Timantha Leads DePaul Chapter at CAASE

Timantha Tran

When college students learn about sexual exploitation, many are moved to take action. CAASE provides several opportunities for people to take action, including CAASE College Chapters.

The chapters are formed by college students on their campuses to raise awareness about issues of prostitution, sex trafficking and sexual assault and to mobilize their college community to take action.. Timantha Tran has led her campus chapter at DePaul University with great success. Timantha, who is majoring in Peace, Justice, and Conflict and minoring in Public Law.

“When I first got to DePaul and spoke to students about human trafficking, they didn’t even know it existed here in Chicago,” Timantha said. The DePaul chapter has hosted film screenings and informational meetings about the issue of sexual exploitation in Chicago and donated supplies to organizations that help victims of sexual exploitation and trafficking.

Currently, the chapter is planning a discussion panel that will feature CAASE’s Executive Director Rachel Durchslag along with other agency directors in the community. Additionally they are hoping to host a talent show that will feature students from various local colleges utilizing their own talents to bring awareness to this issue.

Timantha and the DePaul CAASE Chapter members are great examples of how one college community can greatly impact others and bring awareness to the issue of sexual exploitation. To find out more about how to start a CAASE chapter on your campus contact us at outreach@caase.org.

This post was written by Lisa Wilson, CAASE community engagement intern. 

Project Unspoken Video Reveals Rape Culture

“What do you do on a daily basis to avoid rape, sexual assault, or harassment?” Admittedly, this is not a question most of us consider, but that is exactly why filmmakers of Project Unspoken decided to ask participants to respond to in this video.

A brainchild of Emory University’s Office of Health Promotions Respect Program summer internship program, Project Unspoken was launched in May 2012 to help break the silence on sexual assault, rape, and relationship violence. Stark statistics featured in the video show how important it is to give voice to the conversation.

Did you know that only 3% of rapists ever serve a day in jail? Maybe this is because at least 54% of rapes and sexual assaults go unreported. Survivors fear they won’t be taken seriously, and if they are, they fear the stigma that comes with revealing their experience.

Beyond awareness, creating a cultural attitude change is essential.

One of the ways that CAASE is working toward this goal is through our work with young men in high school discussing gender-based violence in the sex trade. In one exercise, we ask young men to make a list of words to describe a man who has a lot of sex. Inevitably, they come up with a list of almost entirely positive words. Then, they’re asked to do the same for women, and the list is always pejorative and long. These moments help young men recognize that their own words can help end or stop perpetuating gender-based violence.

Kudos to Project Unspoken for this tremendous video. Learn more about our prevention education program here.

This post was written by Roxy Kozyckyj, CAASE's prevention intern.

Mt. Prospect Trafficker's Conviction is a Call to Action

Last week a local man, Alex Campbell, was sentenced to life in prison for trafficking women in a fake massage establishment in Mt. Prospect, a suburb of Chicago. The success of this federal prosecution is a sign that law enforcement is doing more to focus on pimps, johns and traffickers in Illinois.

So, how can it happen, seemingly in plain sight, that women were being trafficked in the suburbs? The victims were undocumented immigrants with a lack of financial means to support themselves. Campbell’s promise for jobs in massage parlors and shelter made the women believe they would be able to earn a better living, but little did they know that their immigration papers would be seized and they would be forced into prostitution. Based on the victims’ testimonials, the physical, emotional, and psychological abuse inflicted upon them is severe and something that they will have to live with for the rest of their lives.

The successful conviction and sentencing of a trafficker so close to home is a reminder that the demand for paid sex is high in our community. Men in Mt. Prospect and from surrounding areas were buying sex from these trafficked women for months, perhaps years without being held accountable. There are fake massage establishments throughout the Chicago suburbs that continue to act as fronts for the sex trade and, almost certainly, for trafficking.

Everyone has the opportunity to take action against exploitation in fake massage establishments, and some local massage therapists are leading the way. Working with Mindful Marketing and Zen Shiatsu Chicago, CAASE helped develop a toolkit for massage therapists that can help them take action around issues of prostitution and sex trafficking. The toolkit is a helpful source of information for concerned citizens interested in learning more about sexual exploitation.

Learn more about CAASE’s wide range of free online toolkits here.

This post was written by Shobhana Johri Verma, a CAASE volunteer.

19 Johns Arrested in Aurora Prostitution Sting

Nineteen men were arrested for solicitation last week during a prostitution sting in Aurora. We applaud Aurora’s law enforcement for focusing the bulk of this sting’s resources to addressing demand.

According to the Naperville Sun, the johns who were arrested are from Aurora and several other Illinois communities including Bolingbrook, Genoa, Glen Ellyn, Joliet, Montgomery, Naperville, and Plainfield. One man was from South Carolina. These are men who live in our neighborhoods, and when they buy sex they help the commercial sex trade to thrive.

Our research has shown that when johns are arrested, they say they will be deterred from buying sex again in that community. You can help by sharing this story widely. We need to get the word out that local law enforcement is holding johns accountable.

Unfortunately, prostituted people continue to be arrested and rearrested, as several were in this sting. Illinois currently has very few resources for those who are seeking to leave the sex trade. CAASE and the End Demand Illinois campaign are working to change that. We advocate for a social service response to survivors of the sex trade, instead of a criminal justice response. Our survivor engagement committee is working with the campaign to transform our state’s response to the sex trade by proposal a network of specialized services. Learn more about the proposal here.

Finding Fearless: Help CAASE Win $10K This Week

We need your help! More specifically, we need your clicks and your social media charisma. You've got it, trust us:

What’s Happening?

CAASE has a real chance of doubling a $10,000 grant we received from the Finding Fearless campaign through the Case Foundation (no affiliation to CAASE).

Why does this matter?

Our executive director, Rachel Durchslag, applied and WON a $10,000 grant to support our prevention curriculum for young men in high school. Now, there’s a contest for us to win a $10K bonus grant, money that would help us continue our work with young men in high school.

Sometimes voting in social media campaigns feel like a shot in the dark, but this one is different. There are only 20 organizations competing, and we’re already in the top 10.

How can I help?

Vote for us via Facebook. Go to the Finding Fearless page and vote for Ending Sexual Exploitation for the $10,000 bonus grant. Make sure that you submit your ballot—it’s sort of tricky, you have to “confirm ballot.” If you’re a little compulsive, like me, you can try voting again. It should give you a message that you’ve already voted, which means that your vote counted.

Or, vote via email. If you’re signing in via email, you need to take some extra steps to make sure your vote is counted. After you submit your vote, you will get a confirmation email from the Case Foundation. You must REPLY to this email for your vote to count.

You can only vote once in this contest.

How can I spread the word?

Here are some messages you can post to Twitter or Facebook:

Facebook

The Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation has the chance to win a $10K bonus grant through the Finding Fearless campaign. This money will help support their prevention curriculum for young men in high school. They’re in the top 10 and need a boost, will you take a minute to vote for them, and share this if you feel like it? Thanks! https://www.facebook.com/casefoundation/app_467687463264055

Twitter:

Please help this organization I support, @TheCAASE, double their $10,000 grant to End Sexual Exploitation. Vote here: http://ow.ly/fpiEX

Vote for @TheCAASE in the #FindingFearless campaign to help empower young men in high school to end sexual exploitation. It’s $10K at stake!  http://ow.ly/fpiEX

Send an Email:

Hello,

I'm writing because an organization I support, the Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation, has a real chance of winning a $10,000 bonus grant through the Finding Fearless campaign this week. These funds would help their prevention curriculum for young men in high school--teaching them about the realities of the sex trade and empowering them to be allies in the movement to end violence against women.

Would you take 5 minutes and vote for them today?

Vote via Facebook. Go to the Finding Fearless page and nominate Ending Sexual Exploitation for the $10,000 bonus grant. Make sure that you submit your ballot and it is counted--you have to “confirm ballot.”https://www.facebook.com/casefoundation/app_467687463264055

Or, vote via email. If you’re voting via email, you need to take some extra steps to make sure your vote is counted. After you submit your vote, you will get a confirmation email from the Case Foundation. You must REPLY to this email for your vote to count. Vote here. http://befearless.casefoundation.org/finding-fearless/vote

______

If you have any questions, please email Kristin@caase.org. Thank you! 

FOX Chicago Tackles Pretty Woman Myth

Chicago News and Weather | FOX 32 News

Robin Robinson reported two stories this week addressing the “Pretty Woman” myths surrounding prostitution and escort services in Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood. She interviewed CAASE’s Executive Director Rachel Durchslag, as well as Brenda Myers-Powell of the Dreamcatcher Foundation.

Part of what inspired Robin to investigate this topic was the death of Briana Gardner, a young woman who was murdered by a john in a Gold Coast hotel. We hope that Robin’s reporting will bring light to the fact that the sex trade exists all throughout Chicago and that the violence that johns, pimps and traffickers perpetrate doesn’t end when prostitution goes indoors. To learn more about our work advocating to end violence in the sex trade, visit www.caase.org.

Police Must Do More to Prevent Abuse of People Impacted by the Sex Trade

News broke late last week that a Chicago police officer, Nelson Stewart, has been charged with “custodial sexual misconduct, official misconduct and bribery, all felonies” after he solicited a prisoner who had been jailed for prostitution to perform a sex act in exchange for being released.

This abuse of power is unacceptable, and we are encouraged that this police officer is being held accountable. Unfortunately, research has revealed that people in the sex trade are frequently coerced or threatened into having sex with members of law enforcement in similar situations. We call on Superintendent of Police Garry McCarthy to implement department-wide orders that expressly prohibit any sexual activity between officers and prostituted people and establish safe, confidential reporting options for prostituted people to report this abuse.

We also call on the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office to reconsider their decision to charge the crime victim in this case with felony prostitution. After being exploited by this police officer, we believe that that this survivor deserves help and support, not to be criminally prosecuted. The habitual arrest and re-arrest of people in prostitution is a waste of law enforcement resources and promotes recidivism.

Instead, we propose that people impacted by the sex trade should be offered options and resources; doing so could help end commercial sexual exploitation.

To learn more about the need for comprehensive support for survivors of the sex trade, please read our new proposal from End Demand Illinois.