By Wyatt Garlow/Staff Writer
Human trafficking is a phrase that suggests one thing; movement. The common depiction of trafficking is typically a young woman being moved across a border, usually pretty violently, to be exploited.
Although these cases do happen, it’s a lot more common to find victims of human trafficking in your own backyard. Everyone is susceptible to grooming in exchange of food, water, shelter or even love.
Here in Kenosha, as human trafficking becomes a growing concern of both citizens and police, where can victims get help?
In 1976, Women and Children’s Horizons started out as a modest 23 person-manned crisis line helping human trafficking victims and anyone in abusive situations 24 hours a day. With just one announcement, the need for a proper resource was evident with the 50 calls fielded within the first 24 hours. Today, Women and Children’s Horizons now has an emergency shelter and multiple services open.
“We now have legal advocates who can go to court with victims or help with legal paperwork for filing for divorce or obtaining a restraining order,” said Sharon Zavala, the Hispanic Program Coordinator and Human Trafficking Liaison at WCH.
“We have advocates available 24 hours a day, seven days a week to respond to hospitals and police stations to help victims of domestic violence or sexual assault. We operate a longer-term housing program called Rapid ReHousing. We have a therapist who can counsel victims of sexual assault, which would include human trafficking victims.”
Women and Children’s Horizons can’t always help every person they come in contact with though, which is where Fight to End Exploitation comes in to provide help. Fight to End Exploitation is an organization in Southeast Wisconsin that works to stop human trafficking. Helping survivors find a way to regain their foothold in life is the main service FTEE provides.
“We always have someone present during undercover sting operations with local law enforcement, which means once the victim is safe we can help them with food, water, or shelter. We also commonly get referrals from law enforcement and hospitals to help victims,” Kim Voss, an advocate at Fight to End Exploitation, said.
Both organizations try their best to help survivors, but only have so many resources to back their efforts. Women and Children’s Horizons serves more than 2,000 people a year, with 300 people in their shelter annually. WCH is able to help serve victims of human trafficking through government grants, private foundations, individual contributions, United Way, civic groups, houses of worship, corporations and their own thrift store, Nifty Thrifty.
High schoolers can aid anti-trafficking organizations by volunteering at shelters, fundraising for victim services and spreading information about human trafficking.
Voss encourages students to educate themselves about human trafficking as traffickers will use devices such as social media to target vulnerable teenagers.
“Be wary of who you open up to and create relationships with. If something feels too good to be true, it probably is. If something doesn’t feel right in your gut, it probably isn’t,” Voss said.
Human trafficking is a genuine problem still prevalent in America, but organizations such as Women and Children’s Horizons and Fight to End Exploitation are fighting to bring awareness to this problem and provide support to survivors so they can regain a sense of life again.