BUSTABITCH

From the website  http://humantrafficking.change.org

These days, the Rhodes scholars of the criminal justice system seem to like locking people up for life the way Mark Sanford likes frequent filer miles on Aerolineas.  Well, they've managed another winner: sentencing 16-year-old trafficking victim Sara Kruzan to die in prison for killing her pimp.  My partner-in-crime-blogging Matt has the criminal justice perspective on what happened, but here's how things look from Sara's perspective.

When Sara met G.G., the 31-year-old man who would become her pimp, she was 11.  Sara's mom struggled with drug addiction, so when G.G. would drive Sara and her friends to the roller skating rink or the mall, it felt like having a real parent around.  He gave Sara presents and told her she was special- so special, that she should never give sex away for free.  He convinced her she was a product.

G.G. groomed Sara like this for two years before he raped her.  By then, his control was complete and he forced her into prostitution.  Sara and the other girls who G.G. exploited were out on the streets from 6pm to 6am, every night.  Twelve hours a night, seven days a week, for three years, Sara was raped by strangers so G.G. could profit.  After three years, she snapped, and she killed him.

Surviving sexual violence is one of the most difficult things in the world.  Surviving repeated sexual violence as a child doubtlessly takes its mental and physical toll.  G.G. stole Sara's 8^th, 9^th, and 10^th grade years- money and rape taking the place of dances and dates.  How can a person ever recover from something like that?  But Sara survived.

What Sara did was terrible, and she knows it.  But if ever there are mitigating circumstances for a crime, these are them.  To tell someone like Sara who has overcome such abuse that her destiny is to die in prison, no matter how much she changes, is cruel.

The vast majority of women in prison have histories of abuse from families and/or intimate partners.  Does this mean they are not accountable for their actions?  Of course not.  Murder should always be punished.  But Sara Kruzan's case is one of ludicrous over-sentencing of a young girl who escaped from hell in a heinous way.

Sara Kruzan deserves to be punished.  But she also deserves hope.  She deserves hope that she didn't survive being raped and sold for three years for nothing.  She deserves hope that the darkest chapter of her life has passed, and a horizon lies ahead.  She deserves hope that she can change.

But in Sara Kruzan's life without parole, there is no hope.

I know it has been a while since I posted, and so much has happened in my life. All good things, even the things that I did not think were good at the time,  turned out to be good.

I know some people may think Miley Cyrus is hokey, but she sings a song... the climb.. which has been my inspiration these past months...life is not stagnate it is fluid, it is a journey... it does not matter how long it takes your to get there... its the climb

I can almost see it
That dream I'm dreaming but
There's a voice inside my head sayin,
You'll never reach it,
Every step I'm taking,
Every move I make feels
Lost with no direction
My faith is shaking but I
Got to keep trying
Got to keep my head held high

There's always going to be another mountain
I'm always going to want to make it move
Always going to be an uphill battle,
Sometimes I'm gonna to have to lose,
Ain't about how fast I get there,
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb

The struggles I'm facing,
The chances I'm taking
Sometimes might knock me down but
No I'm not breaking
I may not know it
But these are the moments that
I'm going to remember most yeah
Just got to keep going
And I,
I got to be strong
Just keep pushing on, cause

There's always going to be another mountain
I'm always going to want to make it move
Always going to be an uphill battle,
Sometimes I'm gonna to have to lose,
Ain't about how fast I get there,
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb (yeah)

There's always going to be another mountain
I'm always going to want to make it move
Always going to be an uphill battle,
Sometimes you going to have to lose,
Ain't about how fast I get there,
Ain't about what's waiting on the other side
It's the climb (yeah yeah ea ea)

Keep on moving
Keep climbing
Keep the faith baby
It's all about
It's all about
The climb
Keep the faith
Keep your faith

I read this recently and this spoke to me on such a profound level....I hope it does the same for you

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. - Marianne Williamson

I think there is to much homogeneity around. Why does everyone want to be like everyone else? Why should we try to conform to societal pressures? Why have we taught our children to conform and not stand out. When did we stop appreciating difference?

Stand out from the crowd. March to the beat of your own drum. Why isn't individuality appreciated and revered. I AM different and I am happy with that. Go out and be different.Be unique!Be an individual! BE YOU!

I am embarking on a spiritual exercise that is offered by the organization that i work with. Each day we are given a passage to reflect and pray on. Today's passage was finding God in all things. It sounds so easy to say and it should be really simple to do, but how  do you find God in the things or people that bring you displeasure. How can you find God in the colleague who is secretly plotting your demise? How do you find God in the student that you are trying to help but is so unappreciative because, they feel entitled to everything? How do you find God in the person that you trusted but betrayed you and caused you pain?

I don't know the answer, but I simply can say you find God in those people, because you must. We are all creations of God and even within the bad and evil that people do, we must search for the good in them, because somewhere in there, there is good. I commonly say that hurting people hurt people. Maybe the God in them, is that they are need of love and because they lack it, they cannot give it to others. So instead of love and goodness, there is pain and evil.  Maybe in those instances, we are suppose to be the God they see and return their evil with love and goodness. Just a thought.

You are the sum total of the people who are in your life. My very wise friend told me this a couple days ago. Take a look at the people in your life. If you are surrounded by persons who are complacent or confused, chances are you are as well. The people that you engage with on a daily basis are a direct reflection of who you believe that you are. Like minds and ideals are usually attracted to each other.

There is a cliché that says eagles don’t fly with chickens. Are you surrounded yourself with other eagles or are you just another hen in the hen house, clucking and making a lot of noise, but going no where at all.