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LADY BEARS DOMINATE pg. 8
W E ’ R E T H E R E W H E N YO U C A N ’ T B E
TUESDAY
MARCH 1, 2016
Waco aims to stop sex trafficking
B AY L O R L A R I AT. C O M
BETTING ON TEXAS White House hopefuls hold rallies ahead of Super Tuesday
GAVIN PUGH Reporter In the four Internet stings conducted by Waco Detective Joseph Scaramucci and his team since Oct. 2014, 93 people have been arrested trying to purchase sex from children as young as 2 years old. Pictures, badges and certificates from Scaramucci’s six years in the Marines decorate the walls of his office in the bowels of the McLennan County sheriff ’s office. After serving time as a patrol and investigative officer, he moved on to his work as a detective of crimes against any persons — not just victims of sex trafficking. While Scaramucci and his team target the buyers and solicitors, or “Johns” and “pimps,” they sometimes detain women for their own protection. When a woman is taken into custody, they are turned over to the Waco-based international organization UnBound. UnBound, which organized an event at Antioch Community Church on Feb. 12 to raise awareness about sex trafficking, advocates for victims of the industry. “UnBound does all the legwork for us,” Scaramucci said, referring to the work they do with the victims. Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who spoke at the UnBound event at Antioch, recently authored the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. The bill imposes a $5,000 fine on anyone convicted of buying or selling sex, such as the offenders Scaramucci and his team arrested. The funds are then used as grants to states and organizations to combat sex trafficking. SHE (Safe House and Empowerment) Is Freedom, a new Waco-based nonprofit, would be one of those organizations to receive a grant. The organization is currently raising money to open up a 15-bed safe house for minors in the industry. The safehouse will serve as a rehabilitation center, as well as protection from the girls’ previous pimps. But it’s not that simple. The stress the girls are subjected to causes a psychological disorder called trauma bonding, which is associated with PTSD. This means they do not always want to leave their pimp. “That’s what’s so hard,” said Elizabeth Tews, executive director of SHE Is Freedom. “It’s not something that I can force [the girls] to be happy.” But once they are in the safehouse,
Associated Press
Associated Press
SANDERS Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., speaks during a campaign rally Sunday at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo.
RUBIO Republican presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.,
Associated Press
Rachel Leland | Staff Writer
CRUZ Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks at the National Religious Broadcasters convention Friday in Nashville, Tenn.
speaks to a rally Monday in Oklahoma City.
TRUMP Donald Trump held a rally on Friday at the Fort Worth Convention Center in Fort Worth.
Check out our coverage of each Texas rally >> Pages 3,5
TRAFFIC >> Page 5
>>WHAT’S INSIDE opinion Editorial: Apple has the right to retain its security measures. pg. 2
Gender Influence Professor speaks about role of women in Uganda’s political, military history KALLI DAMSCHEN Reporter
arts & life
SING RESULTS: Pi Beta Phi takes home first place for this year’s competition. pg. 6
Vol.116 No. 77
Studying women’s experiences in areas of history not commonly associated with gender issues can reveal important information about politics and society, Dr. Alicia Decker told students and faculty Monday afternoon during the 22nd Annual Women’s History Month Lecture. Decker is an associate professor of women’s, gender and sexuality studies and African studies at Pennsylvania State University. She earned her master’s degree in women’s and gender studies at Makerere University in Uganda. Decker is also the author of the book “In Idi Amin’s Shadow: Women, Gender and Militarism in Uganda,” which inspired the topic of her lecture. The lecture, titled “Gender and the Politics
of Invisibility: Making Historical Sense of Enforced Disappearance in Post-Colonial Uganda,” explored the narratives of women affected by the abduction of citizens by the Ugandan government in the 1970s under the regime of Idi Amin. “It was they, the wives, mothers and daughters of the disappeared, who refused to be silenced, who gave voice to a crime that was supposed to leave no trace,” Decker said. Decker said while doing research for her book about gender and militarism in Uganda, people often told her enforced disappearance was not an issue that affected women. “People kept saying to me, ‘You’re going to focus on enforced disappearance? Well that’s not for women. That’s all about men. Men were the ones who were abducted by the state.
WOMEN >> Page 5
Kalli Damschen | Reporter
WOMEN SPEAK Dr. Alicia Decker, associate professor of women’s gender and sexuality studies and African studies at Pennsylvania State University, talks about the narratives of abducted Ugandan women in the 1970s.
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