| Modern Day Slavery
Part I -
Human Trafficking
In My Prayer
By: Attique Swati , Pakistan
Adapted from Prayer Without Borders, Celebrating Global Wisdom, © 2004, Catholic Relief Services
In my prayer,
Make me a baby girl who when born is considered to be a burden or curse on the family – that I may know what it is to feel unwanted.
In my prayer,
Make me a girl whose brothers are the only ones sent to school – that I may understand: before our creator we are equal; still one is deprived.
In my prayer,
Make me a young girl who is not married – that I may know the fear of how property will hinder my choice for marriage.
In my prayer
Make me a young girl married in a family exchange – that I may experience how miserable it is to marry a person of double or triple my age.
In my prayer,
Make me a widow who has no source of earning – that I may understand: without any source of income, how can I bring sweets for my children?
In my prayer I ask:
- To be made an empty bowl – that my hollow spaces may be filled with love.
- To be made a grain of rice – that in the company of others my gifts may feed a starving world.
- To be given strength that I can share the sadness of my fellow beings and bring a light of hope for them. Amen.
The above prayer began the day of conference on Human Trafficking. It was a day of so much information and knowledge shared by presenters to help educate all of us who attended to come to an understanding of this horror of modern day slavery.
According to the fact sheet we were given, approximately 600,000 to 800,000 victims annually are trafficked across international borders worldwide and between 14,500 and 17,500 of those victims are trafficked into the U.S. Many victims do not speak or understand English and therefore are isolated and unable to communicate with service providers, law enforcement and others who might be able to help them.
While many of the victims are women – many are also children and men exploited for purposes of commercial sex, including prostitution, stripping, pornography and live sex shows. Inclusive with the sexual exploitation is labor exploitation, such as domestic servitude, sweatshop factories or migrant agricultural work. Many people believe that these victims are illegal immigrants, which is totally not true. Many come to our country because traffickers have made deals and lied to them giving them the expectation of getting legitimate jobs – to live a dream. They bring with them the legal papers and passports – the traffickers convince them to let them ‘hold these items’ for them and thus the victims become trapped and cannot leave – which is the true definition of slavery – they have given no consent to live the life they are living and have no way out due to fear and coercion.
Before one judges another as to why they would ‘believe’ traffickers – just understand that traffickers go after the vulnerable – women and children and they know their craft well enough to convince the victims of hope when they are wallowing in despair. Traffickers also know the cultures and the desperate need of families and so they ‘purchase’ a person or they steal a child – in any case – the children, the women, the men become properties of the trafficker to be used and abused by them and for them. After drug dealing, human trafficking is tied with the illegal arms industry as the second largest criminal industry in the world today and it is the fastest growing.
Coming Soon - Human Trafficking Part II
How victims are trafficked and misconceptions between trafficking and smuggling…
By Susan Handle Terbay
05/05/07
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Click on titles for additional information
 Susan Handle Terbay is co-author
of Gifts: Two Hospice Professionals
Reveal Messages From Those Passing On.
She is the mother of six and also a grandmother. Susan
serves as administrative assistant to
the deputy superintendent of the Catholic Schools Office for the
Archdiocese of Cincinnati
 Amazing
Grace for Mothers features a story by Susan about the death of
her own mother. She shares, "There is a sisterhood among
women who lose their mothers as a child. It is a pivotal moment that
leaves a hole in your heart that never gets filled; an emptiness and
longing. The title of my story is In Search of my Mother. All my life
I have searched for her in other women. That moment in my life changed
me forever and has created the path I now journey. Through my work
with children's grief groups I was able to reach out and understand
their pain and tried to give them hope to continue their paths."
A Mother's Rule of Life: How to Bring Order to Your Home and Peace to
Your Soul
by Holly Pierlot
Read More about this Book Club Selection
 Vilya
Design Studios - Creators of art that you can wear. We
hand make a variety of jewelry, such wire sculpted pendants, gemstone
watches, necklaces, bracelets, rosaries. Our artisans also create
beautiful crocheted doll dresses and custom order christening gowns.
(Features the creative artistry of Susan's daughters Jennifer and
Jocelyn - I love their work, and know you will too!
Lisa)
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Susan shares
the following about her writing:
 As
I look back over my life I have come to some profound conclusions.
The most valuable gift both given and received is love. Throughout
my life I have been blest with the wisdom of children, the wisdom
of the elderly and especially the wisdom of the dying. Not one person
on their death bed wished they had made more money or worked more
hours. They all wished they would have spent more time with their
loved ones, enjoyed the beauty of this world and taken a chance to
love someone. I learned so much in my life and have faced some difficult
challenges. I hope that maybe something I write touches another and
reminds someone they are never alone in this world - someone understands,
someone has been down the same path and always God is within each
of us. Of all the experiences in my life the greatest gifts I have
ever received were six precious lives who came into my life and forever
changed me. . From the moment each were placed in my arms at their
birth, my children have taught me about life and love. Now the gifts
continue with my beautiful grandchildren as I await to listen to their
stories yet to be told, and their wisdom yet to be learned. Motherhood
is a gift - something to be treasured - always.
Susan
Handle Terbay
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So You Want to be a
Mother?