The Sunlight Project of Fourth Presbyterian Church seeks to end sex trafficking in Chicago through education, advocacy, and support of survivors.
About the Project | Facts about Sex Trafficking
What We Can Do | Upcoming Sunlight Project Events
Project History | Project Partners
Resources | Contact
Every year, as many as 2.8 million youth run away in the United States. Within 48 hours, about one-third are recruited into the underground world of prostitution and pornography, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Other youth in foreign countries—often teenage girls—are transported into the United States or into other countries specifically for prostitution. Worldwide, the numbers are astonishing: the global market for youth trafficking reaches more than $12 billion per year, with some 1.2 million youth victims.
The Sunlight Project of Fourth Presbyterian Church has joined efforts to end these crimes. The Sunlight Project supports agencies that work with at-risk youths and raises awareness about youth sex trafficking in Chicago, as well as new legislation and other efforts to combat this crime.
As people of faith, members of the Sunlight Project want to do as much as possible to bring healing to victims of youth sex trafficking, help police and social services rescue those who are still trapped in this world of exploitation, and support law enforcement efforts that prosecute criminals and prevent these crimes from happening in the future.
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Love, Listen, Educate
Know . . .
. . . that, if sex trafficking directly impacts you, you are loved and that prayers, resources, and hearts are for you.
Serve . . .
. . . by helping us sponsor, host, and support educational events,
fundraisers,
a Drop-in Center, advocacy and letter-writing campaigns,
collaboration with Chicago organizations dedicated to ending sex-trafficking, supporting law enforcement, and helping survivors.
Committee Service Opportunities
- Administrative Subcommittee: This committee is responsible for preparing the monthly committee agenda in coordination with the chairperson, keeping the minutes and all documentation in order, and maintaining the contact database.
- Community Engagement Subcommittee: This committee is responsible for researching community activities and events regarding trafficking issues, keeping an updated calendar of events, as well as, reaching out to other organizations to promote collaboration.
- Direct Service Subcommittee: This committee focuses on addressing practical needs of those who are affected by trafficking. Examples of past projects include toiletry and clothing drives and recruiting oliciting volunteers for the Stop-It Hotline and Drop-In Center.
- PR Marketing Subcommittee: This committee is responsible for helping to coordinate the marketing materials distributed and for project communications. Examples include Sunlight Project information card content, speeches presented to groups interested in learning more about the project, materials used when events are hosted by Sunlight Project.
- Educational Events Subcommittee: This committee is responsible for organizing Sunlight Project educational events for the Fourth Church congregation and local community. Examples include panel events, guest speakers, movie screenings, labyrinth walks, and discussion groups.
Donate . . .
. . . to support the Stop-It Drop-In Center, which works with and supports those who are survivors of human trafficking. These items, marked “Sunlight Project,” can be left at the church reception desk at 126 E. Chestnut.
- Hygiene products
Shampoo
Conditioner
Body lotion
Body wash
Bar soap
Tissues
Baby powder
Baby wipes
Cotton swabs
Tampons
Pads
Hair ties
Bobby pins
Shower caps
Contact solution- Ventra Cards (single-ride cards with $3 or more on them)
- Gift cards for Food 4 Less, Walmart, and Sav-A-Lot
- Drop-in Center Supplies
Bags of chips
Fruit snacks
Fruit leather
Trail mix
Candy
Petzels
Water bottles
Soda (Sprite, orange soda, and Coke are favorites; not many clients drink diet soda; 2-liter bottles are preferred for cost-effectiveness)- Craft Supplies
Paint, paint brushes, canvas boards
Yarn, knitting needles, embroidery thread
Old magazines, paper
Anything fun and crafty- Meals
Gift cards to Instacart or Peapod
Gift cards to Potbelly, Chick-Fil-A, or anywhere that delivers
Check back in the coming weeks for details about future events.
Sunlight Project was formally established at Fourth Church by the Mission Committee in 2010 after an overwhelmingly positive response to a panel presentation including representatives from CAASE (Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation), Dreamcatcher Foundation, Salvation Army’s Stop-It, Initiative against Human Trafficking, and National Runaway Safeline.
Though a very young committee, Sunlight Project can boast an impressive list of activities and accomplishments.
Hosted
Contributed
Presented to
Miscellaneous
Co-sponsored a workshop presented to Chicago Lights seventh through ninth grade male students educating them in character development and social constructs of masculinity in today's culture.
Ongoing advocacy as opportunities present
Stop-It
Selah Freedom
Cook County Sheriff’s Department
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Books
Ending Slavery: How We Free Today’s Slaves
—Kevin Bales
The Slave Next Door: Human Trafficking and Slavery in America Today
—Kevin Bales & Ron Soodalter
Not for Sale: The Return of the Global Slave Trade
—David Batstone
Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide
—Nicholas D. Kristof & Sheryl WuDunn
Listening to Olivia: Violence, Poverty, and Prostitution
—Jody Raphael
Caught in the Web: Inside the Police Hunt to Rescue Children
from Online Predators
—Julian Sher
Somebody’s Daughter: The Hidden Story of America’s Prostituted Children
and the Battle to Save Them
—Julian Sher
Renting Lacy: A Story of America’s Prostituted Children (A Call to Action)
--Linda Smith
Not for Sale: Feminists Resisting Prostitution and Pornography
—(eds.) Christine Stark & Rebecca Whisnant
Articles and Research
“The Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children and Youth in Illinois”
—Jessica Ashley, IL Criminal Justice Information Authority
“The John Next Door”
—Leslie Bennetts, Newsweek, July 25, 2011
“The Realities of Human Trafficking in Cook County: Strategies for Ending the Exploitation of Women and Girls”
—Cook County Commission on Women’s Issues
Advancing a Human Rights Based Approach to Addressing Human Trafficking
—Rev. Noelle Damico, March 18, 2009,
Keynote for the Freedom Network USA Human Trafficking Conference
Deconstructing the Demand for Prostitution: Preliminary Insights from Interviews
with Chicago Men Who Purchase Sex
—Rachel Durchslag & Samir Goswami,
Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation, May 2008
Joining the Battle Against Sexual Exploitation of Children (ECPAT-USA)
(Horizons Magazine, March/April 2010)
—Sara Friedman
Buying Sex: A Survey of Men in Chicago
--Samir Goswami, Chicago Coalition for the Homeless
Gearing Up
—Angelica Herrera
Sex-Trafficking Bust
—Rummana Hussain & Mitch Dudek, Chicago Sun-Times, Aug. 25, 2011
First Conviction of Human Trafficking Initiative
—Gailann Jarocki, February 10, 2011
Collateral Damage: The Impact of Anti-Trafficking Measures on Human Rights
around the World
—Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women
Shackles in Our Midst: How to Recognize Trafficking
(Horizons Magazine, March/April 2010)
—Kacie MacDonald
Allegations Link U.S. Companies to Brazilian Sex Tourism
—Barry Meier
Why They Run: An In-Depth Look at America’s Runaway Youth
—National Runaway Switchboard, May 2010
UN Human Rights Council Report Submitted by the Special Rapporteur on
trafficking in persons, especially women and children
—Joy Ngozi Ezeilo
Domestic Sex Trafficking of Chicago Women and Girls
—Jody Raphael, DePaul University of Law, and Jessica Ashley, Illinois Criminal
Justice Information Authority, May 2008
Interviews with Five Ex-Pimps in Chicago
—Jody Raphael, DePaul University of Law, and Brenda Myers-Powell, Dreamcatcher Foundation
Sisters Speak Out: The Lives and Needs of Prostituted Women in Chicago
—Jody Raphael & Deborah Shapiro, Center for Impact Research
Sex Trafficking of Women in the United States
—Janice Raymond & Donna Hughes, Coalition Against Trafficking in Women
The National Report on Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking:
America’s Prostituted Children
—Shared Hope International, May 2009
The Intersystem Assessment on Prostitution in Chicago
—Emily Sweet, Mayor’s Office on Domestic Violence
Pathways into and out of Commercial Sexual Victimization of Children: Understanding and Responding to Sexually Exploited Teens
—Linda Williams & Mary Frederick, Dept. of Criminal Justice and Criminology,
University of MA
Additional Resources
The Abolitionist Church Handbook
—Not For Sale, 2007
Demand Change: 10 Actions X 10 Issues = 100 Steps Towards Ending
Sexual Exploitation
—Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation
Engaging Protestant Communities in Ending Sexual Exploitation:
A Toolkit and Resource Guide
—Chicago Alliance Against Sexual Exploitation, 2010
For more information about the Sunlight Project, please contact Nancy Davis (312.274.3815).