Collaborating against Human Trafficking by Kirsten Foot

Author:Kirsten Foot [Foot, Kirsten]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers
Published: 2015-12-15T00:00:00+00:00

5

Why Beliefs, Values, and Priorities Are Hard to Align

Going Where Faith-Based Organizations Are Scarce

After checking in at a two-day conference on countering labor trafficking, organized by a self-formed group of academics, fair labor advocates, and elected officials, I was handed the conference program. I did a quick “sector scan” of all the panelists to see which sectors were represented and which were not. This conference program had a particularly diverse set of panelists. In addition to the sectors represented in the organizing group, panelists included a county detective, a federal investigator, a physician, survivor-activists, mobilization and advocacy nongovernmental organization (MANGO) leaders, victim service providers, leaders from immigrant community groups, and business leaders. I noted the absence of any representatives from faith-based organizations (FBOs) among the panelists and determined to keep an eye out for FBO representatives among the attendees.

Puzzling for a moment over the absence of FBOs at a relatively large anti-trafficking conference in this particular city (where there are at least five or six such organizations that are fairly prominent), I chose a chair with a good view at the edge of the room. There were about 200 people milling around. I settled back to watch other attendees arrive, noting who greeted whom, who remained silent, and how people introduced themselves, their organizations, and their anti-trafficking work. Through prior observation sessions and interviews, I had noticed that the way people who work on human trafficking describe their work signals some things about the values that inform their work.

The organizers of this conference had flown in some of the speakers from other parts of the country, and provided accommodation for them for a couple nights. The room in which the event took place was large; the venue, though not posh, was in a central location and cost a sizable amount to rent. Meals were included in the conference registration fee. To cover all these expenses, the organizers charged well over $100 for advance registrants, a bit less for students, and more for walk-ins. One of the co-organizers told me that they were holding their breath hoping enough people would register that they would break even.

A young woman claimed the seat next to mine, and I noticed her nametag did not include an organizational affiliation. As we chatted, I asked what she did, and was surprised when she told me she worked for a Christian FBO with two paid staff and a handful of volunteers. I mentioned that I had not noticed her organization on the attendee list. She chuckled and said, “That’s because we have a shoestring budget, the organization cannot afford to send anyone to conferences, and none of us earn enough to afford this ourselves. My uncle saw an announcement about this conference, and offered to pay my registration fee. That’s what made it possible for me to be here today.”

On my way back from the lunch buffet, I happened to pass by a cluster of people, two men and a woman, whose nametags all referenced an FBO.

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