Couple Ran 68 Safe Houses Across Afghanistan During Evacuation Without Government Support
"We were running how many safe houses? 60-something. All over Afghanistan. In these chat rooms, you have a bunch of people with really badass backgrounds working at three-letter agencies and they're all worried about if it's legal to rent a house in Afghanistan right now. We didn't give a shit. So next thing you know, we're signing leases in Dari."
About this episode
In this powerful episode, host Jack Carr sits down with Ben and Jessica, the founders of We Fight Monsters, a Memphis-based nonprofit combating addiction and human trafficking. Both recovering addicts who spent years living in South Memphis trap houses, the couple has transformed their lived experience into a grassroots rescue operation that has shut down five fentanyl trafficking networks since 2023 without sending anyone to jail. Ben, a former Pfizer pharmaceutical sales representative who became addicted to the pain medications he promoted, and Jessica, who grew up surrounded by addiction and violence, share harrowing details of their years in the drug underworld before getting sober in 2019. The conversation details how drug dealers use addiction as a tool of modern slavery and how the couple now operates 10 safe houses sheltering 100 to 120 people at any given time. Their unconventional methods include purchasing former trap houses and converting them into recovery housing, working cooperatively with the same law enforcement agencies that once arrested them, and even lobbying the White House to redirect a federal law enforcement surge from Chicago to Memphis. The episode also covers their unexpected role in the 2021 Afghanistan evacuation, during which they operated 68 safe houses across the country and rescued an Afghan woman who now lives with them as their ninth child. Ben and Jessica emphasize that political ideology dissolves in the face of human suffering and that their model of rescue, recovery, and restoration can be replicated nationwide. They challenge listeners to identify what breaks their heart and run toward it rather than away, promising that purpose lies in confronting discomfort.
Key takeaways
- We Fight Monsters has shut down five fentanyl trafficking operations since 2023 without arrests, converting trap houses into recovery housing.
- Ben revealed that drug dealers use addiction as a slavery tool, forcing addicts to hold drugs and take legal risks while dealers avoid consequences.
- Memphis violent crime dropped 70% after Ben and Jessica lobbied the White House to redirect a federal surge from Chicago to Memphis.
- The couple operated 68 safe houses across Afghanistan during the 2021 evacuation, rescuing an Afghan woman who now attends medical school in Memphis.
- Ben, a former Pfizer pharmaceutical rep who sold pain medications, became a homeless heroin addict despite understanding the pharmacology of opiates.
- The organization now houses 100 to 120 people at any time and works cooperatively with law enforcement agencies that previously arrested the founders.
- Counter-trafficking operations require an average of six to twelve contact points before victims accept help, with most initially rejecting rescue.