Say what you will about Ashton Kutcher’s acting career, but off-screen, he has shown remarkable determination and deep compassion. For those unfamiliar, Kutcher has been fighting against human trafficking for years, reportedly saving over 6,000 lives. According to PEOPLE, Kutcher and his ex-wife, Demi Moore, co-founded Thorn: Digital Defenders of Children in 2012. The organization was created to help identify and rescue victims of child sex trafficking.
What started as a vision to empower the voiceless has grown into a powerful force, making significant strides in the fight against one of the most horrifying and morally reprehensible issues in society: trafficking. Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore co-founded the nonprofit Thorn to combat sex trafficking. In 2017, they reported that their efforts helped identify 5,791 child victims and rescue 103 children.
According to a 2017 report, Thorn, working closely with law enforcement, had identified nearly 6,000 child sex trafficking victims and helped rescue 103 children from situations where their sexual abuse was being recorded and distributed.
The organization is focused on creating technology to protect children from sexual predators, with full-time teams from over 21 states now involved in the mission. Thorn has reportedly played a key role in identifying and stopping 6,608 perpetrators.
In an interview with 48 Hours, Kutcher explained the organization’s approach: “What we do at our core is we build technology to help fight sexual exploitation of children. You can roll up your sleeves and try to be a hero and save one person, or you can build a tool that allows one person to save a lot of people.”
5 facts about child sex trafficking that will help you make a difference | Thorn https://t.co/XmM1CCmoaE
— ashton kutcher (@aplusk) September 21, 2020
In 2017, Ashton Kutcher gave an impassioned speech urging Congress to take stronger action in protecting vulnerable women and children worldwide.
“I’m here today to defend the right to pursue happiness. It’s a simple notion: ‘the right to pursue happiness,'” he began.
“It’s bestowed upon all of us by our constitution. Every citizen of this country has the right to pursue it. And I believe that it is incumbent on us as citizens of this nation, as Americans, to bestow that right upon others, upon each other, and upon the rest of the world. But the right to pursue happiness for so many is stripped away — it’s raped, it’s abused, it’s taken by force, fraud, or coercion. It is sold for the momentary happiness of another.”
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Ashton Kutcher, 42, has recently faced harsh criticism from online trolls who dismiss his efforts, telling him to “stick to his day job.” Despite the negative attention, Kutcher has a powerful response for his critics: He recalls a harrowing experience, saying, “I’ve seen disturbing footage of a child, the same age as my own, who was being exploited by an American man in Cambodia. The child, so deeply affected by her surroundings, didn’t even recognize the abuse—she thought it was a game.”
Kutcher further elaborates, sharing the emotional toll of being contacted by his team: “I received a call from the Department of Homeland Security. They told us about a 7-year-old girl who had been subjected to abuse for years. Her images were circulating on the dark web, and despite a three-year investigation, they couldn’t locate the perpetrator. They asked us for help, and my team and I were the last line of defense.”
For Kutcher, this work is not just a side project—it’s his commitment, and he’s determined to stay true to it. “That’s my day job, and I’m not backing down from it,” he affirmed.
He added, “I’ve been on the other end of a phone call from my team, asking for my help because we had received a call from the Department of Homeland Security. They told us a 7-year-old girl was being sexually abused, and that content was being circulated on the dark web. They had monitored her abuse for three years, but they couldn’t find the perpetrator and were asking us for assistance.
“We were the last line of defense—an actor and his foundation, potentially the final line of defense. That’s my day job, and I’m sticking to it.”
Ashton Kutcher, your work is truly incredible, and I can’t express enough gratitude for everything you’re doing. I don’t know about you, but I long for a world where people can no longer be preyed upon or exploited for the sick fantasies of a few. My hope is that Thorn’s exceptional efforts continue to save lives and bring perpetrators to justice, putting them where they belong—behind bars.
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