Nature and Beauty Meet Big Hearts — child trafficking

There are many things you can do to help end human trafficking, but one key way is to educate yourself about the different forms of human trafficking and what to look for. In the video below, Apple Rose Beauty's founder discusses some signs to look out for. You can forward to timestamp 3:30 in the video below for the myths and signs of human trafficking.

Apple Rose Beauty is an anti-human trafficking social enterprise that creates and delivers high-performance, luxurious, natural and organic face care and beauty products that work for the most sensitive skin and supports organizations involved in the rescue and rehabilitation of victims. Click here to learn more about our story.

Human Trafficking Awareness Day is an annual event that is observed on January 11th. The purpose of this day is to raise awareness about human trafficking, which is a global issue that affects millions of people around the world.

People around the world wear blue to bring attention to this issue and to encourage individuals and organizations to take action to combat human trafficking. It is a day to remember the victims of this crime and to honor the work of those who are fighting to end human trafficking.

Click here to see why Apple Rose Beauty cares.

Did you know that human trafficking is NOT the same as human smuggling? Watch the video below to see the difference.

“You just enter your hotel room, and your room number. You take four pictures, and you submit them to the website,” Washington University Researcher and TraffickCam developer Abby Stylianou said. “And then those become part of the pipeline that law enforcement can use to track down where the victims are being trafficked.”

Me (Kristy), Puu and her daughter

Even before I officially launched Apple Rose Beauty I knew I would have to write this blog. But like a root canal you keep delaying I tried to put it out of my mind. I tried to avoid facing the pain it would bring to the surface of my mind and heart. But, now … I think it’s time.

I’ve shared with you the story of how I met Apple and Rose. I’ve shared with you that my encounter with them inspired me to create my organic skin care company, Apple Rose Beauty. I’ve shared with you that Apple and Rose were victims of human trafficking and our vision for this company, named after them, is to create employment and choice for those trapped in the same horrible system of exploitation.

Your purchase of our Freedom Skin Care Essentials Set provides 3 hours of meaningful work for a human trafficking survivor.

I’ve shared with you that I met Apple and Rose during a month I spent in Bangkok, Thailand where I worked with Samaritan Creations and lived in their safe house with women who were rescued from human trafficking. But there is something that I did NOT share with you. I have not had the strength to, until now.

Her Name Was Puu

Her name was Puu. I met her and her 1-year-old daughter the first night we spent at the Samaritan Creations safe house in Bangkok, Thailand. It was about 8pm Thai time and even though I had eaten dinner a couple hours before, I was famished. I went down stairs to the café where many of the survivors worked and began making my way to the kitchen. I saw the toddler first. She was sucking on a chicken wing and it smelled scrumptious! She was the cutest little girl I had ever seen and having the tremendous soft spot for babies that I do, I was immediately drawn to her and kind of forgot that I was hungry. Then I saw her mom. She was sitting on the floor next to her, texting on her phone. She spoke very little English and I spoke even less Thai but after asking permission with gestures she allowed me to hold her baby. We communicated through lots of smiles, pointing, giggles and one word sentences. I learned that her name was Puu and I immediately felt a bond with her.

In the weeks following this first encounter Puu and I spent lots of time together. At 18, Puu was the youngest woman staying in the safe house. She became a little sister to me. I taught her Thai and she taught me English. She celebrated her 19th birthday that month and to celebrate I went with her to the nearby mall where we got manicures and iced coffee, walked around and practiced our broken English and broken Thai. At the end of the month before my team and I left Thailand, Puu gave me a heartfelt note and pampered me with a shoulder massage. The next day we said tearful goodbyes. We later connected on Facebook and occasionally each shared simple pleasantries that we mastered in the other’s language.

A little knot began to develop in my stomach

As the months went by I started seeing fewer and fewer Facebook posts from Puu. A little knot began to develop in my stomach. Not long after, the woman who runs the safe house reached out to me and told me that Puu had run away, leaving her now 2-year-old daughter, and was re-trafficked. It’s hard to describe the pain news like that brings. It’s hard to describe the feeling of being punched in the stomach and all the fear and doubts that flood your mind. But even in the midst of all that pain I knew that Puu’s pain was so much deeper and greater than mine could ever be. The desperate search for love and acceptance and deep self-esteem issues that would drive someone back into the pain of selling their body for another’s profit is hard to fathom. Only as you dig deeper into their story and life experiences can you even begin to understand the void and grasping-for-love that has defined their existence from the moment they were born. 

The hard truth is that when someone experiences deep trauma it takes a lot and often multiple attempts before they are truly free, not just physically but psychologically and emotionally as well.

Puu's Story (video)

I would like to invite you into Puu’s story. Not for the purpose of creating sympathy but as a way to hopefully allow us all, for a moment, to put ourselves in her place and find empathy to continue in the fight for her and all the other Puu’s out there waiting to be truly free. Watch the video below to learn about Puu’s story. Please pray for her and others like her whose lives we hope to impact by your Apple Rose Beauty Organic Skin Care purchases. Thank you for your Big Beautiful Heart!

P.S.: To support Samaritan Creations directly, visit their website at http://www.samaritancreations.org/

Apple Rose Beauty is a Premium Organic Skincare company that uses proceeds to fight human trafficking.

"Remember that great love and great achievements involve  risk" - Dalai Lama

People often ask me how I could leave a successful, decade long career in engineering and management to embark on a risky venture to serve survivors of human trafficking through Apple Rose Beauty. To be honest, in my low moments of doubt the question fleetingly crosses my own mind.

The answer is always the same, though. I was and am "compelled by love". For me it has always been a question of "how could I not do everything I know how to do to help save even a few?"

From the moment my heart was broken for the cause of human trafficking in Thailand when I met Apple, a young woman trapped in human trafficking, and where I lived for a month, teaching survivors English, I knew I would spend the rest of my life serving them and fighting for them.

When I read this Huffington post article about Religious Sisters posing as prostitutes to rescue human trafficking victims from brothels it reminded me of the fact that true love requires risk. Love is an action word and once we are moved to love by our actions we risk hurt or failure. But we also risk success! We also risk seeing lives transformed by unconditional love! I am reminded of that Peter McWilliams quote:

"It is a risk to love. But what if it doesn't work out? Ah, but what if it does."

Yes. What if it does!

Click here to read the Huffington post article: Religious Sisters Pose As Prostitutes To Rescue Trafficking Victims From Brothels

Are you in the medical field or work in healthcare? Did you know that nurses and physicians are often in a unique position to identify and help a victim of human trafficking? According to a 2014 study, 88% of human trafficking survivors reported having some kind of contact with the healthcare system while they were trafficked. Sadly, though, a survey conducted by Physicians Against Human Trafficking (PATH), showed that more than 70% of physicians claimed they would not know what to do if they encountered a victim of sex trafficking.

Here are the top 10 things medical practitioners should look for to help identify a human trafficking victim, according to a recent article in Physicians Weekly:

• Bruising, scars, burns, cuts, especially those in non-apparent places
• Multiple STD or pregnancy tests
• Fearful, anxious or depressed mood
• Cash payments, no insurance
• Malnourished
• A third party may speak for the patient and not allow them to speak
• Substance addiction or the appearance of withdrawal symptoms
• Lying about age
• Patient transient or no address (or the patient doesn’t know what city he/she is in)
• Tattoo of a name or strange symbol 

“Trafficking victims are frequently tattooed with the name of their trafficker, or the trafficker has some sort of tag that’s an identifying tag, so that if the victim tries to run away she can be readily identified by other pimps as the property of her trafficker,” says Lori Cohen, Director, Anti-Trafficking Initiative Sanctuary for Families in a PATH video. “If a healthcare provider asks the right questions in an environment that’s not judgmental and where a message is being communicated that this is being asked to help the individual, in many cases, a victim will be able to disclose what her experience has been.” 

The article also lists the following intervention techniques:

Do not react in the moment or act shocked if a young person decides to disclose their situation. This can be interpreted the wrong way, as a reaction or disgust toward the victim.

Protect the patient’s identity and privacy even before anyone else is called in: the moment the healthcare provider suspects the patient trafficking victim, change the patient’s name in the records, providing alias.

Write the patient a prescription for a follow up for some medical indication, otherwise you may never see that patient again.

Get the patient alone, especially if they are accompanied by a controlling companion who insists on answering providers’ questions.

Ask your patient if s/he’d like the police involved. Patients should be assured that what they are telling physicians will be kept confidential. They should also be aware that there are times when they are a mandatory reporter.

Avoid the rescue fantasy. This impulse is normal and harmful. Intervening prematurely or without patient consent compromises trust. Physicians can’t fix the situation but may be able to provide a stepping stone in a potentially long path. “Intervening can be very complicated. Trust is key. If a doctor can continue to communicate that they are concerned about you—we want to help you, we’re not going to force you to do anything you don’t want to do—it gives the patient space to believe that this is someone who really cares about her,” says Cohen. 

How to Report Human Trafficking

• National Human Trafficking Resource Center (888-3737-888)
• Text “BeFree” (233733)
• Childhelp (800-4-A-CHILD)
• National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (800-THE-LOST) 

Major portions of this article were obtained from Physicians Weekly.

Child sex trafficking and exploitation would not exist if there was not a demand side to the equation. The horrific recent developments surrounding Subway's ex pitchman, Jared Fogle, shows that demand still exists.  Apple Rose Beauty's vision, to employ survivors of human trafficking and donate to organizations involved in their rescue and rehabilitation, addresses the supply-side of the equation.  What are your thoughts on ways to address the demand?

Support the fight to end child sex trafficking. Click here to check out our collections 

Click Here to read more on the Jared Fogle story 

As summer travel season comes to a close and many of us are traveling home or looking for that last minute get away spot, it's important to realize that we may be in a position to help those caught in human trafficking and not even know it.  Here are 7 ways to spot that someone is being trafficked in an airport:

Warning signs:

1 -- A traveler is not dressed appropriately for their route of travel.

You might notice right away that a traveler has few or no personal items. Victims may be less well dressed than their companions. They may be wearing clothes that are the wrong size, or are not appropriate for the weather on their route of travel.

2 -- They have a tattoo with a bar code, the word "Daddy."

Many people have tattoos, so a tattoo in itself is obviously not an indicator, but traffickers or pimps feel they own their victims and a barcode tattoo, or a tattoo with "Daddy" or even a man's name could be a red flag that the person is a victim.

3 -- They can't provide details of their departure location, destination, or flight information.

Traffickers employ a number of tools to avoid raising suspicion about their crime and to keep victims enslaved. Some traffickers won't tell their victims where they are located, being taken, or even what job they will have.

Because victims don't have the means to get home or pay for things like food, they must rely on traffickers in order to get by, forcing them to stay in their situation.

4 -- Their communication seems scripted, or there are inconsistencies with their story

Sometimes traffickers will coach their victims to say certain things in public to avoid suspicion. A traveler whose story seems inconsistent or too scripted might be trying to hide the real reason for their travel and merely reciting what a trafficker has told them to say.

5 - They can't move freely in an airport or on a plane, or they are being controlled, closely watched or followed.

People being trafficked into slavery are sometimes guarded in transit. A trafficker will try to ensure that the victim does not escape, or reach out to authorities for help.

6 - They are afraid to discuss themselves around others, deferring any attempts at conversation to someone who appears to be controlling them.

Fear and intimidation are two of the tools that traffickers use to control people in slavery. Traffickers often prevent victims from interacting with the public because the victim might say something that raises suspicions about their safety and freedom.

7 - Child trafficking

A child being trafficked for sexual exploitation may be dressed in a sexualized manner, or seem to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

A child may appear to be malnourished and/or shows signs of physical or sexual abuse, such as bruises, scars, or cigarette burns.

It's important to remember that even if you spot a number of these signs, it doesn't necessarily mean someone is being trafficked. But if you do suspect someone is being trafficked, do not confront suspected traffickers or attempt to rescue suspected victims -- instead, call emergency services or alert the airport authorities.

This blog is an excerpt from CNN's 7 ways to spot that someone is being trafficked

PS: Support the fight to end human trafficking: check out our Back-to-School sale! Use coupon code B2S2015 to get 25% off our full-size product!  Shipping is FREE!  

"Sex traffickers target children because of their vulnerability and naïvety"

Sex trafficking is alive and well in the world.  I first became intimately aware of it while serving with an organization that rescued women caught in human trafficking from the bars in Bangkok, Thailand.  On my return to the US, I learned that sex trafficking is a big business stateside as well.  I was even more shocked to find out that many of those trafficked are children.  The average age of entry into coerced prostitution is 12-17 years.

With back-to-school on the horizon it is important for parents to be equipped with tools to create an environment for their children that minimizes the possibility of them being trafficked through deception.  Here are 6 ways to do just that:

1. Set a high standard of “love” within your home. The way you define and express love shapes your children’s self-image, confidence and opinions of future relationships. Treat them the way you want their future spouses to treat them. Help them to distinguish between real love and empty promises or cheap gifts.

2. Talk to your children about sexual abuse. According to the US Department of Justice, every two minutes someone in the US is sexually assaulted, of which 29% are ages 12-17. Let your children know that if anyone has or ever does hurt them, they can talk to you. This is the most important thing you can say. Don’t assume they have not been hurt by sexual violence before. Leave the door open for your child to talk about past circumstances that they haven’t shared with you.

3. Talk to your children about sex trafficking. Discuss ways children and teens are targeted for sex trafficking. Let them know that traffickers specifically try to woo young girls and boys with promises of a better life – whether it’s promises of love and attention or promises of nice things and trips – these pimps look for ways of exploiting dreams. Traffickers can be male or female, even classmates. Traffickers may even use kids to recruit other kids.

4. Talk to your children about the dangers of social media. It’s important to provide practical safety tips like: don’t share personal information on the Internet; don’t accept Facebook requests from unknown people; NEVER share naked photos of yourself with anyone; and tell a parent or a trusted adult if you feel threatened or uncomfortable online. Also, children need help in defining friendships. Social media has distorted our childrens’ understanding of what friendship means. Teach them that a friend is not someone you met yesterday and that a “friend” on Facebook is not the same thing as a friendship.

5. Pay attention to your children. Monitor your children’s social media accounts, look for ways to meet their friends, their friends’ parents and those they hang out with. Be alert to boyfriends who are much older, or friendships that tend to isolate your child from other friends or family. Notice if your child has new clothing items, makeup products, cell phone or other items and inquire about how they aquired them.

6. Invite your kids to pray for those enslaved. Sexual assault and trafficking can be a fearful or overwhelming subject for children. Invite them to take action by praying for those who are enslaved. This allows for children to acknowledge the suffering of young people who have been trafficked while placing hope in a God who desires freedom for the oppressed.

Have a wonderful and safe back-to-school season!

Parts of this blog are excerpts from the article 6 Ways Parents Can Protect Their Children From Sex Trafficking 

PS: Check out our Back-to-School sale! Use coupon code B2S2015 to get 25% off our full-size product!  Shipping is FREE!  Every purchase supports the fight to end human trafficking.