National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month: Ways to fight modern slavery
Modern slavery is a scourge that touches us all; it’s in the communities in which we live and often found in the products that we buy. Human trafficking victims are children, women, and men; U.S. citizens and foreign nationals. They come from urban and rural communities. They are not only trafficked overseas, but also throughout the United States. This National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, we continue to raise our voices and press for policies to end modern slavery.
This month is also the start of a new Presidential Administration. We see the start of each Administration—just as we see every January—as an opportunity for education and advocacy. The U.S. Government can bring freedom, empowerment, and justice to millions of people around the world while safeguarding the jobs, rights, and security of all Americans here at home. Our new report “A Presidential Agenda for Abolishing Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking” is an urgent call for the President and his team to undertake a deliberate, forward leaning, and strategic initiative to combat human trafficking.
At ATEST we have the privilege to work with human trafficking survivor-advocates, whose voices are at the forefront of educating the public and policymakers about what is truly needed to combat human trafficking and to support trafficking survivors to fully recover and thrive. Without their perspective, we will never fully understand or properly addressed the long-term ramifications of being trafficked. As NSHTPM draws to a close, we encourage you to read more from survivors themselves about continuing and deepening a survivor-informed and survivor-centered approach.
