My heart is to be on campus to protect the girls. If they are able to run, we know they will go back and be raped. That is why I am so vocal about adequate security measures.
Bob Battillo of StreetLight USA in Phoenix has often been asked what keeps him coming to work everyday. For him, it is far more than a job. It is righting a injustice of child sex slavery, and whatever he can contribute to that end is satisfying. He is intent on bringing awareness to the issue in whatever role he plays. Every contact he makes in the community hears about the sex trafficking issue and StreetLight’s work, whether he is recruiting volunteers for the security team at StreetLight or soliciting donations of gift cards for the food and supplies needed for the survivors’ cottages. He knows that each person will tell someone else, and the ground-floor person-to-person invitation to be involved is the most potent.
Coming from a background of childhood abuse, Bob knows what abused children need and he is willing to be an advocate for them. Dealing with sex trafficking survivors has become a bigger passion than his previous work with abused children. The girls who end up at StreetLight had already been abused at home, which made them vulnerable for being trafficked. The result is far more brokenness and devastation than if the abuse had been dealt with properly when the kids were young.
Concern for the girls’ well being is Bob’s heart and soul. He wants them to develop adequate skills and opportunities, so when they are ready to leave, they are able to live a normal, healthy life and do well. He rejoices that the forward direction of StreetLight includes expertise and resources that will fully equip the residents. The other side of that is the understanding that a successful program will only happen if there is a large community base of support and resources.
For the first year-and-a-half of StreetLight, there was no help. There is no way the organization will survive if we don’t have thousands of people involved–giving money and manpower. I get excited to hear of the new connections and expertise that are coming. We need to have all those in place. It won’t work with just us. You can’t do it all without taking government contracts unless have all the other agencies providing free medical, free maintenance, free food, and all else needed to keep it running.
Without proper funding, it is hard to have adequate staffing, training, and resources in key areas. The economic crunch has affected everyone, but the need for safehouses is likely to increase. The girls caught up in the sex trades have the mindset of ”that is all I am worth, all I am good for” due to the physical and emotional beatings they get from the pimps and the johns. It takes a lot of commitment and resources to help the girls turn their lives around, and Bob Battillo is willing to help secure whatever is needed to ensure the girls’ success.
Reflecting on what he would like to see in the arena of sex trafficking of minors, Bob is adamant that he wants to see it abolished and thus no need for StreetLight. Since that is not likely this side of heaven, he is determined to save as many girls as possible. He plans to devote the rest of his life to fighting against sexual exploitation of minors.
One of the biggest obstacles is that people still don’t believe sex slavery is happening in the US. Even when cases are in the news with sex trafficking happening in the neighborhood, most people don’t understand the depth of the issue.
I would love to sit with someone at major shopping centers and sporting venues to witness the extent of the trafficking. When I am at the malls, I see it happening, and I am willing to go up to girls who are being approached by a pimp to break up the transaction.
The sports arena and shopping areas at Westgate in Glendale are a big concern to Bob. He would love to see more awareness being raised in that area, and especially with the major league ball teams that play in the stadium.
With the passion and determination that Bob Battillo possesses, it is likely that many people will be hearing more about child sex trafficking in Phoenix.
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