Human Trafficking Awareness Day is on January 11th and it is dedicated to raising awareness of sexual slavery and human trafficking worldwide.
There are between 21-30 million people enslaved in the world today. That’s more than at anytime in history! Everyday, modern slavery can be recognized: children become soldiers, young women are forced into prostitution and migrant workers are exploited in the workforce.
Some facts you should know are:
• Sexual exploitation is the most common form of human trafficking and accounts for 79% of human trafficking victims. Victims of sexual exploitation are mostly women and girls.
• 20% of traffic victims are children and they estimate about 2 million children become victims of sex trade each year.
• The average age of a girl being forced into the U.S. domestic slave market is 13.
• The average cost of a slave around the world in $90.
Here’s what you can do:
1. Talk to children about strangers and make sure they memorize important addresses and phone numbers.
2. Save (888) 373-7888 to your phone. This is the number for the National Human Trafficking Resources Hotline.
3. Make donations to organizations such as Unisex and the Polaris Project.
4. Learn the signs and indicators of human trafficking so you can learn to recognize it and report it. The Department of Homeland Security offers a free online course.
5. Watch movies about trafficking, such as Taken (2008), Trade (2007), Human Trafficking (2005), The Pink Room (2011), Lilya 4-ever (2002) and Nefarious (2011). These movies can be very educational.
