Shelby Shopper Shelby NC
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Page 8 - shelby shopper & info - 704/484-1047 www.shelbyinfo.com Thursday, July 13-July 19, 2023 Last week, I became aware of a new movie called Sound of Free- dom, a film about the trafficking of children as sex slaves throughout the world, and here at home. According to the producers more than two million children are being exploited daily. I know this is not a popular topic, because dark topics are never pleasant. But after watch- ing the movie, I am com- pelled to draw attention to the prevalence of such behaviors all around us, knowing that there may be children in our own community who are suf- fering. In the few years I have written for the Herald, I have covered several sto- ries about individuals in our community who take advantage of children; sometimes it is their own child, a stepchild, or a neighbor's child, often with other's knowledge. And yet, nothing was done to stop it. Some- times, these children are deprived of food, left starving and unable to de- fend themselves. It breaks my heart. In the 1980s and early 1990s, individuals in Kings Mountain were in- vestigated for possession and distribution of por- nographic photographic materials. One was later imprisoned, and his name was added to the sex of- fender registry. However, once his imprisonment and probation ended, he was no longer required to be on the sex offender registry. No community is immune, not even Kings Mountain. Why are so many people drawn into sex trafficking? UNICEF USA reports, "Human traffick- ing is fueled by a high reward, low risk dynamic. This means that traffickers can expect to make a lot of money with minimal fear of punishment or legal consequences. It's the second most profit- able illegal industry, second only to the drug trade. And while drugs are sold in one transac- tion, human beings can be sold over, and over, and over again. The costs are low, and the profits are extremely high. The International Labor Or- ganization estimates that profits from human traf- ficking and forced labor are $150 billion annu- ally." Other facts about human trafficking include: • There are 40.3 mil- lion trafficked persons globally today and 25% of them are children (Liberate Children, Inter- national Labour Organi- zation) • Forms of Child Traf- ficking include forced marriage, begging, sweat- shops, pornography, migrant farming domestic labor, sextourism, armed groups (commonly known as child soldiers) (Unicef) • Sex trafficking is the most common type of trafficking in the US. In North America 72% of detected survivors were trafficked for sexual exploitation. (UNODC, HTIP report 2020) • 70 million Child Sexual Abuse Material files are estimated in 2019. 78% of this file are children under the age of 12(Thorn) • The extent of fam- ily involvement in child trafficking 4x higher than in cases of adult trafficking(CTDC) • 53% of all male vic- tims trafficked into sexual exploitation are children. (CTDC) • Child sex trafficking has been reported in all 50 U.S. States. (NCMEC) • A higher percentage of identified children are trafficked for sexual ex- ploitation than for forced labor(UNODC) Online Exploita- tion: Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) refers to any content that depicts sexually explicit activities involving a child. Visual depictions include pho- tographs, videos, live streaming, and digital or computer-generated im- ages indistinguishable from an actual minor. CSAM better describes the reality of this crime, rather than the legal term of child pornography. It's important we use termi- nology that reflects the impact of this crime on its victims (Thorn.org). "At any given time, there is an estimated 750,000 child predators online — and they all have a key to your house via the Inter- net" (FBI, nd) Federal law now provides extraterritorial authority over certain sex offenses against children. Extraterritorial jurisdiction is the legal authority of the United States to pros- ecute criminal conduct that took place outside its borders. I am not here to con- vince you to watch Sound of Freedom, although it inspired me to share this story. I am only one person. What can one person do to change the world? I can write, and I hope these words will inspire you to reach out to our local politicians to make changes to the law. Together our votes can af- fect change. Sound of Freedom is the true story of Tim Bal- lard, a Homeland Security agent who arrests those who distribute child por- nography. In 2012, Bal- lard realized he had the opportunity to save the life of one child. To do so, he would have to quit his job and go rogue. Ballard and his wife have six children and he consulted her before de- ciding how to proceed. After asking her thoughts, she told him, "I will not let you jeopardize my sal- vation by not doing this." The operation resulted in the rescue of 59 children. America is the biggest consumer of Child Sexual Abuse Material. We have the capability, yet we have not been able to stop these crimes. With $150 billion fueling the fire, and smaller police departments strapped for both personnel and funds, things are not looking good for us to win this fight. But we cannot be discouraged. We must raise our voices as one, to educate and engage our communities, and to join the fight to end exploita- tion that threatens our children. Together, we can make a difference. Aside from grace, I consider my children to be my greatest gift from God. When they were young, it was my job to protect them. I feel those same feelings toward my grandchildren. If any- thing were to happen to them, it would devastate me. And I feel the same for all children. So, I am speaking up to encour- age our community to let the world know, God's children are not for sale. And that message should begin with us right here in Cleveland County. LORETTA COZART "God's Children Are Not For Sale" ED. Note: The recipes in today's Cooking Corner are from "The Good Neighbor Cookbook" published by Cleveland County Chapter American Red Cross). 231 E. Marion Street 231 E. Marion Street Shelby, NC Shelby, NC 704-477-1426 704-477-1426 Local help with your Local help with your Medicare questions. Medicare questions. www.GoldenSolutionsInsurance.com www.GoldenSolutionsInsurance.com Golden Solutions Golden Solutions Insurance, Insurance, LLC LLC Claudia Vaughn Claudia Vaughn Licensed Licensed Sales Agent Sales Agent BROCCOLI CASSEROLE Martha Byers 2 eggs, well beaten 1 stick butter 1 cup mayonnaise 1 can mushroom soup 1 cup sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded 2 Tbsp. chopped onion 2 pgs. frozen chopped broccoli Ritz cracker crumbs Cook and drain broccoli. Mix everything together in greased 2-quart casserole. Top with Ritz crumbs. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serves 6-8. EASY ONION PIE Becky Wylie 1 stick butter or marga- rine 1 sleeve Saltine crackers 2 cups chopped onion 3 eggs Salt and pepper to taste ¾ cup milk Melt butter and combine with crumbled Saltine crackers. Press down to form crust. Sauté onions Combine with milk and eggs. Salt and pepper to taste. Pour mixture on top of crust in pie plate. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min- utes. Excellent to serve with roast beef, chicken, or pork. CHICKEN PIE Mary W. Adams 1 whole chicken, stewed 1 can celery soup 1 ¼ cup chicken broth 3 hard-boiled eggs Stew chicken and take from bones. Put chicken in cas- serole and cover chicken with sliced eggs. Mix soup and chicken broth and pour over chicken. Mix 1 cup self-rising flour, 1 stick melted mar- garine and 1 cup butter- milk. Pour this batter over chicken and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. NOTHING Cake Thomas Willis 2 cups plain flour 2 cups sugar 2 eggs 1 t. vanilla ½ tsp. Salt 1 large can crush pineapple, undrained Mix above ingredients by hand and pour into long pan 12x9x2. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes or until done. Icing In saucepan, add 1 stick margarine, 1 cup sugar, and 1 small can evaporated milk Boil for 5 minutes, stir- ring to keep from burning. Remove from heat and add 1 cup chopped nuts, 1 cup coconut. Mix well and pour over cool cake.