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Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros. The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence. New York: Oxford, 2014. Two causes that weigh heavily on my heart and conscience—violence and poverty—overlap in this oft-recommended book. Haugen, founder of the International Justice Mission (IJM), and Boutros, federal prosecutor with the Department of Justice, believe that violence is at the core of what it means to be poor and argue that efforts to alleviate extreme poverty will largely be ineffective until we find a way to end to the everyday violence to which the poor are subjected.
To address global poverty, aid groups must recognize that a key cause of poverty is a justice system that fails to protect its most vulnerable citizens against violence, Gary Haugen, president, CEO and founder of International Justice Mission, argues in his new book, The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence. When talking about global poverty, most are familiar with problems like hunger, disease or poor sanitation, but are less familar with the consequences of a poor criminal justice system that exposes the poor to violence, Haugen told an American Enterprise Institute audience Wednesday in Washington, D.C.
And violence, it is important to remember, comes not just from conflict. As expertly captured in the new book The Locust Effect by Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros, violence stemming from broken systems may be the most significant obstacle to confronting extreme poverty. The failure of justice systems and security and police forces to shield poor communities from forced labor, theft, illegal detention, rape, and other abuses keeps millions in poverty who would otherwise find their own way out. And as Haugen and Boutros show, it is an issue that development agencies overwhelmingly fail to address.
If you’re reading this, you are probably not buffeted by daily waves of physical terror. You may fear job loss or emotional loss, but you probably don’t fear that somebody is going to slash your throat, or that a gang will invade your house come dinnertime, carrying away your kin and property. We take a basic level of order for granted. But billions of people live in a different emotional landscape, enveloped by hidden terror. Many of these people live in the developing world…as Gary A. Haugen and Victor Boutros point out in their gripping and perspective-altering book, “The Locust Effect,” these places are not just grappling with poverty. They are marked by disorder, violence and man-inflicted suffering.
The Locust Effect: Financial Times, book review
The most significant threat to today’s emerging markets is hidden in plain sight. No, it’s not education, it’s not health and it’s not income inequality. The most ignored threat to emerging market development is violence. That’s the main thesis of “The Locust Effect”, a new book about emerging markets.
In 1885, a racist Seattle mayor appointed himself police chief and tasked 100 men to stage an attack on the Chinese community: cue an orgy of murder, looting, forced expulsion and arson. Today, officially sanctioned civic violence of that intensity is hard to imagine, but it still happens: just ask the founder of the human rights group International Justice Mission (IJM) Gary Haugen, and US federal prosecutor Victor Boutros, who cite the event in their expose of the criminal justice system in the developing world, which seems a century behind.
In 2012, official development assistance to developing countries totaled $127 billion. Yet there are still around 1.2 billion people living in extreme poverty. In “The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence,” Gary Haugen, founder and president of the global human rights agency International Justice Mission, and federal prosecutor Victor Boutros argue that violence is a fundamental obstacle to alleviating poverty. Haugen recently spoke to U.S. News about the roots of everyday violence against the poor in developing countries and what needs to be done to address it.
The most significant threat to today’s emerging markets is hidden in plain sight. No, it’s not education, it’s not health and it’s not income inequality. The most ignored threat to EMs development is violence. That’s the main thesis of “The Locust Effect”, a new book about emerging markets. In their book, Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros make the case that violence and the broken justice systems behind it are keeping hundreds of millions people in EMs from achieving real economic gains.
The author of a new book, “The Locust Effect”, was in London recently to talk at the Legatum Institute, a think-tank. Gary Haugen founded the International Justice Mission, a non-profit organisation that tries to increase access to justice in poor countries by helping victims to take cases, by training police and by lobbying for more money and attention to be given to what Mr. Haugen terms the “plague of everyday violence”.
The Locust Effect by Gary A. Haugen, Founder and President of International Justice Mission, tackles one of today's most difficult topics, Poverty and Violence. Often individuals do not connect the two atrocities, yet in society these two often work in tandem. As Founder and President of International Justice Mission, Gary has dedicated his life to eradicate human trafficking, all the while poverty and violence are substantial aspects of the cause.
To paraphrase the preacher in Ecclesiastes, there is no end to the writing of books about the causes and solutions to global poverty. The explanations for why some countries are much poorer than others range from geography to the impact of using chopsticks on manual dexterity. I’m not kidding. But a recent book shines a much-needed light on what, in hindsight, is an obvious contributor to the problem: the endemic violence that plagues poor communities. The book is “The Locust Effect” by Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros. Haugen is the founder and president of the one of the most effective Christian organizations I know, International Justice Mission. Boutros is a federal prosecutor who specializes in human trafficking.
The CEO of International Justice Mission (IJM), Gary Haugen warned on Friday that a “vast epidemic of violence” is sweeping the developing world and hindering global efforts to end poverty. In a speech to political, legal and media figures at London's Legatum Institute, Mr. Haugen revealed four billion people live outside of the protection of law. Mr. Haugen compared the violence "rolling through the developing world" to AIDS and said both problems were having a deep impact against the fight against poverty.
Just now, there is a small subterranean war in American evangelicalism about who Abraham Kuyper actually was. Jamie Smith, reporting from the front lines of James Bratt's magisterial new biography of Kuyper, cautions us to receive "Kuypers" with suspicion until we've read about the man's life and legacy. But while the bun fights of theologians and theorists go on, Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros have claimed and revitalized a very real Kuyper, in my opinion, with a practical, pressing theology of public justice. The Locust Effect yields the best of his legacy.
[Translated] Neither our public safety systems, or guarantees of justice are designed to protect people from criminals , but the powerful people." In the discussion that now takes on the urgent need to reform justice, but especially the infiltrated politics to corrupt and destroy, one of the forgotten issue is the legal security of the poorest and the relationship between overcoming poverty and functionality of the justice system…Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros put a serious emphasis on The Locust Effect (Oxford 2014) on this issue in particular: the harmful effects of this daily violence on the most disadvantaged in the world effectively nullify and reverse everything is being done to improve their lives, because "if you're not safe, nothing else matters.
Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros's “The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence” focuses on the central role of violence in perpetuating poverty, and shows that if any headway is to be made, this issue has to become a top priority for policymakers. Simply put, if people aren't safe, nothing else matters.
The idea sounds, at once, totally obvious and infinitely complicated: Violence, says Gary A. Haugen, founder of the International Justice Mission (IJM), is “the hidden plague that the world has missed.” What he means, and what he explores in his new book The Locust Effect, is that all of the world’s efforts to support and empower the poor—especially women—will be undermined if we don’t accept the truth that they are the ones most vulnerable to common violence—be it theft, assault, or worse. While in New York City for his book launch, Haugen sat down with Sarah J. Robbins to explain why violence is so hard to address—and why failing to do so could undermine our best efforts to improve the lives of women and girls.
Imagine that half of the little girls (and three-fifths of the adult women) you meet have been raped or molested in their home, school, or church, or in some other place where they should be safe. Imagine that one-fifth of the boys you meet have been molested as well. Imagine that your pleasant, easy-going gardener has just had his land and his entire life savings stolen by a local strongman. Imagine that the workers in the brick factory down the hill are slaves who work without pay and under the constant threat of being beaten or raped. Now imagine that the police are so corrupt that they not only fail to stop such abuses, but actually abet these and other crimes. That’s the reality faced by a large portion of the global poor. And that’s the disturbing picture that Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros paint in The Locust Effect—an indispensable book that urges readers to confront the “massive epidemic of sexual violence, forced labor, illegal detention, land theft, assault, [and] police abuse” that strikes poor people throughout the developing world and prevents them from escaping poverty.
Lectures- Gary Haugen: The human rights advocate and president and CEO of the International Justice Mission discusses “why the end of poverty requires the end of violence.” [World Affairs Council, 312 Sutter St., S.F.]
Despite our best efforts, we’ve somehow missed it. Even in the midst of our generous financial donations, volunteer hours, mission trips, and letter writing, we’ve failed to see what should have been glaringly obvious: the global poor lack the most basic ingredient for forward progression — personal security. In their recently released book, The Locust Effect, Gary Haugen (founder of the International Justice Mission), and Victor Boutros (federal prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice) convincingly argue that all our best work to eradicate poverty — even while worthwhile, helpful, and well-intended — is for naught unless we concurrently address the epidemic of violence and fear facing the poor in the developing world.
While the world has made encouraging strides in the fight against global poverty, there is a hidden crisis silently undermining our best efforts to help the poor. Gary Haugen and Victor Boutros offer a searing account of how we got here and what it will take to end the plague. Filled with vivid, real-life stories and starting new data, The Locust Effect is a gripping journey into the streets and slums where fear is a daily reality for billions of the world’s poorest, where safety is secured only for those with money, and where much of our well-intended aid is lost in the daily chaos of violence.
I've been tweeting my heart out, but I wanted to write a few more thoughts about Gary Haugen's new book The Locust Effect. I first heard about the work of International Justice Mission the summer of 2005. Like many, I was overwhelmed with the stories of rescue, and my initial responses were fueled by the urgency of that work.
Gary Haugen, founder and CEO of human rights organization International Justice Mission, recently visited the American Bible Society in NYC to talk with Gabe Lyons of Q Ideas about his new book, The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence…After watching the Q webcast, read CP's brief follow-up with both Haugen and Lyons about IJM and The Locust Effect.
A stunning four billion people are not protected by their own justice systems.
Caleb is a father in Africa. He works hard as a night watchman, and he and his wife save from their small income with the dream of sending their daughter to college. But the family’s dreams are destroyed when the police arrest Caleb on a random sweep for a robbery he had nothing to do with. This is not to say that the evidence against him was flimsy; there is no evidence against him whatsoever. The police needed to show an arrest had been made, and Caleb was an easy target … because he was poor.
Feeling safe is easy to take for granted when living in a developed nation, but for much of the developing world- especially for the poor- living in fear is the norm. In his newest book, The Locust Effect, Gary A. Haugen shines a light on the violence that saturates the lives of the impoverished. Aside from presenting the facts, Haugen asserts that there is hope for all of these people that comes when broken justice systems are repaired. International Justice Mission displays some of the disconcerting facts and figures in the infographic below.
A few years ago, a United Nations study quantified an astounding truth – a truth so dramatic it deserved space on the front page of papers around the world, and with implications so stunning it demanded that we re-consider the way we are combating extreme poverty. But, instead, the study quietly faded into the background. The explosive truth that most of the world missed in that study is that a stunning four billion people are not protected by their own justice systems.
A few years ago, a United Nations study quantified an astounding truth – a truth so dramatic it deserved space on the front page of papers around the world, and with implications so stunning it demanded that we re-consider the way we are combating extreme poverty. But, instead, the study quietly faded into the background. The explosive truth that most of the world missed in that study is that a stunning four billion people are not protected by their own justice systems. To put that into perspective: More than half the world’s population, including most of the world’s poorest people, aren’t safe.
When we think about the poor of the world our thoughts often drift toward starvation, unsafe water, malaria, and lack of medical attention. These thoughts will likely move us to taking action in a variety of ways. We give farming skills and equipment, we drill wells, we provide mosquito netting, and doctors volunteer their time to help treat the poor of the world. All of these things can be helpful and beneficial but there is a deeper, much darker, problem below the surface of poverty. The problem is violence. Gary Haugen, the founder of International Justice Mission, recently released a new book titled The Locust Effect, which documents the plight of the poor in developing countries.
Yesterday, Hoda and I went to a luncheon for a friend of mine, Gary, who has been my friend for ten years. I don’t see him very often because this man is out to literally save the world. Just briefly, new book out called “The Locust Effect”, probably the most important book for 2014, if we’re ever going to get serious about alleviating poverty worldwide.
Over the years, I have sat with many poor mothers and fathers as they have shared their stories of surviving genocide, slavery, and abuse. The pain they describe is unfathomable—and I’m tempted to imagine that the people who endure it are somehow different from me. Maybe, somehow, they just don’t feel things like I do.
Do you go to work without wondering whether your boss is going to physically beat you? Do you send your daughter to school without fearing she will be raped? Do you go to sleep without worrying that looters will seize your land in the middle of the night?... Haugen, founder of International Justice Mission (IJM), and Boutros, federal prosecutor with the Department of Justice, think that violence is at the core of what it means to be poor.
"It will be impossible to overcome poverty if we do not eradicate the plague of everyday violence that is both a cause and effect of it," writes Gary Haugen, CEO of the International Justice Mission. He joins us live to discuss 'The Locust Effect.'
For the impoverished in developing countries around the world, violence is often as commonplace in everyday life as hunger, leaving them in a constant state of fear. In his latest book, The Locust Effect, Gary A. Haugen offers a glimpse into the hidden violence that penetrates the well-being of these poor people and shows how there is hope for better lives when broken justice systems are fixed. International Justice Mission also presents some of the startling statistics in the infographic below.
Just a few pages into Gary Haugen’s new book, The Locust Effect (released yesterday February 4), you will realize that you are reading something significant. By the end of the book, it seems obvious that both the goal and result of this book will be to significantly reshape how we think about anti-poverty efforts as policymakers, advocates and individuals.
For the impoverished in developing countries around the world, violence is often as commonplace in everyday life as hunger, leaving them in a constant state of fear. In his latest book, The Locust Effect, Gary A. Haugen offers a glimpse into the hidden violence that penetrates the well-being of these poor people and shows how there is hope for better lives when broken justice systems are fixed. International Justice Mission also presents some of the startling statistics in the infographic below.
Through reflecting on countless conversations, travels, lectures and books one aspect of violence is made particularly clear: Our world's poorest people are especially vulnerable to it. For myriad reasons they are often without a voice and, in the end, often without justice. Our estimates are more accurate than ever, and they tell us that perhaps 30 million children, women and men are held as forced labor slaves.
Far below the headlines, a plague of hidden, everyday violence — like rape, trafficking, and police brutality — is devastating the developing world and undermining our efforts to end poverty. In an interview with Gary A. Haugen, founder and president of International Justice Mission (IJM), a global human rights agency that protects the poor from violence, we discussed his new book titled The Locust Effect, which examines why the end of poverty requires the end of violence. The largest organization of its kind, IJM has served thousands of survivors of violence. Haugen was the Director of the U.N. investigation in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide, and has been recognized by the U.S. State Department as a Trafficking in Persons “Hero” – the highest honor given by the U.S. government for anti-slavery leadership.
At TwitChange, our number one objective is sharing stories of social good, stories of change, stories of how individuals, organizations and celebrities are using their influence to make the world a better place. On a daily basis, we are in communication with people around the globe who are telling us of good things happening. And on the flip side, we are made acutely aware of the fact that though a lot of good is happening in our world, we still have work to do. Millions of men, women and children are victims of modern day slavery still today.
At World Relief, we see firsthand that those without protection often lack access to the opportunities, services and materials required to meet their most basic needs. In fact, four billion people–most of the world’s poorest people–live in places where their justice systems do not or cannot protect them from these crippling forms of violence. To advocate for the impoverished, we must also be advocates of peace and protection. We are joining hands with our friends at International Justice Mission to address the violence directly contributing to poverty around the world. Today, IJM President Gary Haugen and co-author Victor Boutros are releasing their new book, The Locust Effect, to explain why the end of poverty requires the end of violence.
Nearly a billion people in the world live in fear that the rest of us may never experience. The threat of violence is one of the biggest concerns of the poor, and one of the biggest hindrances to their ability to thrive. Here is a quick glance at the numbers.
It’s rare for me to pump a non-CGD book on our CGD website. But Haugen makes a compelling argument that the development community has badly neglected the problem of everyday violence in the lives of the poor. His new book,Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence brings gut-wrenching stories to that argument.
For billions around the world, poverty translates not only into a struggle for food, shelter, health, and education. No, poverty exposes them to a vast spectrum of human rights abuses on a daily basis. Safety and freedom from fear do not exist for those living in underdeveloped areas. Ill-equipped judicial systems, under-trained and corrupt law enforcement agencies, and despotic housing complexes are just a few of the challenges the impoverished face. Violence spreads with impunity, devouring families and communities that have no means to protect themselves. In The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence, Gary A. Haugen and Victor Boutros explore the virulent power that violence takes on in developing parts of the world where extreme poverty prevails.
[According to Oxfam,] the richest 85 people in the world hold the same wealth as the poorest 3.5 billion people. There are many obvious ways in which the lives of those wealthy…differ from the poorest...but there is one critical difference that is much harder to see -- a difference that should be at the center of the world's efforts to overcome poverty. It is this: The rich are safe, while the poor are not.
Across the globe, 4 billion people live in poverty. But, money woes aren’t necessarily their chief concern. It’s figuring out how to escape the violence that threatens their lives. In his new book "The Locust Effect," Gary A. Haugen, founder of the International Justice Mission (IJM), explores his theory that eradicating poverty goes hand-in-hand with wiping out violence.
If you’ve been a tourist or business traveler recently in…[a] developing country, you probably saw uniformed guards in the stores and offices you visited…these guards [are] so common that their presence most likely faded into the background. But they are emblematic of a massive social transformation that is passing unnoticed…public justice systems are being replaced with private systems of security...The implications for the world’s poorest people are devastating.
For billions around the world poverty is not only into a struggle for food, shelter, health, and education — it exposes them to a vast spectrum of human rights abuses on a daily basis. In The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence by Gary A. Haugen and Victor Boutros, take a journey through the often unheard of tribulations and fears a large portion of the world population is vulnerable to as a result of poverty.
The book The Locust Effect makes clear that this violence is taking place at an epedemic rate in the developing world and really for one reason: the poor do have effective law enforcement. They have laws, but no law enforcement… If we want to give the poor a fair chance to move forward, we’ve got to protect them from violence…If you and I think about powverty, we generally think of hunger, of disease, of the need for education. Do we automatically think about the poor’s vulnerability to violence? No. And yet endemic to being poor is a vulnerability to being brutalized by those who are stronger, to be enslaved, to be thrown into prison without charge or a trail. And until we address these forms of violence as well, those other efforts to try to assist the poor are going to be undermined.
I’ve been reading an interesting book by Gary A. Haugen with Victor Boutros. It’s called “The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence,” and it presents heartbreaking stories and statistics showing the devastating impact of everyday violence in the lives of the global poor.
One night in December 2003, an 8-year-old girl named Yuri was abducted, raped, and brutally murdered in the remote Quechuan village of La Union, Peru. The next morning, her 11-year-old brother found her nearly naked body dumped on the main thoroughfare of their village. Yuri's story opens The Locust Effect: Why the End of Poverty Requires the End of Violence (Oxford University Press), the new book from Gary Haugen, founder of International Justice Mission (IJM). Yuri's murderers escaped prosecution, while another man was wrongly convicted and sentenced to 30 years in prison.