The Sisters of Mercy in many parts of the U.S. are educating  themselves and others about trafficking and taking specific actions, often along with other women religious. This article, which appeared in a Mercy newsletter, anticipates January as National Human Trafficking Prevention month and focuses on efforts in California. Subsequent articles will discuss actions by sisters and associates in other parts of the West Midwest Community.

“You are a useless house girl.”  The sentence rang in Sarah’s ears. Her employer, a Kenyan woman, had brought Sarah (not her real name) from Nairobi to care for her toddler and her house.  At first, the idea seemed to be a good one. Sarah, in her 20s, believed life would be better in the U.S. There was no food in her village. People were desperate. She worked cleaning houses to support her small daughter and her parents.  When her employer in Nairobi asked her to come to the United States., Sarah felt a leap of hope. She would be able to send money back to her family. The employer even offered to send her to college.

“I was convinced life would be good. When we landed at the airport, everything looked so good and beautiful,” she told an audience of Mercy sisters in Burlingame in 2005.

Sarah saw quickly that she had been trapped.