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Documentary shows parents how vulnerable their children are to sex trafficking

Feb 17, 2023 09:22AM ● By Becky Ginos

A survivor of sex trafficking shares her story in the documentary “It’s Happening Right Here.” Operation Underground Railroad recently released the film that exposes how child sex traffickers are infiltrating communities in the U.S. Video screen capture courtesy of O.U.R.

Most people have heard about child sex trafficking but they think it only happens in poor countries, certainly not in the United States. They would be wrong. It’s a pervasive crisis that impacts every community in the U.S. Operation Underground Railroad (O.U.R.) recently released “It’s Happening Right Here,” a documentary that exposes how child sex traffickers are infiltrating communities both big and small.

“It’s happening a mile from your church or on your street,” said 22-time Emmy Award winning director Nick Nanton. “We want to show parents how their children are vulnerable to child sex predators no matter how much money they make, where they live or even if they think they are taking every precaution to keep bad people away from their homes.”

The film takes a behind the scenes look at law enforcement efforts to arrest predators and try to prevent sex trafficking from happening in the first place. It also has interviews with survivors. 

“We want to show parents what it looks like on TikTok, computers, video games,” said Nanton. “They need to be aware of the types of ways it can happen. A kid can talk to a trafficker on TikTok and get duped into sending nude photos. They are so embarrassed to tell anyone that they start living a life of hell.”

Nanton first got involved with O.U.R. in 2017 when he was asked by a friend to do a documentary about child sex trafficking in Haiti. “I told him I would be happy to do whatever I can.” 

The film “Operation Toussaint” documented the arrest of the main character who was a woman that trafficked girls taken during the earthquake eight years ago, he said. “She lied to them and said ‘I’ll take care of you.’ It’s ‘Harvest Time.’ There was a great desperation and vulnerability among the girls. She told them ‘the United Nations will rescue you and go with you.’ Then they have to have sex with men for money for their food and shelter. It’s sheer hell.”

“Most parents didn’t experience childhood with the internet,” said O.U.R. Founder and CEO Tim Ballard. “They don’t know the pitfalls. They don’t understand the threat.”

No parent would let their 12-year-old go bar hopping on a Friday night, he said. “But they have unfettered access to everything right in their room. You don’t need to take their phone away, just teach them to be responsible. Apps and games are access points for predators to access kids.”

Ballard talks to well-known radio host and producer Glenn Beck in the documentary about his own experience with his child talking to a stranger online. “Glenn had every firewall imaginable,” said Ballard. “The predator still accessed his child. He didn’t know that Fortnite had a communication board.”

Social media is the number one recruiting venue predators use, he said. “There’s a grooming process online. It starts on social media and kids reveal so much it lures them into a bad place.”

There needs to be open dialogue between parents and kids, said Nanton. “Tell them when they make a mistake, come to me. If and when they get fooled or duped, go to someone who cares about them. I can assure you that people on an app or a video game don’t care about you.”

Help kids to know they’re not alone, he said. “If you get sucked in, go to someone who loves you for sound advice instead of getting trapped into a private hell with someone who has control of you across the world.”

“They’re looking for prey,” said Ballard. “They’re looking for their next victim. People comfort themselves by saying that’s not me, that’s just in very, very remote poor areas. It’s in every area. The only difference is in the more affluent areas it’s undercover.”

“It’s Happening Right Here,” is available on Amazon, Apple and Google Play, Vudu and Fandango. Visit https://go.ourrescue.org/its-happening-right-here-documentary/ to learn more.

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