According to the U.S. State Department, 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders every year, of which 80% are women. We would like you to meet a few of the women who are standing up and fighting back to help stop human trafficking and save lives from the devastating exploitation and abuse of this horrific industry. 

I still remember visiting with family members prior to the birth of our first child about my desire to be the father of four boys. I was quite sure our first impending birth was going to be the start of the fulfillment of that desire. Well, God had other plans. Much to my surprise, not only was our first child a girl, but over the next six years, three more little girls followed! Four daughters—how they changed my life and my heart forever!

In December of 2013, the United Nations General Assembly proclaimed July 30 as "World Day Against Trafficking in Persons." According to the Global Report on Trafficking in Persons prepared by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, every country in the world is affected by human trafficking—either as a country of origin, transit, or destination for victims. In addition, children make up almost one-third of all human trafficking victims worldwide, with women and girls comprising 71% of all victims.

Recently, our team in Benin received an anonymous call about six minor girls located at the border who seemed scared and were accompanied by a suspicious-looking adult male. 

As a donor or potential donor, you have the right—and the responsibility—to see where your dollars go. A wise donor will ask about the work we do, how it benefits those who need it most, what the impact is on the dollar, and yes, even what percentage of donations goes to the cause and what percentage goes to overhead.

Most of us are fully aware of what human trafficking is. We know it exists in all corners of the globe, trapping innocent lives in a reality of unimaginable abuse and exploitation. In spite of our awareness, however, it's such an immense global issue, that most of us don’t know what to do about it or how to even begin to combat it. We feel overwhelmed and incapacitated, so it's just easier to ignore the issue and look the other way. However, at Love Justice, we have witnessed time and time again how one person can make a tremendous difference in this fight.

May has been an exciting month as we have witnessed people from all over the globe join us in our Mayday message and add their voice in the fight to end human trafficking. Recently, members of our Love Justice staff in Thousand Oaks, California, held Run for Freedom, a 5K event designed to raise awareness and engage the community in our Mayday mission to prevent 1,000 more lives from experiencing exploitation and abuse this month. 

Did you know, right this very second, there are actually more slaves across the globe than at any other time in history? And did you know that 81% of these innocent lives include those imprisoned by human trafficking—young women and children being sold into the sex trade and men being forced into labor? 

We would like to invite you to join the movement in the fight to stop human trafficking. It's estimated that anywhere between 20–45 million people are trapped in slavery across the globe. We’re on a mission to end it...one beautiful life at a time. 

The dark world of human trafficking is a vast network of low-level and high-level traffickers, ranging from the average person walking along the street to prominent officials fueling the intricate channels of operations. This criminal industry is one of the greatest injustices in the world today—and it continues to grow at a devastating pace. Men, women, and children are either kidnapped or lured by false offers of marriage or employment, and then they are sold into modern-day slavery.