Update on Operation Underground Railroad CEO Tim Ballard's Resignation

[livetoread]

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/tim-ballard-resigned-operation-underground-railroad-reports-sexual-mis-rcna105835?cid=sm_npd_nn_tw_ma&taid=650a479a78b03c0001f7ec35&utm_campaign=trueanthem&utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter

Another article with more details about the allegations:

https://www2.cbn.com/news/us/sound-freedom-inspiration-tim-ballard-accused-alleged-sexual-misconduct-report

 

[Amira]

Surprised? Nope.

[ktgrok]

People need to realize what trafficking ACTUALLY looks like most of the time. I actually called to report a possible case the other day. A boy about 10 yrs old was on the side of the road, by himself, selling what looked to be grapes. Down about half a block were two men standing by a car, in eye sight of the boy as if watching him. Trafficking of Hispanic kids and forcing them to work is way more common than the stuff that makes movies popular. And all those self righteous folks worried about trafficking after seeing the movie probably wouldn't recognize that the kid on the side of the road on a school day selling stuff is not just a nuisance, but perhaps in real danger. 

[Corraleno]

The producer is in trouble, too:

"[Paul] Hutchinson, an executive producer and investor for Sound of Freedom and an anti-trafficking activist, allegedly touched the naked breasts of a girl who was believed to be 16 years old during a 2016 undercover mission in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, according to another Vice report.

Vice obtained transcripts of footage of the incident, written by investigator Bryan Purdy of the Davis County Attorney’s Office, which details Hutchinson lifting the girl’s shirt, touching her breasts and kissing her on the cheek, before she pushed his hands away and pulled her shirt down."

https://www.forbes.com/sites/conormurray/2023/09/20/sound-of-freedom-inspiration-tim-ballard-and-film-producer-face-allegations-of-sexual-impropriety/?sh=967a8fdd0f16

[Faith-manor]

Why.am.I.not.surprised.

[ktgrok]

Sounds like these were not rescue missions, but hunting trips looking for victims. 

[prairiewindmomma]

5 minutes ago, ktgrok said:

Sounds like these were not rescue missions, but hunting trips looking for victims. 

I mean, when you are using a psychic claiming to channel an ancient prophet from the Book of Mormon to find the “victims”, one has to wonder how effective the search will be. 

Vice just dropped another article about it yesterday, or if you want a decent podcast on the same subject: 

 

[TravelingChris]

11 hours ago, ktgrok said:

People need to realize what trafficking ACTUALLY looks like most of the time. I actually called to report a possible case the other day. A boy about 10 yrs old was on the side of the road, by himself, selling what looked to be grapes. Down about half a block were two men standing by a car, in eye sight of the boy as if watching him. Trafficking of Hispanic kids and forcing them to work is way more common than the stuff that makes movies popular. And all those self righteous folks worried about trafficking after seeing the movie probably wouldn't recognize that the kid on the side of the road on a school day selling stuff is not just a nuisance, but perhaps in real danger. 

And the kids washing meat operations equipment, etc.

[Faith-manor]

10 hours ago, TravelingChris said:

And the kids washing meat operations equipment, etc.

Yes. Everyone hears "trafficking" and assume some sort of mafia, sex ring. But the reality is that a huge amount of trafficking is child labor in sweatshops night shifts at meat packing plants, etc. The public needs to be better educated on this. The lifting of child labor protections like in Arkansas where employers do not have to prove the age of their minors nor show parental consent for them to work. This makes it so much easier to enslave children.

[ktgrok]

6 hours ago, Faith-manor said:

Yes. Everyone hears "trafficking" and assume some sort of mafia, sex ring. But the reality is that a huge amount of trafficking is child labor in sweatshops night shifts at meat packing plants, etc. The public needs to be better educated on this. The lifting of child labor protections like in Arkansas where employers do not have to prove the age of their minors nor show parental consent for them to work. This makes it so much easier to enslave children.

Yes. Also back of house workers in restaurants, and door to door sales by kids/teens. 

Y'all, if someone comes door to door selling stuff and it seems sketchy, PLEASE call someone to report it so the kids can be checked into. 

[Katy]

I recently read that 9/10 cases of child trafficking in the US involve children who have been in foster care. Most of the rest involve undocumented immigrants in forced labor. I don’t have a link because I read this in an essay posted on Instagram from an advocate for children in care. It was pretty recent though, in the past month. It was the same day I first heard allegations about Tim Ballard. 

I think so many “moral” topics embraced by the right in the US have so much nuance and shades of gray that most Americans don’t agree with the far right anymore. But everyone can agree trafficking is immoral. So it’s embraced by not just the right, but by crazy conspiracy theorists that we now know Ballard is part of. 

I sometimes watch an ex-mormon couple on YouTube. I think their channel name is Jordan and McKay. They did one the other day on Mormon artists that spun into a discussion of Ballard at the end. They theorized that the church is almost always two steps ahead of everyone else and doesn’t tolerate reputation damaging drama. They figured if Ballard continues his public diatribe he’ll be excommunicated fairly quickly. 

[prairiewindmomma]

38 minutes ago, Katy said:They theorized that the church is almost always two steps ahead of everyone else and doesn’t tolerate reputation damaging drama. They figured if Ballard continues his public diatribe he’ll be excommunicated fairly quickly. 

I don’t know about the two steps ahead but, but they definitely don’t tolerate reputation damaging drama. They excommunicated Sam Young for his advocacy work in safeguarding children. https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/09/24/us/mormon-young-excommunicated/index.html
 

And, a couple of years later changed the policies to reflect what Sam Young was advocating for. 
 

I don’t in any way support either of the Ballards, but the church has a long history of excommunicating people who bring bad press, (while often tolerating convicted criminals.)

[prairiewindmomma]

Also, thank you for bringing light to the vulnerability of children in care. They are also extremely vulnerable to abuse by foster parents and other adults in their circles. 

[Katy]

Tim Ballard was reportedly excommunicated from the LDS church last night.

https://x.com/johndehlin/status/1707481973617525016?s=20

Edited September 30, 2023 by Katy

[Corraleno]

Five women who claim they were sexually assaulted by Tim Ballard just filed a law suit against him and the claims are absolutely BONKERS.

They say he told them they needed to practice acting as his wife (sometimes for months!) in order to fool the traffickers when they went on a rescue mission, and forced them to go to strip clubs in SLC with him while he drank and took drugs, insisted that they take showers and practice tantric yoga and massage with him and give him lap dances, told them that a psychic said he had been married to them in a past life so the sexual contact was OK, and even claimed that the contact had been secretly approved by the LDS president.

They also say he claimed that he spoke to the Prophet Nephi while under the influence of ketamine, and the prophet spoke of his (Ballard's) greatness and assured him that he would be a US Senator, President of the United States, and the Mormon prophet who would usher in the second coming of Christ. Apparently he had planned to announce his run for the Senate today, which is why the lawsuit was filed yesterday.

Vice has the full text of the law suit at the bottom of this article.
 

[Katy]

10 minutes ago, Corraleno said:

Five women who claim they were sexually assaulted by Tim Ballard just filed a law suit against him and the claims are absolutely BONKERS.

They say he told them they needed to practice acting as his wife (sometimes for months!) in order to fool the traffickers when they went on a rescue mission, and forced them to go to strip clubs in SLC with him while he drank and took drugs, insisted that they take showers and practice tantric yoga and massage with him and give him lap dances, told them that a psychic said he had been married to them in a past life so the sexual contact was OK, and even claimed that the contact had been secretly approved by the LDS president.

They also say he claimed that he spoke to the Prophet Nephi while under the influence of ketamine, and the prophet spoke of his (Ballard's) greatness and assured him that he would be a US Senator, President of the United States, and the Mormon prophet who would usher in the second coming of Christ. Apparently he had planned to announce his run for the Senate today, which is why the lawsuit was filed yesterday.

Vice has the full text of the law suit at the bottom of this article.
 

Wow, that's so much worse than I expected.

[livetoread]

Well, that's really something.

[SanDiegoMom]

wow. Just wow. 

[ktgrok]

12 hours ago, livetoread said:

Well, that's really something.

I think that is the best response possible, lol. 

[Faith-manor]

I am struggling for words. He is a truly gross, depraved human being.

[maize]

More people harmed by Ballard and co.:

https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/sound-of-freedom-tim-ballard-angel-studios-lawsuit-1234974841/amp/

[maize]

I'm feeling glad that I didn't go watch his movie.

[Faith-manor]

I wish I could convince people not to watch he movie now that it is available for streaming. My mom says the people.in her church still think he is a hero. They aren't following the investigations and the cases against him.

[maize]

He used to live in my county and had support from many in the local homeschool community long before he and OUR became widely known. Lots of people supported him and OUR because they genuinely believed they were helping fight evil.

I know some who are trying hard to grapple with what has come out and are feeling duped and betrayed and others who are doubling down on claims that he really is a hero and the people making accusations against him are bad actors. It's hard to look your own mistaken trust in the face.

Edited February 25 by maize