I think it’s interesting that people will ask, “Does God have a heart for Justice?” but they never ask, “Does God have a heart for righteousness?” Yet, both are so tangled, interlaced, and interweaved into His core being. So much so that you could never separate them. God does not just have thoughts of Justice, as sometimes we do. No, He is Justice and His Justice is never subjective and is always doing what is right.
 
Throughout Scripture, He calls us to bring Justice into every area of life, to all people. He isn’t partial. God also makes it clear that His desire is for His people to help bring Justice to those who are oppressed, to those who are helpless, and to those whose vulnerability is being exploited.

The plight of those who are being exploited and enslaved is His concern and He expects it to be the concern of His people. He also tells us to be mindful of the ways we participate in oppression, both actively and passively, and to choose repentance and justice. “Lord, who can compare with You? Who else rescues the helpless from the strong?” Psalm 35:10

We are so excited to have each and every one of these speakers come and share their expertise on these specific subjects relating to our topic this year of prevention. Here is a list of the workshops that will be available to attend on Justice Matters Sunday, along with the speakers bio, and a quick comment from Kelly of the importance of each workshop.

Pornography
Harmony Dust Grillo from Treasures

Decades of reputable research have demonstrated the significant impact viewing porn has on individuals and relationships. Lesser known is the fact that porn is ranked as the third-most common form of trafficking. In this workshop, trafficking expert and survivor of pimp-controlled exploitation, Harmony Dust Grillo, will shed light on the connection between trafficking and porn. The ways in which the pandemic and the rise of Only Fans have changed the landscape of exploitation and trafficking will also be explored.

"Porn plays a major role in Human Trafficking. As long as the demand for it is there, people will continue to be exploited for pure greed and financial purposes. Learn how porn alters the brain and the link it plays in Human Trafficking." - (Kelly Bell)
 
Speaker Bio:
Harmony (Dust) Grillo is a survivor of exploitation turned UCLA honor student, Harmony founded Treasures in 2003 to empower women in the sex industry and survivors of trafficking to live healthy, flourising lives. She has provided training for the Department of Justice and the FBI and has helped launch outreaches in 120 cities worldwide. Her story has been featured on NPR, in Glamour and in her memoir, Scars and Stilettos.


Building Resilience in Children
Dr. Brenda Navarrete
Director of Mental Health Services and Crisis Intervention at Alabaster Jar Project

This workshop will focus on strategies that build resilience in children and youth for human trafficking prevention and protection. We will review factors that make children and youth more vulnerable to exploitation and outline specific strategies, activities, and communication styles that build protective resilience. The purpose of this workshop is to develop practical skills that EVERYONE can implement with the people in their lives to reduce vulnerability in their communities. Topics covered will include approaches to age-appropriate conversations about human trafficking and child safety with children and adolescents, building healthy bonds and connection, and the development of healthy emotion-coping skills.

"Children and youth are more vulnerable to exploitation and to help prevent this, we can develop practical and protective skills and strategies to help keep our children safe. One of those strategies is learning how to talk to kids about human trafficking in an age-appropriate way."
- (Kelly Bell)

Speaker Bio:
Dr. Brenda Navarrete serves as the Director of Mental Health Services and Crisis Intervention at Alabaster Jar Project, a long-term residential program for women who have survived human trafficking in San Diego County. She is a professor of human trafficking at the Global Center for Women and Justice at Vanguard University. Dr. Navarrete helped launch the first home for victims of human trafficking in Honduras- Esther’s House and serves as the organization’s International Director of Training and Survivor Care. She is the former president of the Inland Empire chapter for the California Psychological Association and has taught graduate psychology at several universities in Southern California. In addition to her professional career, she is a dedicated wife and mother of two children ages seven and ten.


Mentoring
Jennifer O'Farrell
Executive Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Inland Empire

Youth are especially vulnerable to crimes of exploitation and human trafficking. According to the most recent data from the National Human Trafficking Hotline, more than 23% of human trafficking cases involve victims who are children.

We can stop human trafficking before it starts by being a mentor. Mentorship is the viable solution for building protective factors and resiliency, giving high risk youth an opportunity to an alternative future away from trafficking.

This workshop is designed to understand how mentoring protects youth and how you can be a part of the solution.

"Youth are especially vulnerable to crimes of exploitation. Mentoring plays an important role in prevention of Human Trafficking by offering help, guidance, and support to youth who may not otherwise have any." - (Kelly Bell)

Speaker Bio:
As Executive Director of Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Inland Empire, Jennifer spearheads efforts and services to combat human trafficking and prevents vulnerable youth from poverty, abuse and victimization through strategic and systematic one-to-one mentoring. Throughout her career, she has consulted, contracted with and worked for various nonprofits to ensure agency success through innovative and outcome-based measures to increase capacity and quality of programs, curriculum, services and funds.
Her leadership in the region has created pipelines and services for underserved youth to reduce child abuse, break cycles of generational poverty and increase academic attainment. She has served as president of the YWCA, founding member of The Pick Group, appointed board member to the Riverside Public Utilities, board member of San Bernardino City Unified School District’s Making Hope Happen Foundation, and the Parkview Community Hospital Foundation.


Generational Poverty
Damien O'Farrell
Parkview Legacy Foundation

Preventing and mitigating the evils of Human Trafficking involves work at both individual and societal levels to empower victims and potential victims with the mindsets, resources and support required while also addressing systemic injustices that fuel the problem.  This session will explore the ways in which generational poverty fuels the potential for victimization as well as an overview of the resources and supports people trying to live in the way of Jesus can provide to disrupt its cycles and impacts.

"Those who have grown up in poverty often have a completely different perspective on many things which often increases their potential for victimization.  Poverty and homelessness, as well as other risk factors, play a major role in Human Trafficking." - (Kelly Bell)

Speaker Bio:
Damien O’Farrell joined Parkview Legacy Foundation to lead operations after 5 years as CEO of Path of Life Ministries, the largest non-profit homeless shelter and housing provider in Riverside County. There, he was instrumental in the development of organizational systems, staff development, community integration and led the organization through to double in size and service area. In addition to his role with Path of Life Ministries, Damien has also served as the Director of Community Development at Today’s Urban Renewal Network (TURN), where he now serves as a board member. Damien is a certified facilitator and strategic planner with the Institute of Cultural Affairs, has served on the Riverside Neighborhood Partnership Board and a past Charter Review Commission for the City of Riverside. He is the founding Vice-President and a past President of The Pick Group (a Young Professionals Organization), a member of the original creation and steering committees for Seizing Our Destiny, Give BIG Riverside, Our Riverside, Our Neighborhoods (known as 26 in 26), and serves as the Board Chair for the International Social Benefit Business, CommonChange.com. As a lifetime resident of Riverside, he is husband to Jennifer (Executive Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Inland Empire), and father to Marleigh (7 year old RUSD student).


A Day in the Life … Realities of the Healing Journey
Debbie Martis
CEO and Founder of Rebirth Homes

Learn about the healing journey of survivors and the important aspects needed for each person.  In this course, we will touch on childhood exploitation and debunk some of the myths associated about human trafficking and how it happens.  We will discuss the challenges associated with healing from the complex trauma associated with human trafficking and the importance of creating a loving, safe environment for healing.

"This class will try to paint an accurate picture of what life is like those who have been exploited begin to heal, including the specific challenges they face, the triggers and difficulties they experience daily, and provide examples of ways we can pray, help, and support them in the process." - (Kelly Bell)

Speaker Bio:
Debbie Martis is CEO and Founder of Rebirth Homes, a non-profit that provides homes for survivors of human trafficking.  Rebirth Homes provides a long-term residential program that focuses on holistic healing – physical, mental, spiritual and emotional while providing job skills and employment for the participants.  In 2017, Rebirth Homes opened the first home in Riverside County, CA for survivors of human trafficking and since then opened a second home for transitional living in 2020.   Her journey in fighting human trafficking began in 2008 with prayer for the 27 million people being trafficked around the world.  In 2012, God gave Debbie the vision for Rebirth Homes and she has worked diligently since then to provide an opportunity for healing to survivors of human trafficking. Debbie Martis has worked in executive leadership roles in both the for-profit and non-profit sectors for the past 20+ years including 15 years of serving fulltime in ministry.  Debbie has her Master’s in Business Administration from University of Redlands, her Bachelor’s Degree in Business from California State University, San Bernardino and a Certificate in Nonprofit leadership from Azusa Pacific University.


Staying Safe Online and in Public
Investigator Brian Robertson and Investigator Joel Pabelico
Riverside County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force

This session focuses on topics such as Sextortion, online safety and how to maintain safety for yourself and others.  Taught be Riverside County Anti Human Trafficking Task Force (RCAHT), this course will teach you about the realities of online safety and real life examples of threats to youth.

"This session will be taught by a few of the investigators on Riv. County Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force and the Riv. County DA’s Office. This session will focus on topics such as sextortion, online safety, and how to maintain safety for yourself and others. This workshop will teach you about the realities of online safety and enticement and provide real life examples that threaten our youth." - (Kelly Bell)

Speaker Bio:
26+ years Riverside Sheriff
9+ years on RCAHT
Experience: Jail, Patrol, Gang Team, Station Investigator, RCAHT since 11/2013


JUST ADDED!
The Purpose and Fruit of Prevention
Matt Robertson
Director of Relational Advancement for Agape International Missions

Join us as we take a look at how prevention has played a key role in the ministry at AIM in Cambodia. Along with rescue and the work of healing and restoration, prevention has played a huge part of transforming a community. Desmond Tutu once said, “There comes a point where we need to stop pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in.”  It’s a joy to see how God has brought healing and freedom to a whole city through awareness, advocacy, action, and PREVENTION!


Speaker Bio:
Matt a seasoned mentor, business developer, and catalyst for change has helped global organizations grow, adapt and expand.

His broad career includes, Lean Process Improvement in the Software Industry, Organizational Change, Leadership Development and new partnership development for Habitat for Humanity in Uganda and World Vision US, serving as a Pastor at NorthWood Church in Texas, and later at Bayside Church in California and a Director of Business Development for a start-up company in the Construction Industry.

He now serves as the Director of Relational Advancement for Agape International Missions. A Christ-centered ministry focused on fighting sex-trafficking in Cambodia, Belize and the US. He oversees a distributed global team that works with individuals, families, churches and companies to advance AIM’s mission.

He and his wife Shela, married 26 years, have two children. Matt loves surfing in the summer and snowboarding in the winter.
 

I’m excited that we’ll be focusing on PREVENTION this year at Justice Matters.  This is a crucial part of the anti-human trafficking efforts around the world, as well as in our own community. Human Trafficking PREVENTION should be anyone’s business, but the unfortunate truth is that some prefer to look the other way for fear of becoming part of the investigation, or even part of the solution. One of the biggest impediments to anti-human trafficking efforts is a lack of understanding of the issue and the complexity of the crime. Education opens all kinds of doors for us and helps us understand what to look for, what to do when we see something, and how to help prevent individuals from being exploited.  If we better understand the vulnerabilities of people that exploiters target and the risk factors that contribute to their exploitation, then we can do something about it. Learning how human trafficking and other forms of exploitation affects our community and our world is the first step to help prevent its continuation.

Let’s look at this from God’s perspective, shall we? We are ALL made in the image of God … each one of us (Genesis 1:27).  We have value; we have been given a unique status, a divine dignity, some call it. God has given us life by sharing His own breath with us (Genesis 2:7) and we are set apart from the rest of creation.  And because of that very reason, each person matters.  Human Trafficking matters because PEOPLE matter. And no one, ever, has the right to own anyone, exploit anyone, or force individuals to do things because they are vulnerable. We should be protecting those in our world who are vulnerable! Human Trafficking, whether it’s forced labor, sex trafficking, indentured servitude, etc., must not be tolerated, in any form.

As we discuss PREVENTION, we can begin to understand how to address risk factors at multiple levels, including education, advocacy, prosecution, protection, and partnerships. Historically, PREVENTION used to only focus on awareness campaigns, etc., but now it includes conversations about changing laws, addressing significant vulnerabilities, collaborating with organizations to help protect, and funding efforts of anti-human trafficking efforts. Oh …. PREVENTION is Key! Come learn about what we can do, how we can do it, and why we should do it. Remember, Human Trafficking PREVENTION is everyone’s business. It’s a Justice issue.  And if the Lord Loves Justice, so should we! (Isaiah 61:8)