Chris Ash (they/them)
LightNews LightNews
banner
christianashnc.bsky.social
Chris Ash (they/them)
@christianashnc.bsky.social
860 followers 1.2K following 460 posts
SA/IPV/HT expert, queer activist, survivor, storyteller, fire spinner. Violence prevention, public health, and harm reduction. Trying to make the anti-trafficking sector (& the world in general) suck less. CHAOTIC GOOD linktr.ee/chrisash
Posts Replies Media Videos
christianashnc.bsky.social
Excited to see this published: peer reviewed publication on trafficking survivors’ experiences with journalists. www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
New article in Journalism Studies “Judged, Misrepresented and Misunderstood”: Human Trafficking Survivors’ Engagement with Journalists” by Barbara G. Friedman, Andrea Lorenz, Chris Ash, & Ethan Czuy Levine. Abstract: This mixed-methods study surveyed 49 human trafficking survivors in 2024 about their experiences with media to understand why they engage (or do not) with the news media, and how they characterize those interactions and expectations. A qualitative analysis yielded five themes related to motivation, preparation, consent violations, setting boundaries, and backlash after sharing their stories with media. Based on findings, we recommend journalists adopt a power-sharing model to improve coverage and to give trauma survivors more control over how their stories are represented to the public.
November 18, 2025 at 9:33 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Searched on Google for @drewkadel.bsky.social’s new book to snag the link, & Google AI was very helpful in reassuring me that I should not literally try to baptize a whale.
You don't baptize a whale literally; it is a metaphorical title for Episcopal priest Andrew Kadel's new book, "How Do You Baptize a Whale?: An Encouragement to Compassion". The book uses the question to explore themes of human compassion, faith, and our relationship with other living beings. The title is a metaphor: It is not a literal guide to performing a religious ceremony on a whale. The book explores compassion: The title is used to prompt readers to consider their own capacity for compassion, and how they treat other humans and all of God's creation.
November 16, 2025 at 7:25 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
What it’s like dealing with me…
Screenshot of a tech support transcript with Google fiber. Me: I moved the extender. It’s flashing green again but I’m guessing I wait until it’s white again Tech: yes, thank you! Me: And am I supposed to wait until the WiFi button on the router is white? It is currently yellow. Me: Or maybe that’s supposed to be white? Lol Me: Wifi light needs some bleach. 😂 Me: Little bit of Colgate whitening. Me: Little dab from the tide pen
May 13, 2025 at 9:45 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
When Bondi says funding national listening sessions for people with lived experience is “wasteful,” what she’s saying is that she doesn’t care what survivors need. She thinks DOGE knows better than survivors what services and prevention are important.

christianash.com/human-traffi...
Pam Bondi thinks DOGE knows better than survivors what we need.
April 28, 2025 at 7:00 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Check out the final part of my blog series on the harms of conflating sex work and sex trafficking, written for Freedom Network USA: https://freedomnetworkusa.org/2025/03/11/how-conflating-sex-work-and-sex-trafficking-harms-sex-workers/
in a free society, consensual adult sexual behavior should not be criminalized, and people who trade sex should not have to prove an appropriate level of victimhood in order to deserve a life free from being targeted by the state for harassment, criminalization, or deprivation of liberty. - Chris Ash
March 11, 2025 at 7:58 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Saying all #sexwork is #sextrafficking is hurting the very #trafficking survivors we aim to support. It takes autonomy away from survivors looking to regain control of their lives & draws essential resources away from the survivors it was intended to support.

freedomnetworkusa.org/2025/03/04/h...
Safety for sex workers PREVENTS human trafficking.
March 4, 2025 at 10:23 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Did you know... The Trafficking Victims Protection Act defines the crime of sex trafficking differently from a commercial sex act.
Learn more about how the TVPA actually defines human trafficking in my recent blog post.
christianash.com/human-traffi...
February 25, 2025 at 2:13 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
God bless @mapquest.com
February 21, 2025 at 11:54 AM
christianashnc.bsky.social
A colleague is gathering funds to support another survivor impacted by this administration. This story is one of dozens exactly like it that have hit my inbox this week, and hundreds more
I’ve not yet personally encountered.
Urgent call to action: community member in need. 2spirit indigenous human trafficking survivor with 4 kids in need of immediate support after being detained by ice while trying to access the food bank after the new administration froze their federal contracts for work that contained indigenous and non-binary voices. Anything helps. Venmo @risevenusrise or DM @samara.anjuli on IG for alternate payment method.
February 12, 2025 at 2:43 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Just so we're clear on what just happened: The nonprofit that runs the US's national sexual assault hotline and claims to do advocacy on behalf of survivors just put a rapist and felon in charge of dictating how survivors can tell their stories, and what details they can or can't include.
Dear Speakers Bureau Members, We’re reaching out to share an update about the content on RAINN.org. For several months, we’ve been in the process of building a new website to launch in 2025. As part of that effort, we had planned to unpublish and update a significant amount of RAINN’s existing content for a full refresh and relaunch. However, recent guidance from our federal funding partners has expedited this process. You will notice that all survivors’ stories have been unpublished, as well as videos and social posts. They remain securely archived, and we will be reaching out to those who have shared a survival story to discuss whether you would like to update and republish your story. At this time, our goal is to adhere to the administration’s new guidance while safeguarding RAINN’s survivor community, honoring survivors’ lived experiences, and continuing our mission of serving everyone who comes to RAINN for help. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you have questions; we will do our best to answer them. If you are struggling during this time, we encourage you to reach out to RAINN’s National Sexual Assault Hotline for anonymous support.
February 7, 2025 at 10:58 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Me when someone texts to ask how it’s going:
It’s like juggling a hatchet, a flaming bag of shit, and an egg.
February 4, 2025 at 6:37 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
“The undemocratic intent behind fascist propaganda is key. Fascist states focus on dismantling the rule of law, with the goal of replacing it with the dictates of individual rulers or party bosses.” — How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them by Jason Stanley
January 25, 2025 at 2:58 AM
christianashnc.bsky.social
With alt text.
Families who have not yet applied for an initial or renewal of a US passport - it has been reported as of the morning of Jan 22 in another Blue state that the passport agents were instructed to 'halt all Gender marker related applications and to CONFISCATE all supporting documentation"
January 23, 2025 at 2:29 AM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Either your cowardly bosses should be ashamed of themselves, your white supremacist and transphobic bosses are relieved to show their true colors, or both.

We don’t obey in advance.
Screenshot of part one of a LinkedIn post that says: I'm hearing stories from friends and colleagues of workplace meetings in which administrators (who have presumably attended some of the DEI trainings their employees must attend) are sharing about changes they're making to their work, language, equity practices, and public presence in order to avoid becoming a target of the incoming administration, and then acting confused when their employees with marginalized identities express how this makes them feel less safe and included in the workplace. Screenshot of part two of a LinkedIn post that says: “I think this speaks both to the difference between good DEI practices/ trainings and performative ones, and between people who attend them because they really want to do better and those who attend out of obligation or appearance. Timothy Snyder's first rule for fighting authoritarian regimes is "do not obey in advance." Some of your cowardly bosses should be ashamed of themselves.”
January 11, 2025 at 1:11 AM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Who are you afraid of, and why? 3/3
8) This kind of rhetoric is designed to make compassionate people afraid to speak up for fear of being branded as a gibus. It is meant to make you self-censor, to edit yourself, to stay in line. That is how they win. Don’t buy in. 9) Remember: We are stronger together. Get curious about what the words really mean, and how the people who developed them understand them. Learn. Show up. Show compassion. Show solidarity. This is how we all win. (pic shows two people protesting together)
April 19, 2024 at 3:56 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Who are you afraid of, and why? 2/3
People whose power is challenged by treating all people with dignity have redefined these words, taught their followers false narratives, and are conditioning you to be afraid of change -- all to maintain the status quo. People are being conditioned to feel unease at the idea of gender transition, a violent history of their country, or racial diversity -- all without realizing it’s a story their grandpa made up so he won’t have to get off the couch or clean his room. And while a custodial grandpa needing a break is not sinister, a powerful elite conditioning the masses to see the oppressed as their enemies is sinister. Rhetoric informs action, and this kind of rhetoric breeds and normalizes violence.
April 19, 2024 at 1:44 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Story time! Who are you afraid of, and why? 1/3
Story time! When I was 4 and lived with my grandparents, Papa used to keep me out of places he didn’t want me going by shouting, “Don’t go in there! The gibus will get you!” (Pic of little Chris posing in a dance costume) Calling on the gibus every time I got curious ensured he didn’t have to get up. Even as an adult, I felt unease whenever I’d go into his bedroom or shed -- two of the gibus’ favorite haunts. Conditioning through fear is a very effective form of maintaining the status quo. To be clear, he was a loving grandpa and I was not afraid of him. (Pic of Chris and grandpa -- Chris is blowing a bubble with their gum) You are currently being conditioned to fear groups of people and the things that might keep them safe so that the powerful people in our society don’t have to acknowledge how our systems continually fail the most vulnerable. (image includes part of a screenshot from Truth Social of Donald Trump ranting.) Image shows a word cloud of words including DEI, Muslims, Gender Theory, Defund, Critical Race Theory, Transgender, etc.
April 19, 2024 at 1:41 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
“Unlearning literally requires us to discard our old eyes and acquire a new set with which to see the world. It requires us to jettison assumptions and prejudices that are so deep-seated and internalised that they have become normal and appear to be natural.” — African Sexualities: A Reader by Sylvia Tamale https://a.co/86t1a0G
April 3, 2024 at 1:17 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Getting to work with Allen Kiconco and Alex Balch on this project for two years in a row was a delight.
modernslaverypec.org/resources/to...
While a global research agenda would promote collaboration and knowledge exchange across borders, the results and experience of our network suggest that a unified approach to survivor engagement may not be feasible. Kiconco and Balch in “Knowledge for Change? Lessons from co-developing a research agenda on survivor engagement” Developing a universal research agenda accommodating cultural, social, and political variations is challenging: 1) Challenges of inclusivity and representation; 2) Challenges of sustainability and adaptability; 3) Logistical and collaborative challenges. Kiconco and Balch in “Knowledge for Change? Lessons from co-developing a research agenda on survivor engagement”
March 31, 2024 at 11:44 AM
christianashnc.bsky.social
In hearing Azadi Kenya's team discuss their work on this research project, it was clear how much they care about the integrity of our organizational practices.
“If somebody is not able [...] to build a system of safeguarding or work with intention around safeguarding, then I’d rather, they did not offer the services they were offering. Because almost always, owing to the level of negligence, more harm occurs.” Azadi Kenya team in “Conveying safety: how to promote safeguarding when engaging people with lived experience in anti-modern slavery work”
March 27, 2024 at 5:20 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
I'm not going to lie... My favorite part of meeting Aké and hearing about his research was learning the language he uses to describe "survivor-led" vs. "ally-led" initiatives.

Read Aké's report on "Homegrown Slavery" at modernslaverypec.org/resources/to...
“Surrogate advocates” or “Surrogate organisations”: Persons or entities advocating on behalf of a group without receiving their direct consent or having no firsthand experience of their issues. Aké Achi in “Homegrown slavery: ending state-sponsored trafficking: An ‘ethiquitable’ engagement approach” SOLEX (“Self-Organised Lived Experience Advocates”)= a group established by or collaboration between those with lived experience of the issue at hand, who further advance and defend the interests of their community without requiring control by an external person or entity.” Aké Achi in “Homegrown slavery: ending state-sponsored trafficking: An ‘ethiquitable’ engagement approach”
March 25, 2024 at 1:04 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
One of the most interesting things I learned from Ling Li was how survivors of scam compound trafficking and survivors of online scams are creating grassroots partnerships to fill gaps left by government responses. Learn more at modernslaverypec.org/resources/to... or the link in my bio!
“In the absence of official action, these survivors [of forced scam compounds] continued to be classified as criminals. As a result, they were excluded from accessing various forms of assistance.” - Ling Li in “Forced to scam: pitfalls and challenges of survivor engagement in Southeast Asia’s new fraud economy”
March 22, 2024 at 8:14 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
In his report, Suti discusses how a group of people with lived experience of trafficking and slavery, "rights-holders," were organizing as a registered self-help group in India.
“These right-holders, the survivor leaders, were young, with an average age of just eighteen. However, they demonstrated significant knowledge of the issues addressed during the group discussions.“ Sutirtha Sahariah in “Survivor engagement, prevention, and advocacy: a case study from the frontline source area in India”
March 21, 2024 at 1:51 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
Because I am resistant to many forms of globalization because it often results in Global North domination, I was confused when I first heard Benedetta Wasonga speak of the need to standardize the language we use to discuss trafficking. She did such a great job explaining why it is important. (1/?)
“The absence of an international agreement on related approaches and policies to operationalise these terms has impacted the global fight to eradicate human trafficking and modern slavery..., and advocacy work is undermined by confusion in the use of language and terms." Benedetta Wasonga in “Unveiling consistency in the use of standard terminology: a study of international anti-slavery policy and programming in Africa”
March 20, 2024 at 4:31 PM
christianashnc.bsky.social
I recently read "Decolonising Just Transition: A Perspective through the lens of Global North Dominance (The UnBalance Sheet)" by Pradeep Narayanan. Highly recommended reading.
Principles of a Just Transition. 1) No further harm to the poor. Acknowledges concern: No further harm being done to the poor, while pushing for transition. 2) Participation of the margins in decision-making. Evolving win-win strategy: Global South is actively voicing its concerns in spaces. 3) Challenging mainstream paradigms. Challenging Current paradigm of economy characterised by patriarchy, capitalism, caste system, and racism.
March 19, 2024 at 6:53 PM