The Fierce Freedom Podcast

Our guest Christopher Ruff has served been Director of the Office for Ministries and Social Concerns for the Catholic Diocese of La Crosse since 2001 and he shares about his belief that at the core of all social justice work - one thing is clear - it is about the restoring the dignity and respecting the sanctity of human life. Chris explains that while social justice can take many different forms,...

It is estimated that 19.5 million men and women have served in the U.S. military - the horrific truth is that many come home bearing not only the wounds of combat, but the emotional, physical and psychological effects of sexual assault they've suffered during their time of service to our country. To speak more about this, we invite sexual assault advocate Jess Teresi , who will share more about wh...

For today's episode, we want to share with you some of highlights of the work we've done and paint a vision of where we're going in the year ahead. Fierce Freedom's ultimate goal is to end the cycle of human trafficking and exploitation through educational programming that empowers communities and speaks to the worth and dignity of each individual, while addressing  root issues of exploitation. If...

Sisters Heather Wittig and Jenni Patnode share with us about the birth of their nonprofit Pink Box Purpose , which has provided love, care, and support of young women through the distribution of sustainable menstrual pads since 2017. Most girls and women in Honduras cannot afford pads and so they drop out of school when they are 12-13 years old. Not only that but they are vulnerable to traffickers...

Over the holidays, you may find yourself renting an adorable Airbnb or VRBO during your travels, joining the 450 million people worldwide use vacation rentals each year.  The dark underside of this hugely popular industry is that they are also a hot spot to sell human beings for commercial sex acts, due to their ease of use and anonymity. Together, we'll break down some safety Do's and Don'ts of s...

In the U.S. 1.3 million adults are under guardianship or conservatorship. In light of pop icon Britney Spear' s recent hearing regarding the status of her conservatorship, we wanted to highlight how this case sheds light on others that deal with exploitation through guardianship. This mistreatment can look like misuse of financial assets, sexual abuse, or withholding of food and basic needs as a t...

We invited our NEW podcast co-host Matt Kendziera to talk about Fierce Freedom's upcoming initiative Worth It - a live multi-media presentation designed to help create a culture within schools that teaches about the value of each individual, working to prevent and disrupt the cycle of trafficking before teens find themselves caught up in it. Matt also explains about how parents play a key role in...

Today we say goodbye to podcast host John Pulley and celebrate some incredible moments we've had with him as podcast co-host. Have a guest or topic to suggest? E mail podcast@fiercefreedom.org

In today's episode we invited our friend Amy O'Donahue , Domestic and Sexual Assault Officer for Ashland and Bayfield Counties to weigh in on the recent case of Gabby Petito , a 22-year-old female who went missing and whose remains were found after traveling cross-country with her fiance Brian Landrie  (now also deceased). Amy's experience working with victims in sensitive crimes lends insight int...

Could you be inviting a predator into your child's life through online gaming ? This source of escape and entertainment is so common for kids, in fact 84% of teens say they have a game console at home or have access to one ( pew research ). But this could also spell out online grooming and exploitation for your child - so how can you encourage them to navigate it safely? We asked Liz Almquist , ch...

How does faith equip us to fight against such a great evil as the enslavement of individuals? To share more about this we invited Jo Lembo , Director of Faith Initiatives and National Outreach for Shared Hope International. Jo explains how Shared Hope began on a "miracle" and has since relied on the Holy Spirit to continue its goal to change the tide of trafficking, "one life at a time." She also...

Multi-platinum R&B artist R. Kelly has been found guilty of sexual abuse, 8 violations of an anti-sex trafficking law, as well as racketeering, or leading an enterprise to recruit underage girls for sex since his rise to fame as early as the 1990's. So why are his decades long abuses just now coming to justice? We'll unpack the timeline of Robert Kelly's career of criminal sexual exploitation, how...

To some coming to America, there is an almost mythical quality that it will be akin to "coming to heaven." Traffickers use this belief to trap foreign nationals who come to this country to work, only to find themselves coerced into debt bondage.  One study in San Diego found that 30% of undocumented migrant laborers were victims of labor trafficking. Harold D'Souza , Founder of Eyes Open Internati...

For today's rebroadcasted episode we invited Dr. Celia Williamson, named one of the top 30 most influential social workers alive today, with over 25 years of anti-trafficking experience. Celia discusses her exciting new project, The Emancipation Nation Network – a free, rapidly growing network to equip and connect various professionals working for freedom and justice. This network includes topics,...

How can someone begin to recover from the devastating moment when they learn about a partner's porn use or sexual infidelity? To share more we invited Anne Blythe, Founder of Betrayal Trauma Recovery - which seeks to validate a woman's experience of betrayal trauma by re-framing it with words to accurately describe their experience, as well as the necessary support to move through it, from those w...

What does it really mean for a victim when they are called to testify in a Federal Court case against their abuser? To the public following a federal or local trafficking or sex crimes case, it can be both a frustrating and confusing experience. And it can easily look like justice for victims isn't being served. To help break down the federal court process, co-host John will share how these kinds...

Bitdefender reports that children under 10 now account for 10 percent of traffic on porn sites, that could mean 4.2 billion visits from kids who haven't yet hit fifth grade. Everyday, children are stumbling upon horrific portrayals of gang rape, sodomy, and violent dehumanization depicted in pornography. Which is why Exodus Cry - the same anti-trafficking org whose campaign #Traffickinghub reached...

Where can you find thousands of innovative and award-winning artists, filmmakers, musicians, celebrities, corporations, nonprofits, politicians, citizens, and survivors of human trafficking all featured together? At the FREE, and virtual See it. End it. Film festival this November. We invited Founder Patrick Erlandson onto the podcast to chat about the origins of the fest and to tease upcoming hig...

How can posting fake sex ads help disrupt the sex market? To share real stories of impact we invited Nick Lembo , State Coordinator for Just Men Arizona , which works to train a group of men to disrupt the commercial sex market. Nick explains the process by which his team interacts with potential buyers through fake sex ads, but rather than "naming and shaming" they want to " grasp the humanity "...

Can social media tell us if someone is ready to leave "the life" of trafficking and sexual exploitation? This is one example of the research done by The Avery Center, where their work to collect data not only leads to actionable change but equips providers to offer more informed care for survivors. To chat more we invited McKenna Miller, Community Outreach Coordinator at The Avery Center for Resea...

How can watching films help survivors of trafficking heal? To discuss this we invited filmmaker Mark Steenbarger and licensed therapist Emily Taylor-Ginger of Point of View Story , a collaborative project that effortlessly integrates the power of cinema within a trauma-informed, therapeutic context. The two will share how POV Story was born out of a passion to empower victim-survivors of trafficki...

OneFest is an annual two-day Christian music  festival  held in Chippewa Falls,  Wisconsin and features many of today's well-known artists on two different stages.  We asked President and Director of OneFest Heather Flashinski to share how the fest got started, exciting highlights this year with headliners Rend Collective & Danny Gokey , and about their heart to give back to Fierce Freedom as a hi...

Fan fiction is a fun way for fans of popular culture to we-write and share adventures of their favorite characters. But as our guest, author Mary Duban shares, it is also vehicle of disseminating violent and graphic sexual themes in the form of x-rated fan fiction. She explains that consuming x-rated fan fiction, or written pornography, is a "silent killer" for impressionable youth. She shares how...

What is the connection between religious cults and trafficking? To dive more into this connection and to share about breaking free of the cultic mindset, we invited Naomi Wright of Naomi Wright Ministries . Naomi shares about her experience growing up in a polygamous, pseudo-Christian cult, all while attending a mainstream public school. Naomi explores the complexities of unlearning a mindset that...

For today's podcast we invited Detective Carter Staaf, a friend of Fierce Freedom and this past year's recipient of the Dave Malone for Service and Excellence award. He is joined by returning guest Amanda Casey, Survivor Advocate for Fierce Freedom. The two will explain best practices for law enforcement agents and advocates to work together, in spite of their surface-level differences. Carter and...