On January 8, 2015, during the observance of January as Human Trafficking Awareness Month, WAMC Northeast Public Radio aired a segment about human trafficking that included interviews with two women from LifeWay Network – Lima James, Education and Training Coordinator, and Sr. Joan Dawber, SC, Founder and Executive Director.
To listen to the segment and read a full transcript, visit WMAC’s website:
https://wamc.org/post/january-human-trafficking-awareness-month
Excerpts of the broadcast include:
Lima James states “Men, women and children are victims of human trafficking, sexual slavery, this can be through commercial sex, prostitution; it happens in massage parlors and its right in plain sight and people just don’t know. It’s labor trafficking, domestic servitude, it’s farmwork, construction and then there’s also debt bondage, exploiting a victim due to debt. A victim of smuggling can become a victim of human trafficking.”
She says there are things the average person can do to detect, deter or report suspected trafficking cases. “Learn about human trafficking. Read about it. Go online. Read an article, watch a documentary, whatever it is, just be able to identify some red flags and signs so that you’re aware of what to look out for. If someone does see something, they can always call the National Human Trafficking Hotline – 888-373-7888 and they can call for information or even text for information.”
Joan Dawber says of LifeWay Network, “We are actually one of only two organizations in the New York metro area providing safe housing for women survivors of human trafficking. The education program raises awareness in the community through workshops and presentations and conferences, and it also is a way of learning about the signs and the red flags of trafficking and being able to identify potential situations.”
In the broadcast, Dean Katharine Briar-Lawson of the School of Social Welfare at UAlbany also spoke of a 2013 Conference on Human Trafficking that spurred actions at the college.
Source: WMAC Northeast Public Radio