#HumanTrafficking is an epidemic that’s plagued our society for centuries. The largest single human trafficking venues occur whenever and wherever major sporting events take place. Whether it be the championship games in football or soccer, thousands of male fans fly into the hosting cities that unfortunately creates a high demand for escort services. To meet these higher demands, thousands of girls, boys, women and men are flown into that year’s venue and trafficked at these sporting events.
Every year during the National Football Championship game, fans inside the stadium shout and cheer for their teams. Meanwhile, screams outside the stadium are silenced by violence against our missing and abused children, our abandoned women, and our vulnerable boys.
Ironically, our volunteers often fly on the same planes with pimps, prostitutes, and victims. Our volunteers meet them. We hear their names. We listen to their stories. We pray with them in strip clubs, brothels, and on the streets. We bind bleeding mouths and witness broken hearts. We leave with their mascara on our shirts. We fly them to safety.
We have published the book Voices Outside the Stadium, to give voice to those outside the stadium. You will witness suffering and hear testimonies. Their silence has echoed over the years; now they're speaking out to our volunteers. These volunteers joyfully rescue those who courageously say, "Yes."
100% of book proceeds fund our annual outreach.
Thank you for saving a life.
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The Skyway Railroad is a national nonprofit who partners each year with other nonprofits, task forces, and local, state, and federal law enforcement to reach and rescue those trafficked the week of the U.S. National Football professional championship game. Each year the final game is held in a different city and we have volunteers who make sure those being trafficked are reached.
Some have tried to cover up this reality of thousands being trafficked the week of the game because it brings bad publicity. They claim it’s a myth. However, as individuals who’ve been to five years of national football finals, we can attest that their voices aren’t a myth.
Publishing "Voices Outside the Stadium" is our meager attempt to shout their voices outside the stadiums so you can hear their reality in the places we visit them: hotels, massage parlors (also called brothels), strip clubs, bus and train stations, airport terminals, truck stops, and on the streets in what are called “tracks” (streets known for trafficking).
Most of our interactions are brief because they are being watched and time is money. We never want our efforts to put any victim in danger. Yet, as you will see when you purchase the book, every interaction (even if brief) is power packed like only God can accomplish. We offer prayer to each individual and provide some type of take away that has our hotline number if they want resources, prayer, or help escaping or leaving the industry. Take aways include: roses, carnations, and gift bags.
Throughout the week, our volunteers write their reflections which fill the pages of the book. The reflections are written in each volunteers’ words and ends with a prompt for readers to stop and pray for those touched in that specific encounter. While these constant breaks for prayer may feel repetitive, each interaction is connected to actual people and our collective prayers have the power to break yokes and chains.
If read straight through, the book could be finished in one sitting as an “easy” read. However, we pray it will be the most challenging book you read because they are attached to actual encounters and actual people. We challenge our readers to fight the urge of glossing over each reflection quickly and instead pausing and invading the heavenly realm with their powerful intercession.
Our goal in publishing these voices is two fold: (1) to bring awareness to the atrocities in human trafficking by giving the marginalized a voice; and (2) for all proceeds to help us reach the voices the following year during our annual outreach.
Here's where you come in. It costs thousands of dollars to facilitate the outreach every year and we have operating costs all year around to reach, rescue, and place survivors all across America.
No amount is too big or too small. In fact, $48 is our most popular amount donated? Why 48? Glad you asked. Research shows that in the US the majority of sex trafficking victims are run aways and homeless youth. The State Department estimates about a third of teens living on the streets are trafficked within 48 hours of leaving home. So that's 150,000 kids per year. What could you sacrifice this month to donate $48 to help rescue and restore one of those run away youth who's exploited? If you get a Starbucks drink for $5 (which most of us spend more than that on our cup of delight), that would mean under ten cups of coffee. Imagine it's your daughter...your niece. They are priceless. Imagine it being your daughter, niece, or other family member.
If you want to find out more information about our organization and donate to these major sporting event outreaches or other efforts to reach, rescue, and restore survivors year around, you can go to www.skywayrailroad.org/donate. If you're interested in learning about our founders, check out this blog.
Together, with your help, we'll make sure the voices of victims trafficked at sporting event's aren’t silenced any longer. Thank you for supporting these voices and helping us reach next year’s voices that are all too often misunderstood and silenced.