Sex trafficking isn’t a distant tragedy. It thrives because we tolerate objectification in social media. We normalize pornography because we scroll past awareness posts, thinking that someone else will fix it. Our faith commands us to act, but our comfort has made us passive. Silence isn’t an option.

The Beyond Us Missions Conference, which ran from Monday to Wednesday, was a partnership of Mission Waco, local churches, global leaders and the Baylor community. The group was brought together for three days of connection, worship and personal reflection.

Through a fundraising event called Wildtorch, local nonprofit Jesus Said Love is fighting to free women from a history of sexual exploitation in Waco that dates back to 1889.

Welch said for her, raising awareness is so important because trafficking can happen to anyone. With I-35 so close to campus and college students being a prime age for trafficking, Welch said Waco is just as unsafe as any other city, and so is Baylor.