Ep. 6 Vampires of Venice

In an effort to bridge the gap in Amy and Rory’s relationship, the Doctor takes him along with them in the TARDIS for an early wedding present in the form of a date to Venice—16^th century Venice that is. This proves to work, of course, but before that can happen we are introduced to the Calvierri family—aka the vampires aka the Saturnyne fish from space.

The UN reports that an estimated 27 million people worldwide are currently being trafficked.

The opening scene is Isabella, a seventeen year old girl, and her father, Guido, trying to get her accepted into the ‘elite’ Calvierri school in order to give her a better, brighter future.  This was pretty common then, especially if you didn’t get a husband right away, but a similar concept is common today.  And not the implied concept of moving house in order to land in a better school district that the Doctor mentions.

After her acceptance in the “school”, Isabella is immediately parted from her father, which is fairly traumatic in itself, but then the real trauma begins—her changeover into a space fish. When Amy infiltrates the House of Calvierri, we finally find out that they are changing the girls in order to provide compatible mates for the 10,000 husbands waiting in the water.

Over 100,000 children in the U.S. are victims of commercial sex trafficking.

Just like Rosanna and Francesco Calvierri, many people today prey on those who seek a promised better life. They then use their victims for their own horrific needs--it is known as human trafficking. It is a very real problem that isn’t just happening in other countries like Thailand and India, but right here in the United States… probably right in your area and possibly to someone whom you encountered today.

Human trafficking victims are forced into unpaid labor (aka slavery) or into commercial sex (sex slavery).  Most labor victims are immigrants--both illegal AND legal--and most sex trafficking victims are U.S. domestics, mainly females, and oftentimes minors and even children as young as five years old. Trafficking victims aren't just found on farms or working the streets, they can be in restaurants, nail salons, hotels, construction sites...

Human Trafficking cannot be stopped
without YOUR voice.

So speak up!

The main way to help combat human trafficking is by being an advocate and spreading awareness. This can be much easier than you think, mostly because the majority of the population has no idea that it even exists in the United States. Many organizations provide materials to help you learn how to identify a potential victim and what to do if you identify one. They also provide materials on how to educate others on what it is and how to prevent it. They also educate students in the school system on human/sex trafficking and how to avoid becoming a victim.

Organizations also offer emotional and psychological support, reintegration into their families (especially for child victims, who are usually runaways), and a safe haven for the victims. But they are underfunded, understaffed, and oftentimes under-supported by governmental officials and law enforcement.

Financial donations can go a long way in helping organizations establish shelters, which are a major resource in helping the victims recover. Many victims are under such coercion they only seek help in extreme emergencies because they fear arrest, deportation, or physical harm to themselves or their family. Their pimps/managers usually know where they live and can easily find them again and force them back into slavery. Thus the desperate need for safe, secure shelters.

All victims are physically and emotionally abused.

After finding your local or state anti-trafficking organization(s), contact them to see what exact and immediate needs they have, including volunteering opportunities. There are plenty of national and international organizations that you can support as well.

Helping out can come in all forms including easy-to-do things like 5k walks/runs or hosting an awareness dinner party for your friends. You can also take action through negative action—such as not buying goods produced by victims of child or forced labor (see list of goods in links section).

If you suspect someone is a victim or perpetrator of human trafficking, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center hotline at 1-888-3737-888. They are available 24/7 and all calls are confidential. 

Do not try to rescue a victim yourself as it may put both you and the victim at further risk from the trafficker.

Useful Links:

Volunteer Opportunities:

• Locate an organization in your area: http://www.polarisproject.org/state-map
• Locate an international organization: http://www.polarisproject.org/state-map/international-locations
• End Slavery Now, the new underground railroad: http://www.endslaverynow.com/?goto=underground&section=take_action

Learn More:

• Recognizing a victim or trafficker: http://www.polarisproject.org/human-trafficking/recognizing-the-signs
• Recognizing and helping a victim: http://www.state.gov/g/tip/id/index.htm
• List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor: http://www.dol.gov/ilab/programs/ocft/PDF/2010TVPRA.pdf
• Help Sheet for Schools/Parents/Students: http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osdfs/factsheet.pdf
• FAQs about the NHTRC hotline: http://www.polarisproject.org/what-we-do/national-human-trafficking-hotline/the-nhtrc/hotline-faqs#confidential
• 20 Ways to Help Fight Human Trafficking: http://www.state.gov/g/tip/id/help/index.htm
• The Polaris Project (National Human Trafficking Resource Center): http://www.polarisproject.org/index.php
• U.S. Dept of State Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons: http://www.state.gov/g/tip/
• United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime: http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/index.html

Who to call if you identify a potential victim:

911 Emergency
For urgent situations, notify local law enforcement immediately by calling 911. You may also want to alert the National Human Trafficking Resource Center described below so that they can ensure response by law enforcement officials knowledgeable about human trafficking.

1-888-3737-888 
National Human Trafficking Resource Center
Call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, a national 24-hour, toll-free, multilingual anti-trafficking hotline. Call 1-888-3737-888 to report a tip; connect with anti-trafficking services in your area; or request training and technical assistance, general information, or specific anti-trafficking resources. The Center is equipped to handle calls from all regions of the United States from a wide range of callers including, but not limited to: potential trafficking victims, community members, law enforcement, medical professionals, legal professionals, service providers, researchers, students, and policymakers.

1-888-428-7581 
U.S. Department of Justice Worker Exploitation Complaint Line
Call the U.S. Department of Justice’s dedicated human trafficking toll-free complaint line (weekdays 9 AM - 5 PM EST) to report suspected instances of human trafficking or worker exploitation or contact the FBI field office nearest you .This call is toll-free and offers foreign language translation services in most languages as well as TTY. After business hours, the complaint line has a message service in English, Spanish, Russian, and Mandarin.

DISCLAIMER: I am not affiliated with any of these organizations nor can I attest for their accreditation. The photos I have used are not mine and I assume are licensed to the BBC. I am not profiting in any way from this blog, and all photos are used to solely to make the pages more visually exciting while reading. If you are a photo owner or part of these organizations and wish for me to take down photos or links, just let me know and I will do so promptly.