By Jessie Hethcoat
Students collected hygiene products for people affected by the human trafficking as a project for their theology class, Mysticism of Resistance: Gender, Poverty, and Violence.
The project was conducted in conjunction with Portland's Council for Prositute Alternatives (CPA). The CPA is an active non-profit organization in Oregon whose goal is to systematically help women and children leave their lives on the streets and find work other than prostitution.
"CPA believes that each sex industry survivor we serve is the expert on his or her needs," CPA's mission statement reads. "We take our cues from our clients. So far, they have asked us to provide hospitality, community emotional support and someone to talk to."
Each year, the Mysticism of Resistance class takes part in a large community service effort. This year, they have split into smaller groups, each taking on a service project.
The group working with the CPA is just one project that the class is responsible for.
Maran Andres, a member of the Council for Prostitute Alternatives, led the group. Andres, a junior at UP, came to speak and educate some of the class members about human trafficking.
UP also hosted a panel of former prostitutes and other affiliates of the CPA who educated students on the realities of modern day slavery.
Though freshman Ellen Farber was not a member of the Mysticism of Resistance class, she attended the panel. She has been passionately against human trafficking since high school.
"After listening to those people speak, I made my way down to Fred Meyer to pick up hygiene supplies to donate," Farber said. "It's great that there's a way to help, but it is really hard to sit back when you know these kind of things could be going on anywhere and you wouldn't even know it."
Junior Rocky Gale was a member of the CPA group in the Mysticism of Resistance class. Before learning from the panel and other means of research, Gale did not consider human trafficking an urgent social injustice.
"Human trafficking is interesting because it is a global topic but so relevant regionally," Gale said. "It's hard not to really feel terrible about what's going on in these people's lives."
Human trafficking is said to be widely overlooked. Though the trafficking of humans takes place in every country, it is not considered a main topic of concern for many countries' domestic policies.
While it is a global issue, trafficking is a covert operation. It could be happening in the house next door, at a popular restaurant or at a bus stop.
According to the U.S. Department of State's 2005 Trafficking in Humans Report, "International Labor Organization estimates that there are 12.3 million people enslaved in forced labor, bonded labor, forced child labor, sexual servitude and involuntary servitude at any given time."
According to the Portland Sentinel, prostitution is on the rise on North Interstate Avenue, Peninsula Park and Martin Luther King Avenue. After the recent sting on 82nd Avenue that resulted in the arrests of 88 prostitutes, 56 johns and one pimp, prostitution has not decreased but rather has simply moved to other areas.
"One of the worst things about human trafficking is that it's not a primary agenda to be taken care of," Gale said. "It is a very small percentage of the population that's affected, but when they are affected, it's just awful."
The CPA is always looking for donations. Even if students were not able to donate on campus there are other opportunities to get involved with the organization. They accept anything from warm clothing to vehicles.
Without training in dealing with battered women, children and men, there is not much that students can physically do to help the Council for Prostitute Alternatives.
However, any type of fundraising of items or money will help them tremendously.
The CPA Web site can be found at www.prostitutionalternatives.org.
