‘The Sound of Freedom’ Winning Big Praise Among the Faithful in Michigan
‘The Sound of Freedom,’ a cinematic expose of child sex trafficking, is having a profound effect on millions of American moviegoers. It has raised awareness of an awkward and little talked about on-going tragedy.
Jim Caviezel (L), actor in the new human trafficking action film "Sound of Freedom,” and Tim Ballard (R), a former Department of Homeland Security special agent and founder of Operation Underground Railroad, speak during an interview in Washington on June 21, 2023. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times
About 80 people turned out on a Saturday afternoon at a church in Macomb County, Michigan, to watch the movie “The Sound of Freedom”—a powerful cinematic portrayal of international child sex trafficking.
“I brought my preteen daughter and niece and my young son to see this movie. I want to educate them and show them what’s going on in the streets of this cruel world. I don’t want them to be naive about the dangers out there,” said Tamika, a mother and aunt from Farmington Hills.
Pastor Jim, a Baptist minister from St. Clair Shores told The Epoch Times: “I think the film was tastefully done. It handled the difficult subject matter by showing just enough to get the point across without being explicit.
“It revealed the depravity of human beings who stoop to the level of selling children.
“I’ve seen first-hand the tragedy of this perversion and debauchery. It is a spiritual sickness found throughout the world. It is a moral pandemic.”
The screening was organized by the conservative group Faith, Education, and Commerce United (FEC), in cooperation with Liberty Leaders United.
FEC’s Michigan director, Lisha Kilgus, told The Epoch Times: “This film is bringing public awareness to the ugly topic of human trafficking in a powerful way.
“Human trafficking takes three forms, trafficking of people for sexual exploitation, cheap labor, and even organ harvesting.
“It is a form of modern-day slavery that is much bigger than slavery at the time of the Civil War. The movie depicts a dark and awful thing going on right now.
A mother and her family watch the movie 'The Sound of Freedom' in Macomb Co., Mich. on Aug. 5, 2023. Steven Kovac/The Epoch Times
“Some people call the facts presented mind-blowing. It is high time people’s minds were blown,” Kilgus said.
A man who told The Epoch Times that he was abused as a child, described some of his lasting scars: “The way my abuse distorted my maturing sexuality is something that should not happen to anyone.
“The lives of many survivors of childhood sexual abuse are controlled by suppressed trauma. It’s something that people don’t want to talk about, but it’s there.
“The film was educational but disappointing. I wish it focused more on human trafficking and the sexual abuse of children closer to home.”
A Hero’s Story
The suspenseful, action-filled, two-hour movie was completed five years ago but was rejected by Hollywood producers and studios. The movie did not make it into theaters until this year.
It is a true story of the compassion and heroism of Immigration and Customs Services Enforcement (ICE) agent Timothy Ballard.
Mr. Ballard was played by actor Jim Caviezel, who previously starred in the blockbuster hit “The Passion of the Christ.”
The film shows Mr. Ballard working in Southern California, Mexico, Honduras, and Colombia, to rescue scores of enslaved children and to bust numerous perpetrators.
In an interview tacked on to the end of the movie, Mr. Caviezel presented statistics showing that two million children are sucked into the sex trade every year.
He said the $150 billion annual revenue generated from trafficking children for sex has surpassed the profitability of illicit drug smuggling.
Mr. Caviezel said that a 5-year-old child is considered to be a valuable long-term asset by perpetrators because he or she can be sold for sex five to 10 times a day for 10 years.
The posting online of 22 million pornographic images of children reveals the size of that aspect of the industry, said Mr. Caviezel.
Movie Goers Stick It to Hollywood
A man from Grosse Pointe Woods told The Epoch Times that he and his wife bought tickets and came to see the film “precisely because of its being panned by Hollywood.”
One woman said she was hesitant at first to view the film for fear it would be too graphic.
After seeing the picture, she said it was a quality production and could not believe the script wasn’t picked up by a big Hollywood studio.
“All the garbage that Hollywood puts out and they wouldn’t take this movie?” she asked.
Doug Edwards of Sterling Heights said he and his wife came out to demonstrate support for the good work FEC was doing to help save America.
“We are terribly disturbed by human trafficking and this powerful and touching story deserves to be told. It was very tastefully done and not obscene.
“It’s hard to believe people can be that cruel and evil. Destroying the innocence of a child is a terrible thing,” said Mr. Edwards.
Sobering Facts
According to Emma Waters, a research associate at the Heritage Foundation, even though the United States is a “top destination” for victims of international human trafficking, 83 percent of child trafficking victims in the country are Americans.
The most vulnerable are those raised in single-parent homes where an unrelated male is present.
Waters cited a 2016 study by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that revealed that 86 percent of sex trafficking victims were in the care of social services when they went missing.
Waters found that, “on average a child enters the U.S. sex trade at 12 to 14 years old.”
Many are runaway girls who have already been sexually abused. Most victims are trafficked by someone they know, according to Waters.
Porous Border a Factor
Rosemary of Shelby Township said, “Human trafficking is now more than ever a big concern because of the open border.”
A couple from Oakland County said they became aware of the problem of human trafficking and the existence of the movie by watching Steve Bannon’s “War Room” on television.
“With everything that’s going on at the border, you can’t help but be concerned. Adults, as well as children, are being harmed.
“Many people do not realize what is going on because the so-called ‘mainstream' media is nothing but propaganda. The government must stop this,” said the woman.
Her husband said that he thinks of human trafficking as “a human dignity issue that ought to transcend politics.”
One man noted that Democrats are downplaying the extent of the problem of human trafficking.
President Donald Trump signs an executive order to create a new position for the Domestic Policy Council during the White House Summit on Human Trafficking in Washington, on Jan. 31, 2020. Sarah Silbiger/Getty Images
“When [President] Trump was in office, he was getting things done busting the traffickers. Why are the elites and the motion picture industry fighting this movie?
“It’s nice to see a movie based on a true story. You can’t wrap your mind around what we just saw,” said a man from Harrison Township.
A woman described the film as “very moving.”
She told The Epoch Times, “We are living in a bad world right now. The movie is a reflection of our time. There is no respect for life or people’s rights.”
Hearts Must Change
Speaking of the horror and pervasiveness of the trafficking of children for sex, Jeff Westerby said, “It’s something you don’t want to believe, but the evidence is all around us.
“Our system is not focused on fixing the root of the problem. If the government wants to continue to spend our money, spend it on stopping human trafficking.
“My takeaway from the film is, if we don’t change hearts, we are just putting band-aids on the problem.”
In August of 2022, Michigan ranked seventh in the nation in the number of human trafficking cases reported.
California was No. 1, followed by Texas, Florida, New York, Georgia, and Ohio.
Steven Kovac
Reporter
Steven Kovac reports for The Epoch Times from Michigan. He is a general news reporter who has covered topics related to rising consumer prices to election security issues. He can be reached at [email protected]
‘The Sound of Freedom’ Winning Big Praise Among the Faithful in Michigan
Friends Read Free
“I brought my preteen daughter and niece and my young son to see this movie. I want to educate them and show them what’s going on in the streets of this cruel world. I don’t want them to be naive about the dangers out there,” said Tamika, a mother and aunt from Farmington Hills.
Pastor Jim, a Baptist minister from St. Clair Shores told The Epoch Times: “I think the film was tastefully done. It handled the difficult subject matter by showing just enough to get the point across without being explicit.
“It revealed the depravity of human beings who stoop to the level of selling children.
“I’ve seen first-hand the tragedy of this perversion and debauchery. It is a spiritual sickness found throughout the world. It is a moral pandemic.”
The screening was organized by the conservative group Faith, Education, and Commerce United (FEC), in cooperation with Liberty Leaders United.
FEC’s Michigan director, Lisha Kilgus, told The Epoch Times: “This film is bringing public awareness to the ugly topic of human trafficking in a powerful way.
“Human trafficking takes three forms, trafficking of people for sexual exploitation, cheap labor, and even organ harvesting.
“It is a form of modern-day slavery that is much bigger than slavery at the time of the Civil War. The movie depicts a dark and awful thing going on right now.
“Some people call the facts presented mind-blowing. It is high time people’s minds were blown,” Kilgus said.
A man who told The Epoch Times that he was abused as a child, described some of his lasting scars: “The way my abuse distorted my maturing sexuality is something that should not happen to anyone.
“The lives of many survivors of childhood sexual abuse are controlled by suppressed trauma. It’s something that people don’t want to talk about, but it’s there.
A Hero’s Story
The suspenseful, action-filled, two-hour movie was completed five years ago but was rejected by Hollywood producers and studios. The movie did not make it into theaters until this year.It is a true story of the compassion and heroism of Immigration and Customs Services Enforcement (ICE) agent Timothy Ballard.
Mr. Ballard was played by actor Jim Caviezel, who previously starred in the blockbuster hit “The Passion of the Christ.”
The film shows Mr. Ballard working in Southern California, Mexico, Honduras, and Colombia, to rescue scores of enslaved children and to bust numerous perpetrators.
In an interview tacked on to the end of the movie, Mr. Caviezel presented statistics showing that two million children are sucked into the sex trade every year.
He said the $150 billion annual revenue generated from trafficking children for sex has surpassed the profitability of illicit drug smuggling.
Mr. Caviezel said that a 5-year-old child is considered to be a valuable long-term asset by perpetrators because he or she can be sold for sex five to 10 times a day for 10 years.
Movie Goers Stick It to Hollywood
A man from Grosse Pointe Woods told The Epoch Times that he and his wife bought tickets and came to see the film “precisely because of its being panned by Hollywood.”One woman said she was hesitant at first to view the film for fear it would be too graphic.
After seeing the picture, she said it was a quality production and could not believe the script wasn’t picked up by a big Hollywood studio.
“All the garbage that Hollywood puts out and they wouldn’t take this movie?” she asked.
Doug Edwards of Sterling Heights said he and his wife came out to demonstrate support for the good work FEC was doing to help save America.
“We are terribly disturbed by human trafficking and this powerful and touching story deserves to be told. It was very tastefully done and not obscene.
Sobering Facts
According to Emma Waters, a research associate at the Heritage Foundation, even though the United States is a “top destination” for victims of international human trafficking, 83 percent of child trafficking victims in the country are Americans.The most vulnerable are those raised in single-parent homes where an unrelated male is present.
Waters found that, “on average a child enters the U.S. sex trade at 12 to 14 years old.”
Porous Border a Factor
Rosemary of Shelby Township said, “Human trafficking is now more than ever a big concern because of the open border.”A couple from Oakland County said they became aware of the problem of human trafficking and the existence of the movie by watching Steve Bannon’s “War Room” on television.
“With everything that’s going on at the border, you can’t help but be concerned. Adults, as well as children, are being harmed.
“Many people do not realize what is going on because the so-called ‘mainstream' media is nothing but propaganda. The government must stop this,” said the woman.
Her husband said that he thinks of human trafficking as “a human dignity issue that ought to transcend politics.”
One man noted that Democrats are downplaying the extent of the problem of human trafficking.
“When [President] Trump was in office, he was getting things done busting the traffickers. Why are the elites and the motion picture industry fighting this movie?
“It’s nice to see a movie based on a true story. You can’t wrap your mind around what we just saw,” said a man from Harrison Township.
A woman described the film as “very moving.”
Hearts Must Change
Speaking of the horror and pervasiveness of the trafficking of children for sex, Jeff Westerby said, “It’s something you don’t want to believe, but the evidence is all around us.“Our system is not focused on fixing the root of the problem. If the government wants to continue to spend our money, spend it on stopping human trafficking.
“My takeaway from the film is, if we don’t change hearts, we are just putting band-aids on the problem.”
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