The Horror of Human Trafficking
Rabbi Sharon Sobel is the Regional Director for the Canadian Council for Reform Judaism. Rabbi IIlyse Glickman is the National Social Action Coordinator for the Canadian Council for Reform Judaism and is also the rabbi at Am Shalom Congregation.
At the Canadian Council for Reform Judaism's (CCRJ) regional Biennial last week, Human Trafficking was a highlighted social action theme. Paving the way in our region is Montreal's Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom, which has formed a congregational committee against Human Trafficking and hosts an annual Human Trafficking conference at their synagogue - they even won aURJ Fain Social Action Award for their work in Human Trafficking. With the aid of the members of this committee, the Biennial program offered a workshop dedicated to the education of our delegates on the subject of trafficking of persons. As part of this workshop, a survivor spoke to her personal experience having been a trafficked person in the sex industry; bravely, she is one of the first survivors to speak publicly about her trauma.
In addition to the workshop, the communal hands-on art project for the Biennial was devoted entirely to Human Trafficking. Our artist in residence was Temple Emanu-El-Beth Sholom's Religious School Principal Ilana Kuska. With her guidance and expertise, our delegates created a banner that will henceforth be used as a teaching tool in our congregations to bring the issue of Human Trafficking to the fore.
It was at this regional Biennial that the CCRJ adopted Human Trafficking as its new national social action initiative. Human Trafficking is a serious crime and a violation of
one's human rights, one that is happening both in our backyards and across the globe. According to the Department of Justice Canada, trafficking in persons involves the movement of people across or within borders; threats or use of force, coercion and deception; and exploitation,
whether forced labour, forced prostitution, or other forms of servitude.
The U.S. Department of State's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP) provides the tools to combat trafficking in persons and assists in the coordination of anti-trafficking efforts both worldwide and domestically. Of note is a fact sheet titled "The Link Between Prostitution and Sex Trafficking", which states that of the estimated 600,000 to 800,000 people trafficked across international borders annually, 80% of victims are female, and up to 50% are minors. Research shows that 60-75% of women in prostitution are raped, 70-95% are physically assaulted, and 68% met the criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Human Trafficking is a serious issue in Israel as well. One organization, ATZUM/Avodot TZdaka U'Mishpat - Justice Works, works to confront and remedy injustices in Israel. ATZUM's work is founded on the belief that Israel should serve as an example for the rest of the world in addressing social problems and crises. To that end, ATZUM has created a Task Force on Human Trafficking because it sees that Israel is a destination country for human trafficking. Approximately 2,500 women a year illegally enter the country as modern day sex slaves (nearly all are from the Former Soviet Union). Once in Israel, victims are repeatedly sold and resold to pimps and brothel owners; forced to work in slave-like conditions; and ruthlessly abused and exploited, suffering severe beatings, rape and sometimes even starvation. ATZUM works tirelessly to compel the Government to commit significant resources to combat trafficking in Israel in the areas of prevention and border closure, protection of women who escape their owners, and prosecution of smugglers and pimps.
The U.S. Department of State's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP) provides the tools to combat trafficking in persons and assists in the coordination of anti-trafficking efforts both worldwide and domestically. Of note is a fact sheet titled "The Link Between Prostitution and Sex Trafficking", which states that of the estimated 600,000 to 800,000 people trafficked across international borders annually, 80% of victims are female, and up to 50% are minors. Research shows that 60-75% of women in prostitution are raped, 70-95% are physically assaulted, and 68% met the criteria for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
Human Trafficking is a serious issue in Israel as well. One organization, ATZUM/Avodot TZdaka U'Mishpat - Justice Works, works to confront and remedy injustices in Israel. ATZUM's work is founded on the belief that Israel should serve as an example for the rest of the world in addressing social problems and crises. To that end, ATZUM has created a Task Force on Human Trafficking because it sees that Israel is a destination country for human trafficking. Approximately 2,500 women a year illegally enter the country as modern day sex slaves (nearly all are from the Former Soviet Union). Once in Israel, victims are repeatedly sold and resold to pimps and brothel owners; forced to work in slave-like conditions; and ruthlessly abused and exploited, suffering severe beatings, rape and sometimes even starvation. ATZUM works tirelessly to compel the Government to commit significant resources to combat trafficking in Israel in the areas of prevention and border closure, protection of women who escape their owners, and prosecution of smugglers and pimps.