July 2023: Join The ConVersation
Let the Conversation begin
The Founder’s Reflection
It would be difficult to have missed all the fervor over the July 4th release of the movie, Sound of Freedom, dramatizing the real-life efforts of Tim Ballard to rescue children from human trafficking. No film in recent memory has sparked such a gush of publicity, supportive and negative, which was delayed in its release by 5 years after Disney bought the rights and then declined to release it. Much has been said about why there has been so much praise and disdain as there has been, so I won’t weigh in on the controversy but will give my experience and reflection on this important and powerful film.
One of the uphill battles of fighting human trafficking has been the reduction of the tragedy to an “over there” and “those people” crisis while failing to see the reality of American children and vulnerable members of our communities being exploited by traffickers and gangs. This movie does little to alter that misperception. That said, it hits home with the opening case that Tim Ballard worked on while still an agent of Homeland Security on the border with Mexico and fighting crimes against children. The exposure of pedophiles and the mind-boggling quantity of CSAM child sexual abuse material (child porn), 85 million images in 2022 according to RAINN (rape, abuse, incest national network), was breathtaking and important for parents and caregivers to be aware of. At Father-Con we have long championed rising awareness of the insidious links between child sexual abuse material, modern pornography and human trafficking.
The movie opens with the familiar technique of luring children by traffickers through the allure of fame as a model, singer or actor. My heart broke as the father of these two beautiful children leaves his precious children in the care of a woman who turned out to be a trafficker – because if that man had been aware of this method of recruitment there would have been no need for the multi-million-dollar rescue that ensued. To end the exploitation of children and the most vulnerable, we must also invest in prevention. If the passion now welling in the audiences of Sound of Freedom, ignites a burst of support for prevention, we will see the flow of victims cut off.
This film masterfully portrays an issue related to sex and violence with no depictions of sex and very minor violence that is not gratuitous but intrinsic to the story.
I do recommend this film as someone who has held two film festivals for human trafficking awareness and watched about 100 trafficking themed films. However, once you see the film please contact a reputable organization,
Patrick Erlandson, Founder: Father-Con, and See it. End it. Film & Arts Festival