The Exodus Road

The Exodus Road is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that specializes in staging rescues of victims from suspected human trafficking, including raids of brothels and other sex work establishments. It sends volunteer undercover operatives, who develop congenial relationships with local authorities, to pose as clients at brothels to compile information about people being held against their will. With this information, they plan raids with the local police to arrest the alleged traffickers.[1]

Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, The Exodus Road supports active operatives in Thailand, India, Latin America, and in the United States. As of November 23, 2020, The Exodus Road claims to have directly supported 1,392 rescues and made 692 arrests over 72 active operations.[2] However, the organization has refused requests from journalists to substantiate these claims.[3] The Exodus Road sometimes invites television crews and supporters to witness its raids of brothels.[4]

The Exodus Road’s 501(c)(3) registration status is without religious affiliation, however many members of its leadership team are motivated by the Christian faith and some of their current after-care partners are faith-based. According to their website, 65% of their staff are foreign nationals, including social workers, support staff, and investigators.[5]

Beginnings

In 2010, founders Matt and Laura Parker moved their family from Colorado to Thailand to direct a children's home. During that time, Matt and Laura were exposed to the issue of human trafficking and began networking with counter-trafficking NGOs and local law enforcement that were working in human trafficking intervention work. After building a relationship with authorities, Matt personally offered to start the process of collecting information for the local police to act on and assemble raids.[6]

In 2012, the Parkers founded The Exodus Road. Matt currently serves as CEO of the organization and continues his investigative work, driving the operations for The Exodus Road’s field staff. Laura serves as the Chief Communications Officer and President, overseeing strategy for the organization.[7]

Criticism

The Exodus Road has been criticized as a religious organization that uses trafficking as a pretext to intervene against sex workers and remove their sources of income.[8] The Exodus Road has been criticized for using military jargon, such as describing volunteers as "covert operatives" to carry out their claimed humanitarian mission.[9]

Fundraising

One primary way that The Exodus Road fundraises is through their "Search and Rescue" monthly donation program. Donors are invited to contribute to one or more of The Exodus Road's field teams.

The Exodus Road provides the results of financial audits and Form 990 annually to uphold financial integrity, receiving two third-party endorsements in transparency, including a Guidestar Platinum Seal of Transparency.[10]

Book

Laura Parker wrote the book, The Exodus Road: One Wife's Journey Into Sex Trafficking and Rescue, published in 2014.[11]

References
  1. Matt Parker; Laura Parker (2014). "What It Takes to Free a Sex Slave". Relevant Magazine. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
  2. "What We Do". The Exodus Road. The Exodus Road.
  3. Smith, Alissa (May 8, 2018). "The Exodus Road wants to build a pathway out of slavery, but this road has a few potholes". Colorado Springs Independent. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  4. Jackman, Tom (September 23, 2016). "Hunting for sex-traffickers abroad — by posing as johns". The Washington Post. Retrieved 6 April 2019.
  5. "The Exodus Road Team: Staff and Board". The Exodus Road. The Exodus Road.
  6. "Ordinary: The Story of The Exodus Road". The Exodus Road. The Exodus Road.
  7. "The Exodus Road Team: Staff and Board". The Exodus Road. The Exodus Road.
  8. Smith, Alissa (May 8, 2018). "Sex workers get caught in the crossfire of human trafficking intervention and religion". Colorado Springs Independent. Retrieved 25 November 2020.
  9. Silverman, Robert. "Ex-Pro Athlete Joins Misguided Sex Worker "Rescue" Effort". Voactiv. Retrieved 18 October 2019.
  10. "Financials". The Exodus Road. The Exodus Road.
  11. Laura Parker. The Exodus Road: One Wife's Journey Into Sex Trafficking and Rescue: Mrs. Laura Parker: 9780615864358: Amazon.com: Books. ISBN 061586435X.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.