January has been nationally recognized as Human Trafficking Awareness Month since 2010 to educate the public on what human trafficking is and how both community members and professionals can recognize and prevent this traumatizing and horrific crime.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.
The Mayor’s Office of Domestic and Community Violence Prevention’s Human Trafficking Task Force is using this month to educate our community as Illinois consistently ranks in the top 10 states for most reported cases of human trafficking.
Chicago has been identified as one of the top cities in the country for reported cases of human trafficking and Rockford continually ranks as one of the top cities in Illinois.
Human trafficking is a widely underreported crime; however, the U.S. Department of State estimates there are currently over 27 million victims at any given time.
Understanding what human trafficking is, what the common warning signs are, and what resources are available inyour community are all ways to help prevent human trafficking.