VOL 12 No. 13
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FORT BEND FAIR. BALANCED. INFORMATIVE. WEDNESDAY, MARCH 27, 2019
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Official newspaper of Fort Bend County & Missouri City
Activist gives tips to safeguard families against sex trafficking
faith and confidence that Fort Bend County and the schools in Fort Bend County are among the safest in the United States,” Nehls says.) Childproof America empowers families in the battle against sex trafficking, Litvak said. “Our mission is to educate, equip and support America’s parents in the protection and defense of their children, and improve the quality of aid to impacted families.” The organizations’ goals are to increase sex trafficking awareness in the community through creative media so that it can be quickly recognized in its various forms and stages; Coordinate and provide advocacy support for teens and families that are affected by sex trafficking ; and provide quick and easy access to the very best local resources for those who need help, know someone in need and/or want to support the cause.” Litvak showed a photo collage with seven people including a rapper, a gang member, a cheerleader, a middle aged woman, a young man, an older man and a soldier. The title of the picture is “spot the pimp.” One or two of them may look like a pimp, but the truth is all of them were pimps, convicted of human trafficking, Litvak said. Litvak identifies a “6 step recruiting process” being used on urban and suburban students to recruit them into prostitution and trafficking. Befriend (to establish trust,) intoxicate ( to introduce drugs and alcohol), alienate (to drive a wedge between the teen and the family,) isolate (separate them from old friends and make new friends), desensitize (to disorient the victim’s moral) and capitalize (to take the son or daughter away through brainwashing, coercion or kidnapping ) and then use them to
Olson visits VFW posts on “listening tour”
VFW Post 3903 in Rosenberg received Congressman Pete Olson, center, Texas Veterans Commissioner Kevin Barber, left, Anna Ehlers from the VA Hospital, James Eggers, second from right, assistant VA director from Michael DeBakey VA Hospital, Post Commander Ken Dillon, third from left, Auxiliary President Margie Dillon, Fort Bend County Pct. 1 Justice of the Peace Mary Ward and Past Post Commander Tom Atkins, in wheel chair,along with other post members Hydro, Gary, Frank, Israel and Daniel, right. By SESHADRI KUMAR U.S. Rep. Pete Olson ( R- Tx 22) conducted a listening tour of the Veterans and visited the Veterans of Foreign Wars posts in Missouri City, Pearland, Katy and Rosenberg on March 20. He was accompanied by James Eggers, acting associate medical center director, Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center in Houston, and Kevin Barker, Texas Veterans Commission member, appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott. Member of VFW Post 4010 in Missouri City on Staffordshire Road, did not have any major grievance about the VA services, but were suffering from floods caused by an adjacent new development and the city’s See TRAFFICKING, page 3 perceived indifference to remedy additional problems caused by the Pete Olson, left, Bob Nelson, Danny Montemayor, James Eggers, road re-construction in progress. Richard Askew, Jeff Elwood, and Kevin Baker at VFW Post 4010. Bob Nelson, senior vice responders for confidential help. the following statement: There is on-going construction commander of the post, said the Many of them are Veterans work on Staffordshire Rd. as part of themselves,” Eggers said. city’s decision to rezone the area the City’s roadway re-construction At the VFW Post 3903 & its from commercial to residential project (Independence Blvd. Auxiliary in Rosenberg, members resulted in the construction of Phase 1 and Staffordshire Rd. expressed overall satisfaction 120 units in an adjacent land. Expansion). Once construction is with VA medical services, but Three feet of soil was added over complete, concern about drainage cited a few problems on the 13 acres to prepare the ground abutting Staff ordshire Rd., should administrative side. for construction. The drainage be mitigated. Although, we One member pointed out system installed by the developer realize there are road closures in the enormous time taken in is insufficient, he said. the area to facilitate construction transferring medical records from During recent rainfalls, the work, access to VFW property VFW post got flooded, while that one center to another. has always been maintained. We Another pointed out the did not occur during previous apologize for any inconvenience problem faced in retaining the Courtesy: Unbound hurricanes. during construction, which is same specialist and in using The VFW post rented out the anticipated on a project of this specialty drugs. hall for events and that revenue scale. Ultimately, the roadway VA offi cials explained that the was lost because of flooding, project will improve mobility and VA has made a lot of progress, Nelson said. access to VFW property as well. though all may not be perfect. Because of the widening of the When infrastructure for The VA Hospital has introduced road, the only accessible part of Liberty Ridge Development was state of the art women’s health the roadway is full of potholes, Nelson said. The VFW parking services and women combatants constructed, a drainage swale was lot is heavily used by construction receive same care as men. Also, designed to accommodate runoff sons and spouses of veterans from the VFW property/parking trucks. lot. The post has 198 members receive health care. City staff is working with the As a member said “medical and it is the only place where the developer to ensure that the inlet services and treatments are good, veterans go for leisure. The VFW and swale that was constructed but not administration is not at the post needs financial help as a result between the two properties is same level.” of the hardship caused by the road adequately maintained to provide At the VFW in Pearland, construction and flooding, Nelson positive drainage. members spoke about the VA’s said. Staff has already reached out Olson assured the members that Women’s Health Center and to the Developer to address these infrastructure projects at DeBakey he would bring the matter to the issues. VA Medical Center. attention of the city of Missouri Even with the above, the At the Katy VFW, members City and seek redressal of their parking lot of the existing VFW narrated the veteran’s experiences grievance. property has low spots and can at the VA, improvements that Eggers, Acting VA medical hold (pond) water during rain could be made at the VA and center director, reminded the events. Ultimately, VFW may shared stories about their time in members and the community to have to do re-grading of their the service. utilize the crisis hotline 1-800James F. Carnes, left, U.S. Department of Labor, presents a certificate to HCC Chancellor 273-8255. “If you are a Veteran Responding to the concerns parking lot to provide positive Cesar Maldonado, making HCC’s Advanced Manufacturing Center of Excellence in Stafford, in crisis or concerned about one, raised by the VFW Post 4010, drainage to address their internal a Registered Apprenticeship Center. See story on Page 3. connect with our caring, qualified the City of Missouri City issued drainage deficiencies.
Kelly Litvak, founder and executive director of Childproof America. By SESHADRI KUMAR of five is male and half of child Minor child trafficking is trafficking occurs domestically. happening in Fort Bend County, Online services account for 73 in cities like Sugar Land and percent of all sex trafficking and Katy as well and the predators smart phone apps like Snapchat are everywhere, including in and Instagram are on the top of churches, schools, youth camps the list. and neighborhoods, according There are more brothels in to Kelly Litvak, founder and Houston than Starbucks, Litvak executive director of Childproof said. America. No statistics is available for Litvak was the featured speaker child sex trafficking in Fort Bend at the monthly meeting of the Fort County, Litvak said, but at least Bend Republican Patriots Club in half of the juvenile girls booked Sugar Land on March 21. for drug offenses are also victims The motto of Childproof of child trafficking, she said. America is “Safeguarding Anecdotally, every week she families against sex trafficking.” received at least two calls from Human trafficking is the fastest Fort Bend and one from Harris growing criminal industry in the County, on child trafficking. world today and is currently tied (Human trafficking exists in with illegal arms trade, as the Fort Bend County, Sheriff Troy second largest criminal industry, Nehls says. “However, there are Litvak said quoting a U.S. some who would want persons to Department of Health and Human believe that it is so very prevalent Services report. as to make you fearful to send Litvak also cited additional your kid to school. We have full statistics to describe the magnitude of the problem. About 79,000 minors and youths are victims of sex trafficking in Texas. There are currently an estimated 313,000 victims of human trafficking in Texas. About 234,000 workers are victims of labor trafficking in Texas and traffickers benefit $600 million from victims of labor trafficking. Minors and youth sex traffic cost the state of Texas about $6.6 billion. The target age for sex trafficking is 12 to 14 and four out of five are females and one out