Adam LaRoche, Former MLB player and Gary Haugen, IJM Founder - Episode 66

Adam LaRoche played 12 seasons in the Majors with 6 different teams, most notably the Pirates and the Nationals, where he won a Gold Glove and Silver Slugger Award in 2012.  LaRoche abruptly retired from baseball in March 2016 after his club, the White Sox had placed a restriction on his 14-year-old son entering the team's clubhouse every day. By retiring, LaRoche walked away from a $13 million contract.  Adam's platform has allowed him to bring to light the issue of sex slavery and human trafficking.  Gary Haugen is the founder and CEO of International Justice Mission, who's mission is to rescue those enslaved in human trafficking, protect them from violence and bring hope and justice for the poor.  Before founding IJM in 1997, Gary was a human rights attorney for the U.S. Department of Justice, where he focused on crimes of police misconduct.  In 1994, he served as the Director of the United Nations’ investigation in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide. In this role, he led an international team of lawyers, criminal prosecutors, law enforcement officers, and forensics experts to gather evidence that would eventually be used to bring the perpetrators of the genocide to justice.  Gary 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. His work to protect the poor from violence has been featured by Foreign Affairs, The New York Times, the New Yorker, The Times of India, Forbes, U.S. News and World Report, the Guardian and National Public Radio, among many other outlets.   On this episode of the podcast, Jason Romano sits down with Gary and Adam in front of a live audience at a conference in San Antonio, Texas to talk about the real issue of human trafficking and sex slavery.  For more, log on to http://SportsSpectrum.com