January is National Human Trafficking Prevention month

✨️The month of January is National Human Trafficking Prevention month. This issue isn't specific to one race, gender, nationality, socio-economic status, cognitive ability, etc. Everyone is at risk to varying degrees. As a scientist-practitioner, much of what we focus on is addressing human behaviors across various populations. In doing so, we are tasked with discussing this issue with some of our most vulnerable populations-- children, individuals with special needs,the elderly, the unhoused, and individuals with mental health concerns that impact their ability to make decisions with sound judgment, etc.

✨️Some of you may be familiar with the concept of elopement-- leaving an area without permission or supervision. This has always been a concern of mine-- how do we protect our most vulnerable from human trafficking especially when there are concerns regarding the person's ability to communicate consent, rejection, and a need for assistance? Project Life saver, thermal drones, and increased education within law enforcement as well as the community has been quite helpful in response to finding individuals who elope. If you go to the airport, gas stations such as Love's or Quik Trip, you will notice visuals posted in the restroom areas as well as announcements making it clear that there are people and practices in place to prevent and intercept human trafficking.

✨️As you know, we don't just focus on the consequence (response), we address preventative behaviors. There are so many ways in which human trafficking could occur, so the difficulty lies in teaching ALL. However, what has worked best for the populations I partner with is to focus on life/safety skills that can generalize across settings, situations, and people. For example, the person's ability to understand the concept of consent, social cues, social expectations, self advocacy, and ... exposure to mock scenarios. Think about ways in which you can protect yourself and your community from human trafficking.

Take care!