Globally, an estimated 4.7 million persons are caught in sex trafficking today. Approximately 250,000–350,000 American children and youth are at risk for sex trafficking each year. The average age of a sex trafficked victim is only 13 years old. Worldwide, sex trafficking generates ninety-nine billion dollars in profits, which is more than the profits of Microsoft, Nike, Google, and Starbucks combined.
The borderless global crime of live-streaming sexual abuse of children for economic gain is rapidly increasing worldwide. Marginalized and impoverished people sell their young child, niece, nephew, or neighbor to sex traffickers, who broadcast the abuse for purchase by foreign consumers, 30% of whom are from the US. These foreign offenders direct the abuse in real time, in exchange for compensation wired through a money transfer agency.
The Philippines is a hotspot for broadcasting online sexual exploitation of children (OSEC). In 2022, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s cyber tip line received more than 2.5 million reports indicating a connection to the Philippines. Testifying before Congress last month, Filipino native and survivor of child sexual abuse in the Philippines Vanessa Bautista said, “It is essential to remember that this crime, an act of abuse, is recorded and streamed digitally. Imagine the most vulnerable, painful, exploitative moments of your life are just one online search away.”
John Tanagho, International Justice Mission leader with Covenant roots, also testified, saying, “Congress should make no mistake here: these are not just pictures or videos online. Behind every livestream is a real child, suffering serious emotional and physical trauma. Even after being brought to safety by law enforcement there is no end to their continued exploitation and the invasion of their privacy, as offenders share and trade images and videos of child abuse in encrypted messaging apps and online.”
Armed with this knowledge, we traveled to Washington DC last week to represent the Covenant’s FREE anti-sex trafficking initiative on Capitol Hill. We engaged in lobby meetings where we urged legislators and their staff to act against this crime. In each meeting with our elected officials, we realized our obligation to be a voice for the voiceless, a defender of the rights of the poor and needy, and a witness to the God-given dignity of each victimized child.
In these meetings, we highlighted the Eliminating Abusive and Rampant Neglect of Interactive Technologies (EARN IT) Act. This legislation would advance justice in a few ways:
- Strengthen cyber tip line reporting requirements.
- Give survivors the option for legal recourse against online platforms that broadcast their abuse.
- Update terminology used in US Code from “pornography” to “child sexual abuse material” to reflect the true nature of this exploitive and abusive crime.
- Establish a national commission of stakeholders to identify strategies to combat OSEC, including survivors of OSEC, law enforcement, consumer protection, and tech companies.
Our time of advocacy in Washington DC was only the beginning. Will you join us in loving mercy and doing justice? We invite you to engage your elected officials to help protect kids online. Here are four critical ways we need your help.
Pray
Pray for long-lasting, transformational change to come from those meetings and the emails we all send to support this campaign.
Learn
Increase your awareness of the abuse children face around the world. Anyone and everyone can make a difference, but the first step is awareness. One of our FREE partners, International Justice Mission, has established the Center to End Online Sexual Exploitation of Children in the Philippines. The Center’s work enhances international justice systems and private sector responses to online sexual exploitation, resulting in sustainable child protection and offender accountability.
Give
Your donations continue to support the work of International Justice Mission and our other nine FREE partners who do the work of prevention, intervention, and rehabilitation on the ground with victims and survivors worldwide. Give today!
Act
The EARN IT Act is a bipartisan bill inviting tech companies to prioritize child protection on their platforms. We invite you to contact your elected officials to let them know you support this bill and help protect kids online! Contact your local Congress leaders.
In Isaiah 1:17, we are called to “learn to do good, seek justice, and encourage the oppressed” in our world. We can use our collective voice to encourage the oppressed by speaking up for the thousands of children who are violated by this exploitation and abuse. Will you join us?
Ramelia Williams
Ramelia Williams is the Director of Ministry Initiatives for the Love Mercy Do Justice mission priority of the Evangelical Covenant Church.
Prajakta David-Kelley
Prajakta David-Kelley is the Director of Global Advancement and Mobilization for the Evangelical Covenant Church.
