21:47.130 --> 00:21:50.150
- It offers community for people without community.
- 00:21:50.160 --> 00:21:53.040
- To mobilize our church to be active
- 00:21:53.050 --> 00:21:55.100
- and moving in the community, to aid our families,
- 00:21:55.110 --> 00:21:58.190
- partner with their community,
- 00:21:58.200 --> 00:22:00.060
- they offer something that nobody else can offer.
- 00:22:00.070 --> 00:22:02.070
- They offer the-the power and the love of God
- 00:22:02.080 --> 00:22:04.090
- and the power of that large of a community.
- 00:22:04.100 --> 00:22:07.150
- It can really meet needs,
- 00:22:07.160 --> 00:22:09.030
- personal needs that everybody involved has.
- 00:22:09.040 --> 00:22:10.240
- No
- 00:22:12.290 --> 00:22:13.000
- Now,
- 00:22:13.000 --> 00:22:13.010
- Now, f
- 00:22:13.010 --> 00:22:13.020
- Now, for
- 00:22:13.020 --> 00:22:13.030
- Now, for s
- 00:22:13.030 --> 00:22:13.040
- Now, for som
- 00:22:13.040 --> 00:22:13.050
- Now, for someo
- 00:22:13.050 --> 00:22:13.060
- Now, for someone
- 00:22:13.060 --> 00:22:13.070
- Now, for someone w
- 00:22:13.070 --> 00:22:13.080
- Now, for someone who
- 00:22:13.080 --> 00:22:13.090
- Now, for someone who m
- 00:22:13.090 --> 00:22:13.100
- Now, for someone who mig
- 00:22:13.100 --> 00:22:13.110
- Now, for someone who might
- 00:22:13.110 --> 00:22:13.120
- Now, for someone who might b
- 00:22:13.120 --> 00:22:13.130
- Now, for someone who might be
- 00:22:13.130 --> 00:22:13.140
- Now, for someone who might be
- 00:22:13.140 --> 00:22:13.150
- Now, for someone who might be
- 00:22:13.150 --> 00:22:13.160
- Now, for someone who might be wa
- 00:22:13.160 --> 00:22:13.170
- Now, for someone who might be watc
- 00:22:13.170 --> 00:22:13.180
- Now, for someone who might be watchi
- 00:22:13.180 --> 00:22:13.190
- Now, for someone who might be watching
- 00:22:13.190 --> 00:22:13.200
- Now, for someone who might be watching t
- 00:22:13.200 --> 00:22:13.210
- Now, for someone who might be watching thi
- 00:22:13.210 --> 00:22:13.220
- Now, for someone who might be watching this
- 00:22:13.220 --> 00:22:13.230
- Now, for someone who might be watching this co
- 00:22:13.230 --> 00:22:13.240
- Now, for someone who might be watching this conv
- 00:22:13.240 --> 00:22:13.250
- Now, for someone who might be watching this conver
- 00:22:13.250 --> 00:22:13.260
- Now, for someone who might be watching this conversa
- 00:22:13.260 --> 00:22:13.270
- Now, for someone who might be watching this conversati
- 00:22:13.270 --> 00:22:13.280
- Now, for someone who might be watching this conversation
- 00:22:13.280 --> 00:22:13.290
- Now, for someone who might be watching this conversation,
- 00:22:13.290 --> 00:22:15.020
- and they may be in a situation where their boyfriend
- 00:22:15.030 --> 00:22:17.130
- is turning out to be their drug dealer,
- 00:22:17.140 --> 00:22:19.110
- and they realize that they're... they're in a place
- 00:22:19.120 --> 00:22:21.070
- that they never thought that they would be,
- 00:22:21.080 --> 00:22:22.270
- they've gone down a road that is so dark,
- 00:22:22.280 --> 00:22:24.190
- and they don't see light at the end of the tunnel,
- 00:22:24.200 --> 00:22:26.170
- but they're thinking, "Maybe ZOE could help,"
- 00:22:26.180 --> 00:22:28.110
- uh, what could they do?
- 00:22:28.120 --> 00:22:29.280
- Who could they call?
- 00:22:29.290 --> 00:22:31.080
- There's a hotline.
- 00:22:31.090 --> 00:22:32.100
- It's 888-373-7888.
- 00:22:32.110 --> 00:22:35.160
- So they can call 888-373-7888.
- 00:22:35.170 --> 00:22:38.200
- Or they can text that number, "Be Free."
- 00:22:38.210 --> 00:22:41.070
- -KIRK: 888-373-7888. -JASON: Yes.
- 00:22:41.080 --> 00:22:43.190
- KIRK: Or text the words "Be Free"
- 00:22:43.200 --> 00:22:45.120
- -to that same number. -JASON: Yes.
- 00:22:45.130 --> 00:22:46.230
- If someone is inspired by what they're hearing
- 00:22:46.240 --> 00:22:49.070
- and wants to get involved with ZOE International,
- 00:22:49.080 --> 00:22:51.240
- where do they go? H-How do they plug in?
- 00:22:51.250 --> 00:22:53.270
- Well, an easy thing they could do: goZOE.org.
- 00:22:53.280 --> 00:22:56.130
- G-O-Z-O-E-dot-org, that's our website.
- 00:22:56.140 --> 00:22:58.270
- There's links there.
- 00:22:58.280 --> 00:23:00.170
- ESTER: We're on Instagram.
- 00:23:00.180 --> 00:23:01.250
- ZOE, underscore, and then the country:
- 00:23:01.260 --> 00:23:03.090
- in Mexico, in Australia, in Japan.
- 00:23:03.100 --> 00:23:05.180
- And so we update and we educate the public as well
- 00:23:05.190 --> 00:23:08.200
- about, um, the different work that we're doing,
- 00:23:08.210 --> 00:23:10.100
- as well as teaching
- 00:23:10.110 --> 00:23:11.140
- about human trafficking on our social media.
- 00:23:11.150 --> 00:23:13.110
- We also have a YouTube channel.
- 00:23:13.120 --> 00:23:14.270
- Very informative, uh, clips in regards to, uh,
- 00:23:14.280 --> 00:23:17.150
- knowing the signs of human trafficking,
- 00:23:17.160 --> 00:23:19.050
- uh, what you can do.
- 00:23:19.060 --> 00:23:20.290
- So, the best things for people to do
- 00:23:21.000 --> 00:23:22.180
- is to share the social media content.
- 00:23:22.190 --> 00:23:25.190
- Is there... are there other ways for them to get involved?
- 00:23:25.200 --> 00:23:27.280
- What... How can they be a part of what ZOE's doing?
- 00:23:27.290 --> 00:23:30.090
- Yeah, there's gonna be a lot of opportunities,
- 00:23:30.100 --> 00:23:32.030
- especially in Los Angeles-- we're beginning to expand,
- 00:23:32.040 --> 00:23:34.150
- and we're beginning to identify more areas for involvement.
- 00:23:34.160 --> 00:23:37.240
- We'll know more over this next year
- 00:23:37.250 --> 00:23:39.130
- how rapid that expansion's happening,
- 00:23:39.140 --> 00:23:41.110
- but we're always looking for partners.
- 00:23:41.120 --> 00:23:42.270
- If they have interest in that, they can e-mail
- 00:23:42.280 --> 00:23:45.180
- info@goZOE.org.
- 00:23:45.190 --> 00:23:46.290
- One of our team will follow up with them
- 00:23:47.000 --> 00:23:49.020
- and can find out their specific interest
- 00:23:49.030 --> 00:23:51.020
- and follow up directly.
- 00:23:51.030 --> 00:23:52.290
- Wow. You guys are doing such great things.
- 00:23:53.000 --> 00:23:55.050
- And you're working full-time with ZOE International.
- 00:23:55.060 --> 00:23:57.140
- I-I hope that people seize the opportunity that they have,
- 00:23:57.150 --> 00:24:00.130
- like you have, to think of the-the bigger picture
- 00:24:00.140 --> 00:24:03.180
- and to be a part of something that God's doing in the world
- 00:24:03.190 --> 00:24:06.110
- to bring hope and healing and justice.
- 00:24:06.120 --> 00:24:08.090
- And I think you've inspired a lot of people today.
- 00:24:08.100 --> 00:24:10.150
- -Thanks very much. -Thank you.
- 00:24:10.160 --> 00:24:11.270
- Thanks for highlighting it.
- 00:24:11.280 --> 00:24:13.180
- 00:24:13.190 --> 00:24:15.190