Current Initiatives

EXPOSE IT: Raising Awareness

Despite the large and growing prevalence of the problem, a new survey commissioned by LexisNexis in collaboration with Polaris Project reveals that most Americans are not aware of the nature or extent of human trafficking.  In fact, when asked to identify the best definition of the term ‘human trafficking,’ nearly half of Americans could not do so (48%). Most respondents- nearly nine out of ten (88%)- were unaware that more than 10 million people are living in sexual slavery or some form of forced labor in the world today, while just one in five (22%) knew that human trafficking generates $30 billion or more in profit each year.[i]

RedLight Children’s Awareness campaign is based on the fundamental need to create awareness and dialogue on a global scale.  This mission will be accomplished by:

  1. Utilizing the power of film and mass media;
  2. Providing people with credible resources regarding the issue, through our website, Twitter, Facebook and other social media sites;
  3. Actively participating in multiple events such as panel discussions, conferences, screenings, film festivals, fundraisers and other events throughout the year, and;
  4. Raising monies and donations for the cause through fundraisers and screenings.

Film:

Over the past six years, the Founder and Executive Director, Guy Jacobson, has created three films that explore the problem of child trafficking, slavery and exploitation in Cambodia with his film company, Priority Films.  Priority Films allows RLC to use its films to promote our mission and raise its presence in the public eye.  The three films, known as The K11 Project include: HOLLY, a feature-length narrative, REDLIGHT and The K11 Journey (currently in production), which are two documentaries on child trafficking in Cambodia based on the real-life experiences of children in the underage sex trade.  It is important to note, that, while the films are based in Cambodia, the purpose of the film series is to highlight the fact that this is a global epidemic.

The K11 Project works in tandem with RLC and has the capacity to create awareness on an international scale.  By offering the RLC a public platform, the K11 Project serves to bring the problem of child sex slavery and exploitation to light.  For more information about the K11 Project, please visit the The Films and The K11 Project page.

Awareness Events:

In partnership with Priority Films and LexisNexis, RedLight Children has hosted numerous special fundraising and educational screenings utilizing The K11 Project’s HOLLY and REDLIGHT. These screening have been organized with various nonprofit organizations, Universities, theaters, and interested individuals in multiple cities across the world including: New York City, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., London, Sydney, San Francisco, Chicago and more.  These screenings have helped to raise funds and generate awareness for the issue as well as what RedLight Children and other nonprofits are doing to fight against it.

We estimate that, through our films, screenings, and press coverage, millions of individuals from around the world have been exposed to this issue.  The target markets for our films include: government officials from key countries, state legislatures, politicians, CEO’s, celebrities, press, communities, Universities, law schools, religious groups, companies, and other nonprofits and NGOs.  Over the next few years, as RedLight Children, Priority Films, and LexisNexis continue to work together on this issue, it is estimated that thousands if not millions more will be educated on this issue. Please check our Calendar of Events page for a list of our upcoming and past events, screenings, conferences, and panel discussions that we are involved with.

Fundraising Events:

To further the impact of both HOLLY and REDLIGHT, RedLight Children has organized numerous VIP screenings followed by Q&A sessions and private receptions.  All proceeds from these events have benefited RedLight Children, increasing our capacity to further our mission. Additionally, we have partnered with several nonprofits and NGOs to raise awareness, funds and the overall profile of their respective organizations.  Past partnerships included such organizations as: The State Department, IOM, OSCE, UNIFEM, UNODC, Vital Voices, Big Brothers Big Sisters, AFESIP, ECPAT, Amnesty International, Coalition Against Trafficking in Women, Charity Water, Restore NYC, Protection Project, Interfaith Center for Corporate Responsibility, and more.

Mass Media & Press:

Films, such as HOLLY and REDLIGHT, have had the ability to generate significantly more attention to the cause than panel discussions, conferences, fundraisers and other events would be able to combined.  The first release of HOLLY in November of 2007, received heavy press coverage for the issue of trafficking in major international, national, regional, local, and University press outlets, including; newspapers, magazines, television, and radio.  More recently, the premiere of REDLIGHT in New York City on June 21st, 2010 received amazing reviews by The Huffington Post and more.  REDLIGHT was broadcast on Showtime from September 9th through October 7th, 2010, having the ability to reach up to half a million viewers.  To view recent press and the press archives, please visit our Press and Media page.

Education:

We make a considerable effort to ensure that most of the screenings are combined with special Q&A sessions and panel discussions with experts on trafficking.  These special screenings provide an exciting event that not only attracts a more diverse and broad-ranging audience than lectures and other informative events but also encourages an open dialogue, further enhancing the audience’s understanding of the issue at hand.

Collaboration:

Working with other organizations is crucial to the RLC’s mission and objectives.  We foster collaboration between multiple stakeholders, aiming to uncover the truth to child slavery and exploitation.  In order to combat a global epidemic such as this one, it will take multiple stakeholders working on numerous fronts to truly have a lasting impact.  We have already presented conferences around the world, met with numerous NGOs, the United Nations, the US State Department, and will continue to seek opportunities for collaboration. For a list of some of the many organizations we currently work with,

please visit Our Partners webpage.

Fight IT: Research and Advocacy

In accordance to the Rule of Law, one of RedLight Children’s next big steps is to develop a proposed action plan to decrease the demand for child exploitation and slavery.  It is the view of RLC that, in order to effectively decrease and end the demand, countries need proper legislation, enforcement, and access to the appropriate resources dedicated to combating the problem.  With the help of participating NGOs, pro-bono lawyers, law firms, corporate partners and volunteers, RLC plans to research the laws relating to child and sex trafficking and exploitation in specific countries starting with the United States to determine: 1) What laws currently do exist; 2) Whether there are problems with existing laws that may encourage or permit the perpetuation of the problem, and 3) What laws do not exist.

For more information about the Rule of Law, please visit http://www.lexisnexis.com/about-us/rule-of-law/human-trafficking.aspx.

RedLight Children aims to increase deterrence, by making it more difficult and costly for perpetrators to sexually abuse children, increasing the likelihood of catching perpetrators, and by making prosecution faster, easier, and more efficient.  Redlight Children is developing and deploying a Civil Litigation Pilot Project that targets the demand side of child sexual exploitation by suing to recover civil damages from consumers of child sexual services. The pilot project, including pleadings templates, legal research on key issues, litigation resources, and strategic guidance, will be replicated across the United States to other law firms helping eradicate child sexual exploitation. No matter what the outcome is, these customers of child sex slaves will pay a high price in the form of legal fees, public exposure of their bad acts, and potential heavy monetary damages. If you are a lawyer or work for a law firm and are interested in how you can help with these initiatives, please contact us directly at admin@redlightchildren.org.

Another way RedLight Children advocates for change is by highlighting one or more current petition(s) or bill(s) posted by www.humantrafficking.change.org on our website, newsletter and other social media outlets.  As simple as it may sound, we need the greater community to tell their representatives and senators that you care about a particular issue or cause in order to get it on the agenda and to get a bill passed.  Please take a moment to add your name to one of the many current petitions.

[i] The survey was conducted by Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS) Global among a nationally representative sample of 2,500 Americans age 18 +.  The study was conducted online in May 2010 and has a margin of error of 1.96 percentage points of the 95% confidence level.  For more information, please download the executive summary at www.lexisnexis.com/redlight/lexisnexis-human-trafficking-survey.pdf


 
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