Rescuing the Child: Unborn

Post by: Rebecca Emmanuel

Hello! My name is Becky Emmanuel, and I am a second-year law student at Regent University. One of the main reasons I decided to go to law school was to help people who cannot represent themselves and are overlooked in society. The Center for Global Justice at Regent allows me to join hands with other students who are also passionate about helping the oppressed and use the law to ensure that there is justice in various parts of the world.

Last year I worked on a project with IJM Uganda on sentencing for armed crimes and this year I have the privilege of working with other Center staff members on Indian law regarding sex selective abortions. Our research has been focused on the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act (PCPNDT Act). This Act bans ultrasounds and other machines used in determining the sex of a fetus (an unborn baby) for the purpose of sex selective abortions of baby girls specifically.

The PCPNDT Act was designed to protect baby girls who have been the main target of sex selective abortions. Couples who are pregnant go to Clinic Centers that perform ultrasounds to know what the sex of their baby will be, and if the child is a girl, they are more likely to abort the child than if it is a boy. The girl child in such a case has no voice and has not even had the opportunity to be born to have a fair chance in life.

So far, in my research of cases under the PCPNDT Act, the authorities played an active role in identifying Centers and individuals who conducted ultrasounds for the purpose of sex selective abortions. Authorities face a lot of problems with the court concerning procedures used when investigating, seizing machines, or sealing places that violate the PCPNDT Act. It’s been encouraging to read about the investigations and to know that there are people in power working to rescue the unborn girls so that they can one day have a voice.

This post was written by a Center for Global Justice student staff member.  The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.

To Make Justice Known to the World

Post by: Nathan Moelker

My name is Nathan Moelker, I am a 1L here at Regent Law, and this is my first semester with the Center for Global Justice. This semester I have been engaged in researching international law concerning the wearing of religious clothing and symbols for Canada’s Christian Legal Fellowship. This is in relation to Quebec's Bill 21, which bans religious symbols of any kind for certain public workers, including government lawyers. As someone new to the process of international research, this work has been largely a dive into the deep end, with new and exciting challenges in translation and location every day, new hurdles to learn how to strive to reach. I am particularly thankful for the way this project has helped me to develop a more global understanding of the needs of justice.

The tendency of many of us in the United States, and perhaps other Western nations, is to think of issues of personal liberty and religious liberty as if most of the world has the matter figured out, and a few “bad” countries, like North Korea, are engaged in violations of these universally known truths. While the evil those “bad” countries do should never be minimized, the truth is far less simple or easy. The sad fact of the matter, as I have been increasingly uncovering through research throughout the world, is that no country is as effective as it should be in protecting fundamental rights, particularly religious rights. The task of religious liberty litigation so often tends to be matter of comparing whichever country is doing worse, rather than seeking to hold countries to objective standards.

The answer to this problem is not to descend into despair that religious liberty could be defended at all. Our responsibility, rather, is two-fold. We must first never fall into an uneasy contentment with the status quo, as if we’ve got it all figured out just because we’re no worse then some other place. We must rather continue to strive with a wholehearted and whole minded devotion to the truths of God, that all men and women are created equal with undeniable rights, rooted in their creation. The standard is not the decisions of the EU or the UN or the Supreme Court of this Country or any other. Our obligation is to fly the standard of justice high with unfaltering resolve, though all the rest of the world refuses to fly it in the interests of their police powers. G. K. Chesterton articulated this call to action, “For our Titanic purposes of faith and revolution, what we need is not the cold acceptance of the world as a compromise, but some way in which we can heartily hate and heartily love it. We do not want joy and anger to neutralize each other and produce a surly contentment; we want a fiercer delight and a fiercer discontent. We have to feel the universe at once as an ogre's castle, to be stormed, and yet as our own cottage, to which we can return at evening.” (Chesterton, Orthodoxy Chapter 5)

Our responsibility is to lovingly and graciously refuse to ever compromise anything, no matter how legitimate it may seem, in the cause of righteousness. This high and mighty task is one that every lawyer, whether engaged in Religious liberty or not, cannot waive away, but must pursue with a wholehearted commitment.

This post was written by a Center for Global Justice student staff member.  The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.

Research into Euthanasia

Post by: Lindsey Carpenter

My name is Lindsey Carpenter and I am a Second-Year law student at Regent University. I received my undergraduate degree from Wake Forest University with a double major in Chinese Language and Culture and Political Science and International Relations. Through the Center for Global Justice, I did research on euthanasia laws, specifically physician assisted suicide.

The majority of countries do not allow physician assisted suicide but will allow Do Not Resuscitate Orders (DNR). The majority of countries point to humanitarian arguments, highlighting that physician assisted suicide equivocates to murder and violates a doctor’s medical oath to provide healthcare. DNR’s, on the other hand, is a free-willed choice by the individual to not be resuscitated. DNR’s, as opposed to physician assisted suicide, requires doctor’s not to act, while physician assisted suicide requires action from the doctors. 

This post was written by a Center for Global Justice Student Staff Member. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.

Courage or Bravery?

Post by: Kim Kham

Courage and bravery. Two words that many use synonymously yet are very different. Bravery is the ability to confront danger, opposition, or pressure without the presence of fear. Courage, on the other hand, is pressing through danger, opposition, or pressure in the midst of (or despite) the presence of fear. A couple of years ago, before I came to law school, God began speaking to me through these two words. Those who knew and encountered me thought, because of the way I outwardly portrayed myself and tackled life’s hardships, that I was naturally brave, but I knew I wasn’t. I’ve struggled with anxiety for as long as I can remember but the amazing thing is that even in the midst of my fear and doubt, God is still faithful. My continuous prayer is that I never become complacent nor stagnant. I always ask that God would stretch me and take me out of my comfort zone, but for me, it’s almost like I’m opening a way for more anxiety to creep its way into my life. My theory is that if I ever become complacent, I’ve personally become too comfortable. Going to the Middle East for the first time in 2014 to visit Syrian refugee camps took courage (not because it was the Middle East, but because I knew it would be the beginning of a daunting yet exciting career in human rights that I could no longer deny nor run away from). Living in Lebanon in 2015 and working in different Syrian refugee camps every week for 3 months took courage. Going to rehabilitation centers in India in 2015 to visit children that had AIDS because they were born into brothels and conduct research in India on human trafficking took courage. Coming to law school and moving 1,100 miles away from home took courage. It’s so easy to talk about how passionate I am about human rights but it’s a completely different story to be confronted with it head on—it’s extremely eye-opening and humbling because you can’t un-see the outrageous injustice and not do anything about it. I can’t live in the selfishly immature plausible deniability that I once did before I took a leap of courage to go where God called me. In the midst of my fear, God has always reminded me that He really is my steady rock and guide. In a sense, I’m thankful that I have courage and not bravery because it makes me have to depend on God for literally everything I do and every decision I make. Pressing through my anxiety and fear and embracing courage through God, I’ve lived a very uncomfortable life. I think that the field of international human rights is daunting but defending the cause of the weak and oppressed is what Christianity is all about (Psalm 82:3).  Following the call that God has on your life can be extremely uncomfortable and it stretches you. But that’s a good thing, because if you’re not uncomfortable then you might not be growing—we are called to go from glory to glory and strength to strength (Psalm 84:7).

This post was written by a Center for Global Justice student staff member.  The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.

State Laws and Their Impact on Those Vulnerable to Human Trafficking

Post by: Kelsey Yates

My name is Kelsey Yates and I am a second-year law student at Regent University. My goal after law school is to work in a non-profit legal setting that helps those in need, specifically victims of human trafficking and sexual abuse. Fighting to end these atrocities is something I am passionate about and is ultimately what encouraged me to attend law school. Proverbs 31:8-9 says, “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” This verse is so important to me because it reminds me of my calling and why I am on this journey of becoming an attorney.

As a student staff member for the Center for Global Justice I have had the privilege of aiding Shared Hope International in their fight against human trafficking through legal research. This semester our focus is on determining how different states handle two different groups: minors who have been charged with legal violations and youth who are considered “transition age” (between ages 18 to 24) and have “aged out” of foster care. These two groups can be especially vulnerable to human trafficking. Some states have a variety of statutes meant to protect and assist these groups and, thus lower the likelihood of these youth becoming victims of human trafficking. Other states, however, have little to no laws in place that protect or assist these groups. Youth who live in states with a lack of protection/assistance for these groups are in a disadvantaged position when it comes to their likelihood of becoming victimized.

Shared Hope International is working hard to abolish human trafficking through prevention, restoration, and justice. I am honored to be just a small part of that effort.

This post was written by a Center for Global Justice Student Staff Member. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.

Pornography Exploits Everyone

Post by: Lauren Moustakas

Pornography Exploits Everyone

What Kind of Industry Profits on the Exploitation of the most Vulnerable and Calls it Harmless Entertainment?

My name is Lauren Moustakas, I am a 2L at Regent University School of Law and a Law Clerk for the Center for Global Justice, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law. This semester I am grateful for the opportunity to work on a project for the National Center on Sexual Exploitation (NCOSE), an organization that works to address all forms of sexual exploitation based in Washington D.C.. Last summer, I had the opportunity to serve as a legal intern for NCOSE and I am thankful to be able to work on a project that supports their work to expose and address the connections between sex trafficking, prostituted persons, pornography, and all forms of exploitation.

Currently, I am working on two projects for NCOSE through the Center focused on pornography. One is looking to how the law addresses the harms that pornography causes to victims of child pornography when a “user” of pornography downloads and views images and videos of their sexual abuse. The second project is looking to address how a child viewer of pornography, who is exploited and harmed mentally and developmentally by the depictions of exploitation he is exposed to, can be made whole through the law. Each project, while focusing on different kind of victim, recognizes that when it comes to pornography the viewer and the person/child depicted are both exploited by the pornography industry.

The pornography industry is complicit in the exploitation of victims and users of pornography, especially young children who are exploited through pornography exposure on their websites. A simple “checkbox” allows any viewer to confirm that they are 18 or older and access any kind of exploitative pornography imaginable. Additionally, websites such as Pornhub utilizes social media such as SnapChat and Instagram, whose majority of users are under 18, targeting underage users to create clients for life.

Further, it was just recently brought to light that PornHub approved a user as “verified” who turned out to be trafficking a fifteen-year-old girl and uploaded over 58 videos of her being raped and exploited. Pornhub’s “verification” system of users who upload content to their website allowed this trafficker and others to exploit a 15-year-old girl for over a year. Countless others have been exploited in this same way, how can the pornography industry claim pornography is harmless fun that doesn’t victimize anyone?

Ultimately, pornography exploits those who are depicted and those who view the exploitation of others and fuels the demand for sex-trafficking and prostituted persons. I am thankful to have the opportunity to work on a project for an organization that is dedicated to ending exploitation of all people and upholding each persons’ inherent worth and human dignity.

This post was written by a Center for Global Justice student staff member.  The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.

Returning Trafficked Victims Home

Post by: Kalina Speaks

My name is Kalina Speaks, and I am a 1L student at Regent University School of Law. This is my first semester as a student staff member for the Center for Global Justice.

This semester, I am working on a project with Justice Ventures International (JVI) and their project regarding the influx of trafficked victims from India and Nepal to the Middle East. I have specifically been tasked with researching the anti-human trafficking law and policies of two Middle Eastern countries: Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. In addition to researching the laws of other Middle Eastern countries, my team is looking into the repatriation policies and procedures Middle Eastern countries have in place for trafficked victims. Repatriation involves returning victims back to their countries of origin.

Our goal is that this research would continue to help JVI to know what legal avenues they have to help victims in these countries and to see them safely back in their country of origin. Oftentimes, the legal remedies are not known or utilized widely by victims, and they feel helpless to seek help in their situations. We hope that this research will help JVI be more effective advocates in their fight.

I feel honored to help JVI in this fight and to be a student staff member for the Center for Global Justice. I came to law school because I wanted to help fight human trafficking in some capacity. The opportunity to aid in this effort as a 1L is one I am very thankful for.

This post was written by a Center for Global Justice Student Staff Member. The views expressed in this post do not necessarily reflect those of Regent University, Regent Law School, or the Center for Global Justice.