For months now, I’ve been waiting for the release of Angel Studios movie Sound of Freedom, which explores one man’s story about the depths of human trafficking. Not a warm fuzzy heart feeling flick to be certain but one I truly believed I needed to see.
The film deals with the delicate topic of child trafficking: the illegal stealing and selling young children into slavery of the worst kind. Based upon the real life experience of Tim Ballard, aka Timoteo, the movie follows one man’s journey to rescue not just one child but two—siblings who were unknowingly sold into the slave trade under their father’s nose.
The main character, a father himself, vows to retrieve these children after emotionally snapping from years of chasing down the sales middlemen rather than gutting the source of the problem. The movie intends to resolve this through this global search for two small children by creating a worldwide platform for change.
Angel Studios, the production company backing the film, creates spiritually based films, historically rooted, to promote hope, faith, and the human spirit. For Sound of Freedom, the studio created options for moviegoers to pay it forward by buying tickets for those who may not be able to afford today’s cinema ticket prices.
Why would a movie studio do this? The explanation may surprise you. Angel Studios believes that human trafficking is the fastest growing criminal activity in the world, faster than the drug cartel and more lucrative than gambling casinos. Why? In the words of the movie’s star actor, drugs are a one-time transaction, a trafficked human can be sold multiple times per day. My heart breaks as I write this. The goal is to inform and educate parents, neighbors, and the general good human population to make us aware of what is happening, even in the US which has the unfortunate label of top consumer of enslaved trafficked humans.
I was moved, angry, scared, and sorrowful all at once. Grateful, however, I taught my children about the dangers of grown-ups, even those familiar to us, and how important it is to be vigilant, self-aware, and committed to fighting for freedom if it’s ever taken or threatened to be taken from you. Fight like your life depends upon it because it just might.
What, if anything, can we do to help victims? Plenty. Be conscious of what’s happening in front of you; if something looks off, confront it, regardless of where or who is involved. If you’re not comfortable approaching a situation on your own directly, pay attention to details, because they count, and call for help. Take pictures of license plates, people, signage, anything that can lend support to finding and extracting the victim from the situation.
Secondly, we can all be proactive by learning more and sharing more information on the subject. Trafficking is not a third-world problem happening halfway around the globe; it’s here, in your hometown, your neighborhood. If it wasn’t, there wouldn’t be a need to have pictures on milk cartons.
Lastly, we can serve and donate to causes that support the financial, logistical, and medical costs associated with saving these children and young people. How does this matter? Why should we care? Many of us know or love someone abused as a child. If left unhealed, those children can go on to become unhealed adults harboring their own pain whilst perpetuating it through staying in and recruiting to human trafficking or inflicting trauma onto others at work, at home, and in relationships, to avoid dealing with their tragic history. Hurt people hurt people.
The film stirs the emotions while appealing to one’s sense of justice and righteousness. Its message is clear: we, God’s children, are not for sale.
For more information about Angel Studios or to purchase or claim a complimentary ticket, go the source, https://www.angel.com/freedom.