Building a Safer World: World Day Against Trafficking in Persons

At Verity, Sonoma County’s Sexual Assault Intervention, Prevention, and Healing Center, we care about building a safer world.  We stand united with the global community in observing World Day Against Trafficking in Persons.   The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime has announced this year’s theme: “Leave No Child Behind in the Fight Against Human Trafficking.”  This measure focuses on supporting immediate action to address child trafficking, a heinous crime that continues to plague our world.

There’s An Urgent Need for Action

Children represent a significant proportion of trafficking victims worldwide, with girls being disproportionately affected. According to UNICEF, one in three victims of human trafficking globally is a child. Alarmingly, children are twice as likely to face violence during trafficking compared to adults according to the UNODC’s Global Report on Trafficking in Persons (GLOTIP).

Regions such as Libya, Sub-Saharan Africa, North Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean bear a disproportionate burden, with children comprising a large portion of detected trafficking victims. Amid overlapping crises such as armed conflicts, pandemics, economic hardships, and environmental challenges, children are increasingly vulnerable to trafficking.  

Navigating Digital Risks in an Online Age

The rise of social media and other online platforms is also worrisome, as children often connect to these sites without adequate risk awareness or safeguards. Traffickers exploit online platforms, social media, and the dark web to recruit and exploit children, using technology to evade detection, reach wider audiences, and disseminate exploitative content.  There’s good news though: Verity’s prevention education program is here to help!  We teach children in schools throughout Sonoma County how to engage in safe online interactions. Our presence in the classroom helps increase awareness, ensuring that youth are aware of the risks that could occur in online spaces and providing them with powerful tools to mitigate them. 

Diverse Forms of Exploitation

Children are subjected to various forms of trafficking, including forced labor, criminal activities, begging, illegal adoption, recruitment into armed forces, and online sexual abuse and exploitation. The root causes of child trafficking are as diverse as the ways in which children are exploited. Factors include poverty, armed conflicts, dysfunctional families, and lack of parental care. According to Exodus Road, in low-income countries, children are often trafficked for forced labor, whereas in high-income countries, sexual exploitation remains prevalent among child victims.

These forms of exploitation highlight the diverse ways vulnerable individuals can be victimized and exploited for economic gain, personal gratification, or other motives. Building a safer world to combat exploitation require comprehensive strategies that address prevention, protection, prosecution of perpetrators, and support for victims.  

How You Can Help

We invite you to join us in this critical fight against child trafficking. Your participation and donations can make a significant difference in supporting survivors all year round. By contributing to our cause, you help us provide essential services and advocacy for those affected by this devastating crime.  Let’s unite our efforts and take action to protect the most vulnerable among us.

For more information on how to get involved or to make a donation, please visit our website or contact us directly. Your support is invaluable in our mission to support survivors of human  trafficking in Sonoma County.