From Feb. 4–8, the Catholic Church will mobilize with a series of activities in Rome in support of human dignity and peace.
By Catholics for Catholics
Hoping to end human trafficking in all of its guises, the Church started a worldwide reflection and days of prayer in Rome, according to EWTN News.
Under the theme of “Peace Begins with Dignity: A Global Call to End Human Trafficking,” the Church kick-started this year’s 12th World Day of Prayer and Reflection Against Human Trafficking.
This year the series of events concur with the feast of St. Josephine Bakhita, a universal symbol of the fight against modern slavery. From Feb. 4–8, the Catholic Church will mobilize with a series of activities in Rome in support of human dignity and peace.
The days of prayer were started by Pope Francis in 2015, with the annual day being coordinated by the international Talitha Kum network, led by women religious and promoted by the International Union of Superiors General (UISG) and the Union of Superiors General (USG).
In the U.S., Catholics for Catholics is also fighting against human trafficking, starting with recognizing the work of people like Tom Homan, the Border Czar. Last week, Catholics for Catholics lauded him with the Protector of America Award for his effort in rescuing more 62,000 missing children – a number which has now been updated to 129,000.
Homan, a committed Catholic, dedicated the award to the law enforcement officers and staff that have worked “tirelessly to run down hundreds of thousands of leads, work numerous investigations, and locate more than 129,000 unaccompanied alien children of the more than 300,000 children that the Biden administration turned over to unvetted sponsors, lost track of and weren’t looking for.”
“Every child is precious to the Lord. And this administration will undertake whatever efforts necessary to safeguard this population, the most vulnerable among us,” Homan said.
In Rome, several ecclesial and civil organizations are also involved in the World Day of Prayer and Reflection Against Human Trafficking, including Caritas Internationalis, the Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), the Pope John XXIII Community, the Sant’Egidio Community, the Focolare Movement, and other institutions worldwide.
According to United Nations data, some 27 million people worldwide are victims of human trafficking, primarily women, children, migrants, and displaced persons.
Human trafficking takes many forms — from sexual exploitation to forced labor, domestic servitude, and forced marriage — and is increasingly expanding into the digital environment.
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