Audience Told It Has Power To Combat Human Trafficking

Speakers told those gathered at the Human Trafficking Awareness Forum sponsored by the North Oconee Rotary Club that they have the power to combat the dual problems of labor trafficking and sex trafficking.

Deborah Richardson, executive director of the International Human Trafficking Institute of the National Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, presented the group with a list of indicators so they can identify victims of sex trafficking.

She also said parents should help their children identify food and household products that rely on exploited labor.

“Talk to your children about their bodies and boundaries,” Tameka Rish, vice president, corporate partnerships, for the Atlanta Falcons and Atlanta United, said. “Have real conversations with young boys about sex and the respect of women.”

Rish gave a powerful and personal account of the experience of being a victim and called on those present to “Be an advocate to end human trafficking.”

At the end of the program, the organizers asked the participants to complete a commitment form.

The form asked for those present to agree to learn something, to say something, and to do something to combat human trafficking.

For more on this story, with a video of the entire session, please go to Oconee County Observations. The video is annotated, and Rish’s personal story is particularly worth viewing.