A few Fridays ago, I was running with my friend Melissa, and she shared with me how she has become involved with The Howard Phillips Center for Children & Families, a part of Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children. This was a Friday at 5:15 a.m., and our conversation revolved around human trafficking.
As a mother of three boys, I couldn’t help but think of any of my boys in that situation. Immediately, I was drawn to the topic, and I wanted to bring out awareness and tell you about what The Howard Phillips Center for Children & Families is working on. I also wanted parents to read this article in hopes they can also make their children aware of this horrible thing that is happening around us. I know it is not easy to have a conversation with kids, especially small ones, about this topic, but I feel it is a necessary conversation. I would suggest calling the center or talking to your pediatrician or family doctor on how to address the subject according to your child’s age.
I want to begin by showing you some statistics from the Children’s Advocacy Center. This is not pretty. This will make you mad, and I hope it makes you VERY mad. So mad you will want to talk about it and see how you can help! Start by knowing that Florida is one of the top three states for human trafficking.
“Although there is no way of knowing the exact number of trafficking victims, here are some staggering estimates:
• It is estimated that 21 million people worldwide are in forced labor, debt-bonded labor, and forced prostitution.
• It is estimated that there are 100,000 to 300,000 youth in the sex trade in the United States each year.
• Women and children account for approximately 80% of trafficked persons.
• Most common age of entry into the commercial sex industry in the U.S. is 12-14 years old.
• Human trafficking is considered to be one of the fastest-growing criminal enterprises known today. After drug dealing, human trafficking is tied with the illegal arms trade as the second largest criminal industry in the world.
• Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery. Victims of human trafficking are subjected to force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of commercial sex, debt bondage or forced labor.
• Human trafficking is a business with a very high profit margin. Men, women and children are exploited over and over again, to the financial gain of their trafficker.
• The most common misconception is that human trafficking is a foreign problem. Victims can be U.S. and non-U.S. citizens, documented and undocumented immigrants. Trafficking is happening right here in the United States.
• Cases of human trafficking have been found in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and some U.S. territories.”
The Howard Phillips Center for Children and Families focuses on three core programs: Child Protection Team, Child’s Advocacy Center and The Healing Tree. The Child Protection Team is the investigative reporters. These are the people who respond to every single case of abuse in all of Orange County. They are there to make sure the child only has to go through the forensic process, interview process, and documentation process at one child-friendly place. Before this team was created, kids would have to go through this process at a police station to tell their story or a hospital. Those are places that can intimidate kids, which can make their stories change. They are terrified as it is, and the purpose of having them tell the story in a child-friendly place is for the child to feel in a safe zone.
The center provides a Child Advocate, through the Child’s Advocacy Center, and that advocate stays with that family through the whole process, which can take a very long time and will take them back to environments that are not ideal.
The Healing Tree is just that, the healing part of the process. Therapy sessions and education session socials help these kids. “These kids are dealing with incredible situations, and that is how we started becoming aware of the human trafficking situation, a form of abuse.” says Melissa. Human trafficking is not just sex slavery, it is also labor slavery.
Melissa explained to me one of the things she is now very aware of is children selling candy or some other stuff in parking lots at sports games, for example. Granted, some of these activities are legit! But, some are not. That’s what I want to focus on – the ones that aren’t and how we can differentiate one from the other. Engage in conversation and ask questions like, “What school do you go to? Is your mom here?” If you think something is suspicious, maybe take the flyer (if they are distributing flyers) and call the center and share that. You will think if I buy the candy from the kid, will I be helping the trafficker or if I don’t buy the candy, will I be hurting the kid? These are kids who have been plucked from a community and are selling things in another community. They might have been told, even their parents might have been told, that they are going to have a summer job and get money to contribute to the household, etc. The reality is some parents are trying to do good, having their kids have a job, or they might even need whatever money the kid can make. We parents can be clueless about what goes on. The criminal is building trust with the kids.
Something seen at the center is that teens can be a challenging population. You assume they don’t want to talk to you. So because of that, when the kids we see do come in and go through the process we just described, if we recognize the signs of human trafficking and we start to ask those questions, we can help. They are not saying, “Save me, save me!” They are victimized and brainwashed, and they do not always ask for help. They might have a fear of homelessness if they say something. There is really no stereotype anymore. Don’t talk to strangers or stranger danger is NOT enough anymore. Today, your stranger is in your back pocket, on your phone. These criminals are getting so savvy when it comes to their grooming process.
The sale of humans has almost overtaken the sale of drugs because you can resell a human. Drugs are consumable, humans aren’t. The grooming process starts at 9 years of age and usually by someone you know. They build trust where the kids think they are friends.” What are signs for us parents to be aware and on the lookout? What’s a red flag? Melissa explained: “Older boyfriends/girlfriends are a big one. Missing school. Getting new things, for example, ‘My friend gave me this new pair of sneakers or jewelry.’ Check their phones! All kids want to hide their phones from parents, but always check their phones.”
On Sept. 21, 2015, there was a raid in a Lake Nona area neighborhood (http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/). Authorities had been watching the home for two years before they went in and raided the home. Among all the disturbing things going on in the home, they were selling seven women and one teenage girl for sex. These things are/were happening in Lake Nona, and as a community we need to keep our eyes open and, most importantly, keep our kids informed.
There is a supply and a demand. As long as there is demand for children, there will be child human trafficking. There are two types of buyers: The “Johns” have very specific targets, and they can use kids for labor or sex. They are shopping for what they want in a kid the way you shop for what you want in a car. You have people in communities looking for the type of kids these “Johns” are looking for. They want healthy and young, vulnerable and friendly kids because they tend to be more trusting. That’s why 12-14 is the main age. Then you have the “pimps” using the kids specifically for sex.
Human trafficking is a business, unfortunately, like any other. The First Amendment, freedom of speech, allows these criminals to hold an annual conference in Miami called The Player’s Ball, which is to teach them what is new and how to make their techniques more effective, best practices to recruit the kids, etc. Yes, someone thinks financing this type of event is a good idea. There are books about how to become involved in human trafficking, a tutorial! These things ARE happening. Some people think this is okay. Supply and demand. They have growth plans, business plans.
I asked how much money are they asking for the kids? Melissa explained prices could be all over the place. I researched a bit further. According to Ark of Hope for Children, this is a $32 billion dollar industry, and it is happening in all 50 states.
The center is starting to work with the school system on training children concerning signs to watch for human trafficking. For now, it’s an hour a year, which is not enough, but it’s a start. Melissa is working with Village Walk Town Center to host an event to bring some awareness to sexual abuse and human trafficking. Once we have concrete information, we will post on the Nonahood News calendar of events.
The Howard Phillips Center offers training on spotting human trafficking and how to be aware of it. You also can schedule a tour of the center, where you can learn how to be involved. If you want to get involved at a national level, check out www.wearethorn.org, which is Ashton Kutcher’s initiative. If you want to learn more, contact Melissa at melissamarieanthony@gmail.com.