SEASON SIX FUNDRAISING CAMPAIGN
End the Silence, End the Abuse: Protect Vulnerable Migrant Women From Men in Power
On Spec is in field right now — collecting audio testimonials, meeting with survivors, gathering court documents, and videos. We’re talking to dozens of migrant women, fleeing from conflict, persecution and poverty – many of them vulnerable single mothers who admit to being abused by immigration agents. This investigation has the potential to bring to light serious lapses in human rights and hold powerful institutions accountable to how vulnerable people are treated around the world.
Season Six is partially produced through a crowdfunding campaign on Chuffed.org. If you would like to support this season, donate to our non-profit fiscal sponsor Media alliance.
This story came to us when a whistleblower contacted us in secret to share CCTV footage of an immigration guard in uniform inside a deportation center.
He’s talking to a migrant woman – she argues with him, then stands still. The agent shoves her into a corner against the wall and sexually abuses her, knowing there’s a camera filming the abuse. The man was arrested and released after just one month in prison. We’ll tell you which country once we’re done with the investigation.
We wondered how many more men were sexually abusing migrant women behind closed doors.
What we found isn’t shocking but enraging.
The agents promised to give the women legal residency in return for sexual acts. These women felt they could not say no because they could be deported. There is a culture of permissiveness and impunity for these men. Few are being held accountable.
It’s not just individual men – institutions are complicit, from non-profit organizations tasked to help migrants to the government that turns a blind eye – as long as nobody rocks the boat.
Many women who complained through official channels have been ignored or silenced. But some women are rocking the boat. They are gathering evidence and talking to us. One woman, a mother fleeing her abusive husband back in her home country, has decided to fight back regardless of the consequences. Soraya* is putting her freedom on the line to bring her story, and that of thousands of women like her, to the world.
The EU spends billions of euros funding migration management in this country. So does the complicity go all the way to the top? Is it more than abuse? Is it sex trafficking? We need funding to investigate these questions so that the EU and the officials of this country are pressured into better safeguards for migrants and justice for the survivors.
* Soraya is a pseudonym to protect her identity.
What your donations will fund:
A five to six episode podcast investigating the circumstances, power structures, people, and places that make up Soraya’s journey and her fight for justice. This is the first step in holding the powerful accountable, and we believe that we can have a real impact after this investigation is published.
$5 will buy us a public transportation stipend for the day
$10 will buy lunch for one team member
$25 will buy a local train ticket to another city
$50 will buy a plane ticket to another city
$100 will support half a day for the translator
$200 will support a full day for our legal consultant
$500 covers five nights of lodging for two team members
$1,000 covers one-third of the script editor's fees
What we can offer as thanks:
$25 to $100: You'll receive a set of family recipes from our multicultural team in a digital card format to your email.
$100 to $300: You will receive the above, and our team will deliver a one hour online lesson on any aspect of podcasting, scripting and audio editing, and language lessons in Farsi/Dari, and Urdu. We are also happy to offer informal mentoring sessions around freelancing, photography, investigative journalism, fundraising and grant-writing.
$300 and above: You will receive the above and credit on our website and episode notes.
$1000 and above: You will recieve the above, and a shout out at the end of an episode for your support. You will also be invited to join an On Spec Podcast team call to see how it works behind the scenes.