   In The News  Attend our gala on Human Trafficking Awareness Day Jan. 11 Community education is the focus of Join the Movement's first gala event, which will be held at Lake Lawn Resort in Delavan on Jan. 11, 2022, which is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. The theme is Winter Wonderland. Tickets are $75 each and include a cocktail reception, hors d’oeuvres and desserts at 5:30 p.m., followed by a survivor's presentation at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 11th at Lake Lawn Resort, 2400 Geneva St, Delavan. For tickets, go to jtme.org/fundraiser. Our featured presenter, Theresa Flores, will talk about her experience being a Michigan high school student during the day while being blackmailed into sex trafficking at night. Flores is the author of the book “The Slave Across the Street: The True Story of How an American Teen Survived the World of Human Trafficking”. The event will also include a silent auction. Join the Movement would like to thank our generous presenting sponsors: Kunes RV/Trucks/ Commercial and Lake Lawn Resort. As Flores shares her personal story, she engages her audience and educates about human trafficking across the Midwest and the rest of the country. She talks about how young people are drawn in or tricked into servitude, and what we can do to help those people escape that life.  Predators try to ‘groom’ their victims. What does that mean? A person who is trying to sexually abuse a child often “grooms” the potential victim first, so the sexual advance doesn’t seem so out of place when it happens. The ongoing Ghislaine Maxwell trial has shed considerable light on this practice. Maxwell, a British socialite and longtime acquaintance of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, is accused of sex trafficking and helping Epstein gain access to underage girls. She is on trial in New York. It is essential to understand the grooming process to recognize what’s really happening when a predator is trying to win over his or her next young victim. A recent article by TIME* magazine clearly explains what grooming is: “In 2015, Daniel Pollack, a professor at the Wurzweiler School of Social Work at Yeshiva University, outlined for the American Bar Association some of the dozens of strategies that groomers use for abuse of children in particular. “These include frequently creating opportunities to be alone with a child; fixating on a child; finding opportunities to buy the child gifts; walking in on a child changing; tickling a child and “accidentally” touching their genitalia; suggesting activities that involve removing clothes like massage or swimming; playing games that involve intimate touching like playing doctor; talking about sexually explicit things under the guise of education; and showing a child sexually explicit images.” Unfortunately, predators seem to instinctively know which scenarios have the greatest chance of success, based on the personality of the potential victim. They also work very hard at gaining the friendship and trust of the child’s parents or guardians, often by helping out the family. In cases where potential victims have run away from home and are alone and financially vulnerable, predators offer food, shelter, presents and money in an effort to build the teen’s trust. *The two paragraphs in quotes were excerpted from the Dec. 4, 2021 article posted online by Time magazine titled “Ghislaine Maxwell’s Trial Centers on Allegations of ‘Grooming’ Young Girls. Here’s What That Means”.  Victim Bravely Shares Impact of Trafficking A woman who was sexually trafficked as a child bravely shared her story for only the second time in public at a Join the Movement event in Lake Mills. Although it has been two decades since the abuse occurred in metropolitan Milwaukee, the woman said she still has trouble verbalizing what happened. And it can still affect her emotional wellbeing to the point that she has trouble focusing and going about her daily life. Her story is testament to the devastating, long-lasting issues that can be created by sexual abuse: problems with self-esteem, trust, close relationships and eating disorders. Her story was part of the presentation on “Social Media’s Role in Human Trafficking” Sept. 22 at Lake Mills High School. Although it was incredibly difficult for her to share, the audience, panel members and Join the Movement board members applauded her courage and dedication to helping others learn from her experiences. Ways To Contribute
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Join The Movement Inc.
Join The Movement Events Inc. a 501c3 Non-Profit is completely privately funded and receives local community grants only.
Tax ID 82-4484779
Tax ID 82-4484779