Contrary to popular belief, human trafficking is not a problem just for other countries, according to the U.S. Department of Education, which cites reported cases of trafficking in all 50 states. And the DOE says trafficking almost always involves a sexual component with forced labor coming in as the #2 primary motivation. U.S. cases involving trafficking have involved children and adults, U.S. citizens or immigrants, male or female – and the government estimates the number of cases in the thousands.
Jaco Booyens is an international advocate against human trafficking as well as a film producer and director. During an appearance Thursday on American Family Radio, the native of South Africa explained that his experience in watching his sister, a victim – and survivor, led him to fight against trafficking.
Some might consider the widespread nature of trafficking to be a problem on the Left, which seems to regularly embrace gender dysphoria through its support for drag shows for children or transgender inclusion and celebration. But it would be wrong to think that way, according to Booyens, who argues conservatives can be complicit by failing to speak up.
"So few of our so-called social influencers on the right would be willing to say this, because in order to say it you have to take accountability," Booyens told show host Jenna Ellis. "You have to stare at yourself in a mirror and say, 'Am I part of the problem? Am I doing what the other side is doing? Have I swung the pendulum to an equal degree off of center, which is God?' And the answer is, yes."
The silent cancer
Booyens, who calls this silence the "cancer" within the conservative movement, argues trafficking is an issue that needs louder voices of condemnation. He referenced a recent Instagram post he'd seen where a woman held a gun to show support for Second Amendment rights but was half-naked in the photo.
"Is that truly what we're saying freedom is? Or could freedom actually be from God, given by God as a gift to this nation? Because we're not living in Istanbul, Turkey where you're getting beheaded if you say you're a Christian, so our freedom is actually a gift from God that we've squandered," he argued.
"We've separated from God. There's no difference. This is why I'm saying that the greatest danger you could ever face is the danger within – within the conservative movement."
His recently produced documentary "Sex Nation" takes a look at America's moral decline going back to 1933 and how the nation now leads all countries in profiting from the sexual exploitation of children.
"We walk through these markers in our history where we abandoned some of the principles that our Founding Fathers understood … that the Bible was in fact the foundation that our Constitution was written from, that the Declaration of Independence was written from, that they lived their lives from as they served their community as farmers, but also as statesmen," Booyens, now an American citizen, said. "They understood that it is interwoven. So, there are markers in our history where we abandoned certain principles. It's a slow erosion and has allowed evil to take a foothold."
Booyens says his organization helps rescue children from trafficking, and often the victims don't look like what many people imagine.
"They're white children. At 10:30 last night, we did a rescue of a 16-year-old. This is our life every single day. I was surrounded by five cop cars last night with our team helping this rescue of a child," Booyens shared. "This is America. Children should not be for sale in America, but Satan has enmity with God. There is war going on in his spirit, and Satan knows well the greatest pain he can inflict on God's heart is to steal the innocence of a child."
Social conservatism – a defining distinction
Booyens contends that too often those on the Right place their emphasis on fiscal issues instead of social issues.
"It is, 'Can the world leave me alone to do as I want to do?' And it's very convenient if I could pay less taxes or if I could have smaller government and less oversight," Booyens said. "But where's the accountability of, 'Maybe I need to walk away from pornography? Maybe I should not create demand for the sexual exploitation of women whether I'm a Christian or a conservative. Maybe I should serve my fellow man. Maybe I should operate with compassion. Maybe I should operate in the principles of God.'"
Ultimately, said the motivational speaker, it's the social aspect – not the fiscal – that should separate the Left and the Right. If the Right fails to see this, he says, the distinction will soon become blurred.
"Before we know it, we won't really be able to tell the difference between the Left and the Right," Booyens warned. "I'm a conservative because the Word of God gives me freedom. I want to protect that, and it just so happens to be that the Constitution and the Bill of Rights line up with what I believe God afforded me. It's almost like those who wrote it understood the Word of God … better than we do today."
According to his ministry's website, Booyens is actively involved in legislation reform, frequently supporting and consulting Senate and Congress with solutions through gap analysis to transform problematic areas relating to sex trafficking and education of children.
Editor's note: Jaco Booyens is host of "The Bottom Line" show and podcast.
