From Trauma To Hope: Laura’s* Story

October 29, 2010

Will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off?” —Luke 18:7

Long before the sun rose on a morning in late November of 2005, 13-year-old Laura* shouldered a tub of corn and headed down the street from her house to a mill, where the corn would be ground into meal from which Carolina, her mother, would make tortillas. The mill she usually went to was closed, but Laura knew her mother was depending on her, so she ventured out farther to another mill.

On her way back home, Laura aroused the attention of three vagos, young men who passed their days in the street drinking and using drugs. It was still early in the morning and the streets were deserted.

The young men took advantage of the solitude. All three attacked and raped Laura, then told her they were members of the feared 18th Street Gang and threatened to kill her and her family if they called the police.

Laura was emotionally destroyed. She felt she was no longer worth anything—a feeling reinforced by neighbors who insulted and taunted her for being a rape victim. She wanted to die or disappear. She wanted to quit school, sure that all her classmates would look at her funny and tease her behind her back. She blamed herself for walking farther from home instead of waiting for her customary mill to open and blamed her parents for sending her on an errand so early in the morning.

Thankfully, a neighbor told Laura’s family about a Gideon Center located in Laura’s neighborhood. Gideon Centers are part of an Association for a More Just Society-supported project that provides free or low-cost legal aid and psychological counseling to poor Hondurans. Laura began therapy with the Gideon Center psychologist, who patiently helped her to begin healing emotionally.

The Gideon psychologist also passed on information about the case to co-workers working in another Association for a More Just Society-supported project, Peace & Justice.

Acting on a hunch that this was not the first rape Laura’s attackers had committed, an ASJ (formerly known as AJS)-supported investigator tracked down photos and police files on a dozen repeat rapists known to live in the area. Sure enough, Laura identified one of the men who had assaulted her among those in the files. This enabled the investigator to identify the first attacker’s home and help police organize an operation that led to his arrest.

To capture the second attacker, the Peace & Justice team prodded police into joining them, and Laura, in an exhaustive three-day search in which they cruised every alley and back street for miles surrounding the scene of the crime. Finally, on a Saturday afternoon, Laura let out a soft cry: just steps away from their vehicle, one of her attackers was buying cigarettes from a corner store. A police officer immediately got out of the car and arrested him.

Peace & Justice Project staff continue helping police track down the third attacker, implementing witness-protection measures to keep Laura and Carolina safe, and coordinating with government prosecutors to work for convictions and just sentences for the attackers. The Gideon Project psychologist continues to help Laura heal emotionally.

“Without [ASJ’s] help, I don’t know what we would have done,” says Laura’s mother. Fear and poverty would probably have kept them from seeking help, she says.

“Laura tells me, ‘I can’t even describe what I suffered. The people who did this to me need to pay for it,’” she says.

Thankfully, because of ASJ’s help, justice will be done. And for Laura, though she will never forget, fear is gradually being replaced by hope.

Update 10/17/2007
In October 2007, the ASJ-supported Peace & Justice Project helped police locate and arrest the third and final man who allegedly raped Laura. The men accused of violating Laura are reported to have raped up to eight other women in the same impoverished neighborhood—but of these survivors, only Laura has dared to break the silence and recount her experience repeatedly to police, prosecutors, and in court. Thanks to Laura’s bravery, and to ASJ support, justice is being done not only for Laura but also for many other women in her neighborhood who were terrorized by these gang members.

Update 08/15/2008
Today all three rapists were unanimously declared guilty by the three-judge tribunal that oversaw their trial! Each faces 15 – 20 years in prison. Meanwhile, ASJ has helped Laura relocate to a new neighborhood and enroll at a new high school—steps that have allowed her to continue her life without worrying about gossip from neighbors or threats from the perpetrators’ family members. Praise God that justice has been done for Laura, and pray that He will continue to work healing in her life.

*Name changed and photo blurred to protect individual’s privacy and security.

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ASJ-US and ASJ-Canada Joint Statement on Honduran Elections

December 2, 2025

ASJ-Canada and ASJ-US Congratulate the Honduran People, Call for Full and Transparent Results As sister organizations committed to justice, peace and hope in Honduras, ASJ-Canada and ASJ-US extend our deepest congratulations to the people of Honduras on the peaceful conduct of their national elections on November 30, 2025. With the initial tally showing an extraordinarily close vote, we call on election authorities to do what is necessary to ensure a transparent count of the remaining ballots in order to guarantee public trust in the final outcome. We commend the Honduran voters for their dedication to democratic participation and their commitment to shaping the future of their country through civic engagement. We also recognize the efforts of electoral authorities, civil society organizations, the international community and the thousands of volunteer observers who worked to ensure a transparent, orderly, and secure process. We are especially proud of our sister organization, ASJ-Honduras, for their unwavering commitment to democracy demonstrated through their electoral observation efforts, their analysis activities, and their consistent call for a fair and orderly process. Now that such a process has been achieved, the work turns to counting the votes with accuracy and transparency. The results remain close, increasing the possibility of a contested result. We support the work of the election officials at the National Electoral Council to give Hondurans confidence in the final results by conducting their count with rigor and transparency. We remain hopeful that the spirit of peaceful participation in the democratic process embraced by the electorate will carry forward into the post-election period to come. We look forward to continued collaboration with ASJ-Honduras as we all work together toward a just and hopeful future for all Hondurans. Matthew Van Geest President, Board of Directors ASJ-Canada Russ Jacobs President, Board of Directors ASJ-US

Artisans of Fraternity, Guardians of Hope

November 28, 2025

A call to action for Honduras

November 2025 ASJ-US Statement about Honduran Elections

By Elizabeth Hickel • November 25, 2025

The Association for a More Justice Society-US Supports the Network to Defend Democracy; Calls for Free and Fair Elections in Honduras November 25, 2025

Context Updates on the 2025 Elections in Honduras

November 13, 2025

Honduras’s Institutional Crisis Deepens Ahead of the 2025 Elections

HOPE

By Elizabeth Hickel • November 12, 2025

Dear friend, I couldn’t stop looking at the picture. Of course, there had been plenty of inspiring photos from this summer’s Prayer Walk for Peace and Democracy. The sea of blue and white rising and falling as hundreds of thousands walked the Honduran hills through Tegucigalpa, flowing like a never-ending stream. Catholic nuns praying their rosaries alongside Pentecostals dancing in the streets. But the picture that still knocks me flat is the closeup. The one of the two men standing side by side (picture enclosed). They are exhausted, and the shorter collapses into the taller. The tears mostly hold joy and relief, but they are mingled with something darker. After all, there had been threats—promises of harm done to themselves and their loved ones if they led their followers through the streets of Honduras in prayer. Despite the fear and intimidation, Pastor Gerardo Irías and Monsignor José Vicente Nácher forged ahead. They knew Honduras needed unity and, above all, prayer before the looming November 2025 presidential elections. As an ASJ supporter, you know that these kinds of threats aren’t out of the ordinary, and your support has helped slow and reverse violence in Honduras. Today, I am writing to share a way you can continue standing with brave Hondurans like Pastor Gerardo and Monsignor José in hope. The Evangelical pastor and the Catholic archbishop put the word out as widely as they could to their churches, hoping to mobilize 20,000 to walk and pray. Instead, an estimated 230,000 walked in the capital of Tegucigalpa alone. It was a historic moment. And without your past support for ASJ, it may have never happened. After all, two years prior, Pastor Gerardo and Monsignor José didn’t even know each other’s names. They first met in 2023 at ASJ’s offices. They were two of many civil society leaders convened by ASJ to discuss safeguarding democracy– especially before the election in 2025. It was at that meeting that they shook each other’s hand and learned each other’s name. It was at that meeting–and many subsequent meetings–where old religious prejudices began to be replaced by trust and mutual affection. So, when the moment came this summer to act, Pastor Gerardo and Monsignor José knew what they had to do. And they knew that they had to do it together.