Students learned that modern slavery is happening now, and even closer than they thought.

A documentary entitled “Rape for Profit” by Mew Films was presented at Troxel Hall on Wednesday and gave the audience an inside look at human trafficking happening within the United States.

The event was put on by Iowa State’s chapter of the Network Against Human Trafficking, and is the first of three events the student organization is presenting.

“Rape for Profit” is set in Seattle, which has become the third-highest state in most prostituted children in the United States. The film follows a team of investigators as they attempt to track down the pimps of young girls, and the girls themselves, being sold for sex on street corners, as well as online.

The film presents a close look into the world of human trafficking of young girls, who begin prostituting themselves as young as 12 years old.

“We do have human trafficking in Iowa,” said Teresa Downing-Matibag, a lecturer in sociology and the executive director of the Network Against Human Trafficking, to the audience. “It is a serious problem for your generation to undertake. However, I do believe your generation will make the biggest impact in stopping it.”

Dowing-Matibag is the student organization’s faculty adviser and is actively involved in Iowa’s Network Against Human Trafficking.

“The Network Against Human Trafficking is a coalition of anti-trafficking organizations from across Iowa,” Downing-Matibage said. “We all work together to understand how we are addressing the issue across Iowa as a state and to develop initiatives. We also work a lot on policy. So members of our board have been involved in passing all anti-trafficking legislative.”

As an adviser to ISU’s chapter, Downing-Matibag is helping the group expand even further.

“Right now, I’m helping them to conceptualize their mission,” Downing-Matibag said. “The Network as a whole addresses awareness-raising, education, public policy and prevention. So what we’re doing with the student group is helping them to put that mission into action in a campus environment.”

Downing-Matibag said she suggested the documentary as a way to launch the student organization’s event series on campus. However, she left the planning to the students involved in ISU’s chapter of Network Against Human Trafficking.

Samantha Buckstead, senior in child, adult and family services and president of ISU’s Network Against Human Trafficking chapter, also spoke to the audience before the film. She encouraged members to join their effort to stop human trafficking.

“I just really want to help [open] people’s eyes to this reality in America,” Buckstead said. “I hope to break some people’s hearts and I want them to engage in fighting human trafficking.”

Buckstead said she hopes this event will encourage people to join her student organization.

“My biggest goal for this event is just to help people understand how severe this is in America and to just gain a glimpse of the lives of those who are trafficked and their hardships,” Buckstead said. “It’s also sharing the importance of passing policies so persecutors of the victims can be charged and held accountable for their actions.”

Jessica Mason, sophomore in biology and horticulture, attended the film because she saw a poster advertising the event.

“On the billboard, it talked about how the film was set in the U.S., which people don’t really think about it happening in the United States but it does,” Mason said.

Rachel Pierce, senior in global resource systems, said she had previously known about the issue of human trafficking.

“I did an internship in Nicaragua that worked with the issue of human trafficking and domestic violence,” Pierce said. “It’s something I want to devote my career to in the future. I’m just trying to inform myself as much as possible with the local base and what’s happening in the United States as well.”

Mason said she learned a lot from the documentary.

“The fact that the documentary takes place in the U.S. was interesting, showing that all of this is happening right outside our door,” Mason said. “I knew that it happens, but not the extent or how deeply it is in local towns. I think that it’s a big problem and people don’t really know about it, which is why I was interested in it.”

Pierce said she enjoyed watching the film and felt that she learned a lot from it.

“It’s astonishing to know that all of this is going on within the United States,” Pierce said. “Having worked globally with this, it really hits home when you hear that it’s going on outside of your door.”

The film was interesting to Mason, but the audience attendance was what gained her attention.

“I noticed that there were more women in the actual audience than men. I’d say over half of them were women,” Mason said.

Mason said the subject may not draw the interest of men as much as women.

“It definitely draws women’s attention more because it’s about women being victimized. That might not draw the attention of men,” Mason said. “Men might not want to go see the documentary or might not be as interested in it because it is more about how women are being victimized.”

Mason said the lack of interest from men on the issue may be a contribution to the problem.

“Men aren’t being told that it’s bad,” Mason said. “It doesn’t seem that men feel for women being victimized.”

Pierce said a solution to this issue will be difficult to achieve.

“It’s all about prevention and getting it from the roots,” Pierce said. “You really can’t solve anything unless you’re cutting the demand.”

Pierce said she hopes to continue to be more a part of solving the problem.

“I want to devote my career and my future on fighting this and preventing it,” Pierce said.

Buckstead said she is happy about the turnout of the audience.

“I’m just really hoping that people not only come and watch this documentary, but also want to continue to get engaged after they watch the film,” Buckstead said.

If you wish to be a part of ISU’s chapter of Network Against Human Trafficking, contact Sam Buckstead.