"HUMANS ARE NOT FOR SALE" EVENT AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, RENO
While guest speakers invited to the University of Nevada, Reno were wrapping up their comments about the scourge of human trafficking, 58-year-old Kemp Shiffer, a former IRS agent and retired professor, was handed an indictment for two counts of prostitution-related crimes. He was charged with pimping an 18-year-old prostitute from California.
Thankfully, Nevada's students seem to be eager to educate themselves about human trafficking, so they can take action against this form of modern day-slavery.
Sarah Canak, representing Women's Federation for World Peace, and the members of the Unity Commission on campus decided to take a stand this week to combat human trafficking, and educate their fellow students and community members about this shocking problem.
On Monday, they recruited close to one hundred students to participate in the "Freeze Project", a fresh way to bring awareness that has its origins in New York, where a creative improv team led by Charles Lee initiated it to bring attention to the issue of human trafficking. Students "froze" in time on the steps in front of the largest library on campus. Their black T-shirts and stern expressions conveyed their dedication to end human trafficking.
But Monday's victory was only leading up to a speakers' series on Wednesday, where a group of four experts spoke on the topic: Tiffany Short, Victims Specialist for the FBI; Kari Ramos, board member of Nevada Coalition Against Sexual Violence; Beni Hernandez, Shelter Program Coordinator for CAST LA (Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking); and John Hambrick, Las Vegas assemblyman who passed AB380 in 2009, a bill which makes Nevada's penalties for traffickers some of the strictest in the country.
The event was well attended by students and community members. Even a local news channel came to weigh in on the story.
"What most people don't realize is that human trafficking is happening all around us," said Sarah Canak, president and founder of the Women's Federation for World Peace Club at the University of Nevada, Reno. "Our hope is that this event will inform our student body that this is not just a Third-World issue, and there are opportunities for everyone to get involved and do their part to stop human trafficking."
The speakers affirmed that human trafficking should be a real issue of concern for Americans, and especially Nevadans.
Tiffany Short revealed that, through her many years working with law enforcement to bring justice to victims, she has seen that trafficking is a very American problem, rooted in the way that we view trafficking victims: "For us, it's something that we really need to combat and look into, because these are the same people that sit on juries. And if I have a victim of trafficking and people are looking at it like it's consensual, how do you think it is for us to have that kid up in front of the jury? It's kind of an uphill battle."
Kari Ramos also emphasized that trafficking is rooted in our warped perspective on sexuality. She described our society as a "rape culture" where "violence is seen as sexy, and sexuality is violent." She encouraged the audience to make a stand against rape culture, because "People do change. They do start to change the way that they talk, the way that they act, the things that they say because of the way that we stand up."
Beni Hernandez spoke about the larger issues that are involved with human trafficking, and how CAST-LA has stood up to create an effective approach to combating trafficking and assisting victims. In a specific trafficking case that was busted in 1992, Beni described the effect that years of enslavement can have on people, even after being liberated: "You don't see elation...they're terrified, and they had no contact with the outside world, so you can imagine their feelings."
John Hambrick stirred everyone's feelings when he spoke about how girls as young as eleven have been trafficked to his hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada. He shared that "Sex trafficking is now second only to the drug trade for money involved. In the next two and a half years, it's estimated that human trafficking will exceed the drug trade in illicit money." It's no secret that Las Vegas is a major destination for sex tourism, but he encouraged the audience to be collectively responsible to not only know about, but to do something about the problem: "We as a society must address this issue," he stated.
It seems that that fight is already underway in the biggest little city in the world. Sarah Canak and the members of the Unity Commission hatched up a plan to bring awareness to the issue of human trafficking during the past summer.
"Personally, I was inspired by Harry Reid's comments several months ago," says Canak, who helped to advertise and coordinate the event. "I truly believe that he was speaking on behalf of God." Canak refers to a comment made by Reid in February earlier this year, where he spoke publicly about the issue, saying that it blocked outside businesses from wanting to establish new businesses here.
While Reid got heat for his denouncement of prostitution, it seems that he may have more supporters than he realizes. Canak and her band of Women's Federation for World Peace members plan to bring more awareness to the issue, and the Unity Commission and students at UNR have begun to realize that they can make a difference.
What can you do to combat human trafficking? The panelists featured in the Freeze Project Speakers' Series have several suggestions:
-Go and educate yourself and others about the problem.
-Volunteer at an organization that is assisting this population.
-Organize community members.
-Write to your legislators.
-The Trafficking Victims Protection Act is reauthorized every two years. Tell your legislators you want them to support this bill.
-Report any suspicious activity.
-Post information about trafficking on your blogs and facebooks.
-Confront the "rape culture" when you see it: Don't tolerate media that is supportive of sexual violence or objectification of women.