Tim Ballard is a lying, McLiar face (allegedly) but that doesn’t mean that he hasn’t had an indelible impact on how everyday Americans understand or misunderstand the sexual exploitation of children around the globe. But how did this qanon-tinged thriller become the 10th biggest domestic film of the year? Join Shannon and Tashmica for a conversation about Operation Underground Railroad, the scam behind the ‘new’ Anti-Trafficking Movement, and why the mythology created by Ballard is a threat to your reproductive rights.

We watched The Sound of Freedom so you don’t have to. Please don’t watch it. We beg you.

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Come for the pop culture. Stay for the abolition. 

Pop Culture Homework:

• Sound of Freedom is everything an anti-trafficking film shouldn't be 
• Why you should be wary of statistics on ‘modern slavery’ and ‘trafficking’ - The Washington Post 
• Tim Ballard, Inspiration Behind 'Sound of Freedom,' Quietly Leaves Anti-Trafficking Group 
• State Violence, Sex Trade, and the Failure of Anti-Trafficking Policies
• Idaho governor signs 'abortion trafficking' bill into law | AP News 
• "Sound of Freedom" Act would automatically sentence child traffickers to life in prison 
• Abortion Trafficking is the New Satanic Panic

People + Practices We Love:

• You’re Wrong About: Human Trafficking 

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Sponsored in part by: Accountable Communities Consortium and The Firecracker Foundation.

Access: Transcript now available on Apple Podcasts!

Content Warning: The Popaganda Podcast explores the intersections of transformative justice, prison abolition, and pop culture. We will be talking in general about the existence of domestic violence, sexual violence, and state violence and our experiences with these forms of violence throughout the season. In this episode in particular, we will be talking about these themes and our own survivorship. We will not be talking in high levels of detail about specific experiences of violence. We invite everyone to use this information to make choices about what is right for you.

Credits:

• Executive Producers: Shannon Perez-Darby and Tashmica Torok
• Audio Production: Shannon Perez-Darby
• Show Notes + Art: Tashmica Torok