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Theological Reflection Honest and insightful reporting which seeks to reveal the truth of injustice and oppression, but also manages to protect those who have suffered, and to describe situations honestly but without succumbing to hype, or being salacious, can be seen as respecting the rights of the individual as a person created by and loved by God. There is a need for us to consider how do we engage with what we read or see in a critical way; being wise and aware of motives, and possible flaws in reporting. Are we prepared to go beyond the superficial to listen and learn and engage, so that we are able to walk and act justly and humbly? How do we respond to the cases we read about? What language do we use when we discuss them with others? Louisa Waugh notes that "the language we use to describe human trafficking, especially the trafficking of women and girls, reflects our underlying attitudes towards slavery and slaves. We talk about 'victims' and 'sex slaves'. We refer to young women being 'tricked' into prostitution and forced to 'service' clients. These words all make trafficked women and girls sound both stupid and pitiful. The language of sex slaves or tricked victims...offers no humanity or dignity to the person being abused, but revels in their suffering. At best it is crude and patronising; at worst it is victim porn. The term 'trafficked migrant' certainly doesn’t have the same ring to it as 'sex slave', but it is a far more accurate description of how many people who have been trafficked actually see themselves..." Jesus models behaviour which seeks to go beneath the easy labelling of individuals, to a deeper understanding of the nature of sin which entangles all of us in different ways (e.g. John 8:1-11). We would seek to challenge reporting which categorises those who have been trafficked into 'deserving' and 'undeserving' cases, but to be people who are humbly ready to examine our own lives for times when we judge and disregard others, and to recognise the deep complexity of factors which influence the choices we all make.
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