traffick

jail3, originally uploaded by staarkidd.

The last two days i have spent inside an ecuadorian jail talking with the girls known to the world as "mules". These girls range from 18-51 and have all been caught trafficking drugs. Some girls came to ecuador for the explicit purpose and others had no idea they were carrying anything until the airport security uncovered packets hidden in picture frames and the lining of their luggage. Nothing is provided in the prison. They must buy a mattress and a blanket or sleep on the cold concrete floors. Some girls must fit 3 or 4 into a 6x6 room. They must buy their own food and toilet paper. Without money, they cannot survive, so many of the girls have started a card-making business, of which they have choosen to give ten percent away to other causes as an act of gratitude and love for God.