Joey Zehr deserves an entry...

Hey guys- Ben here... I just read Joey's letter to his family, and felt that it deserved a spot here... read on...

I sent this letter to my family, but I figured after re-reading it I might as well share it with everyone...because it's important that we all are talking about it....

hey everyone. just wanted to write and let you know how things are going. i'm currently in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Everything has been great. The Cambodian people have been extremely welcoming and receptive to our music and message. The first show we played was in Siem Reap at the Ankor Wat temple. It was certainly the most beautiful backdrop we have ever played in front of. We then drove 7 hours to get to Phnom Penh via the one main road between the two towns. This drive was quite the white-nuckle experience. It was a constant game of chicken with the sea of motorcycles, mopeds, scooters, bicycles, tractors, huge trucks and buses, ox pulling piles of straw, and children playing in the dirt on the side of the road. We are staying on the Mekong river in the heart of Phnom Penh. The first day we hired several Tuk Tuks, which are cambodia's taxis. They are a 2 wheeled cart pulled by a motorcycle. You can rent one for the entire day for 15 bucks. We took the Tuk Tuks to the Killing Fields. This was the start of a series of extremely stirring experiences. The Killing Fields are mass graves that the Khmer Rouge used to kill and dispose of millions of Cambodians in the late 70's. There's a monument there filled with the skulls and clothing from the excavated graves to remind everyone of the insanity that occurred. Everywhere you walked there was clothing and bones in the dirt, which according to our guide were constantly brought up to the surface by rain. We then took our Tuk Tuks over to S-21 which was a school turned concentration camp. Like the Killing Fields, there were no ropes keeping you from walking through the room of clothing that was stripped from the victims or stepping into any of the cells which still have blood stains. Unfortunately, I feel extremely uneducated as I've barely even heard of the Khmer Rouge. How is is that something so heinous was not drummed into my head like the holocaust was. Maybe it has something to do with America being embarrassed of our involvement with the khmer rouge or our lack of involvement in resolving the situation. The bottom line...this is the most intense thing I've ever seen. Unfortunately that was just the start of my experience. I just returned from my trip to the women's shelter. Our purpose in being here, is to work with MTV Exit to raise awareness and put an end to human trafficking in the world. The Somaly Mann shelter (somaly.org) is named after Somaly Mann who was herself a sexual slave for most of her life. She has created a shelter that saves women of all ages from sexual slavery. We were greeted by the 40 or so women there ranging in ages from 14 to 25 with big, but cautious smiles. You could tell they were all very scared, but there was also a strong sense of hope within the walls of this beautiful safe haven that Somaly has created. We sat around and listen to the most heart wrenching stories anyone could imagine. The women all cried rivers for each other. You could tell the wounds were still very fresh and will never be forgotten. We heard stories of rape, torture, being put in cages, being forced to take drugs to stay awake so they can serve as many men as possible, getting HIV/AIDS and other STDs, having children from the abusers, running away only to be trapped again, and ultimately and most heart breaking having their familes turn their backs on them by either selling them into the trade in the first place, or not excepting them back into their family after their rescue. This last fact leads them all to believe it is all their fault and/or that they somehow deserve their fate. None of us could put any words together to respond to these stories except for we are sorry, and that the world loves them and doesn't blame them for anything. It was very, very hard to say the least. We were able to turn the conversation to a positive light by getting out the guitars, and a bucket for myself, and sharing some music with them. The bond these women have made with each other is incredible. It was hard not to completely melt into tears looking into all of their eyes as we attempted to share a happy time together. We did get through it though and successfully got to a fun and happy place. I couldn't help to continue to be sad though as I played a game of badminton with a woman who was suffering from AIDS as her 1 year old daughter (who thankfully, does not have HIV) watched and laughed. Somaly finally decided they must do at least a little bit of studying for the day so we all said our goodbyes. These women all broken by men their entire lives were still able to look to the best in us as strangers and mustered the strength to offer up hugs as we said goodbye. They weren't the hugs we are used to, they were the hugs of someone so scared and scarred. As we drove away I think they all were able to forget for a moment about their pasts and have fun chasing along with our vans as we left. I don't think any of us however were able to do the same. We all have so much to internalize. You can't hear their stories and feel their shaking hands and not put your full weight into their cause. I'm not entirely sure what today will ultimately mean for us as a band and as individuals...that will be revealed over time. It was definitely the most eye opening day of any of our lives. Now we are going to go to soundcheck at the huge stadium in the middle of the city where we are going to be headlining to an estimated 50,000 people tomorrow. Unfortunately the women we met today can't make it to the show tomorrow, because they are not safe from their pimps who are still looking to take them back. We will be playing the show for them and for all of the other people out there who are being forced against their wills to do anything. Anyways...just thought I would share what I saw today, because I thought you might all find it interesting.



p.s. i'm checking emails right now, and i got one about my united mileage plus account. wow...what a world huh. how do we even out the differences between my life of airmiles and their lives of slavery. geez