Start a Task Force for Human Trafficking in Kansas - Manhattan

Targeting: The Governor of KS, The KS State Senate, The KS State House, see more...

Started by: Kristen Tebow

Some people say that slavery ended with the Emancipation Proclamation. The truth is that there are more slaves in America in modern times, than during the Civil War. Modern slavery has a new name. That name is human trafficking.

Human trafficking is defined by the Trafficking Protocol of 2000 as "a criminal activity in which people are recruited, harboured, transported, bought, or kidnapped to serve an exploitative purpose, such as sexual slavery, forced labor, or child soldiery." As one can see, there are many different faces of human trafficking. The most prevalent cases of human trafficking that exist in America are sex trafficking cases. Most of these cases involve young girls involved in prostitution.

Contrary to popular belief, there are cases of trafficking that happen in the heartland of the United States. A lot of these cases are never brought to justice. However, in 2009, the U.S. Attorney's Office launched a sting operation called "Operation Guardian Angel" and there were several cases that took place in Kansas so it is obvious that a task force would be a need for a task force in Kansas.

Also in the same article, it was mentioned that there is no official task force like there are in other states in the U.S. where human trafficking is prevalent such as Colorado, California, Florida,Illinois, Ohio, and Texas. There are many arguments that can be made about population sizes of the cities in these states compared to Kansas, but I can counter each argument with Craigslist Trafficking that happens all over Kansas and the long stretch of I-70 that runs through Kansas. Also, since the overall population of Kansas is low, Kansas is arguably a terrific place for human trafficking because of the remoteness of the state.

There should be a task force in Kansas. Where is a more perfect place to start a task force than Manhattan, KS? We have four student organizations at Kansas State University who are active in the movement. We have over 25 individuals dedicated to the issue and professors who have done research on trafficking on a local, national, and global level. This petition will prove that the community wants Kansas to get involved in ending the most hideous of crimes committed in the world.

Another reason you should care: All of us, even Kansans, contribute to human trafficking by buying consumer goods that are made by underpaid workers who are often maltreated. Most of the time these workers are children.

Most importantly and the reason you all should care: We had a student at Kansas State University who was kidnapped, gang-raped, and trafficked at Fort Riley. I think that this alone should warrant a prevention movement.

The task force would provide prevention educational programs, research on the issue, awareness event-planning, community action and outreach, and it would provide jobs for the community. There are many benefits for launching something like this in our town!

Please help us join the fight and show that Kansas cares!

http://humantrafficking.change.org/petitions/view/start_a_task_force_for_human_trafficking_in_kansas_-_manhattan#

ACTIVISM AT KSU

This semester has been exceedingly progressive at Kansas State University with new advocates and activists coming out of the woodwork. In September, I collaborated with other local shelters and organizations to put on a very successful “Take Back the Night” event in Lawrence, KS.

To view the news clip from the event click HERE

October was a busy month! We supported a fellow organization on campus, Coalition, who put on a Rave to Save to raise money for Zindagi Trust, an organization working to aid refugees affected by the flooding in Pakistan. Together, with other organizations on campus, including members of KSUAID, they raised over $700 for the cause.

Also this month, we put on our CARE 2010 MDG event. We showed the short film “Baht” and invited a fellow professor, Nadia Shapkina, from KSU to speak on the issue of Global Gender Inequality and how it prevents women from entering into the workforce in their own countries forcing them to find jobs in other countries and makes them 10 times more vulnerable to human trafficking situations. It was a very successful event with no spending and we had many students, community members, and even students from other campuses (and even Missouri and Florida) attend the event. The official headcount was 83 people in attendance. By the end of the film, we had people leave before questions, but it was a very interactive audience with numerous questions. Pictures are coming soon!

We are currently planning two major events, as well as several fundraisers for these events. These events will be happening on K-State’s campus in Manhattan, KS.

For the first event, we are planning on showing the film “Blood Diamonds” and providing alternative options for buying fair trade diamonds. We are also looking into different options in speakers such as bringing Robert Goff, a former NonProfit lawyer and expert on the issue of child soldiers. We would love any suggestions in bringing someone that has been directly affected by the issue of blood diamonds.We have successfully formed several co-sponsorships to pay for the film rights and pre-events. We are looking into different options in paying for a speaker. We are scheduled to meet with SGA about our allocated funds of $600 and we are also planning on applying for a mini-grant with AIDemocracy.

The second event is currently in the works and we have only completely planned one day, but we have a vision on how this week of events will go. The Love146 Freedom Concert will take place on Sunday, April 3rd in the Union Ballroom at Kansas State University. We have 4 local bands performing and also have formed a contract with Cloverton, a very talented Christian Rock group who does benefit concerts and is associated with Hope For Haiti. They have won many music awards and we are proud to have them come to campus! We are also working on bringing a speaker from the Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking in Denver, Colorado who will come and talk to us about Trafficking on a Global Level vs. Trafficking in the US and Community Involvement. All of the proceeds for the concert will go to Love146 and the LCHT. We have filled out a Diversity Grant Application for $6,000 and we are planning on doing a couple of fundraisers and applying for mini-grants from AIDemocracy. More to come on this!

Lastly, I am working very hard to create my very own Human Trafficking NGO for the Kansas Community. We do not have an NGO in Kansas like the one I am working on building. We have various shelters and many supporting NGO’s and limited opportunities for grads to get jobs when they graduate in the field. The new NGO will provide education programs for high school and college students, teaching them about the issue and prevention. We will provide referrals and research and design programs that hopefully will be implemented in law enforcement and existing shelters to train individuals on the issue and victim’s needs. We will also plan community events, create volunteer and internship opportunities for students at KSU and other Universities, and provide jobs for those interested in this type of work. It’s a work in progress!

More to come!

RC Kristen Tebow, Kansas/Missouri Region

The Dark Side of Halloween - Chocolate Trade

I have been extremely busy these last couple of months planning events, speaking at different events, and working to form the first anti-trafficking NGO in Manhattan, KS so I have not had time to blog. Since we have just celebrated a holiday that greatly measures success on costume and candy sales, I would like to take this time to talk about the dark side of Halloween.

We all go trick or treating on Halloween or take our children trick or treating. When I was growing up, I remember the competitions that my friends and I had while we were trick or treating. Whoever filled up the bag of candy first had bragging rights until the next Halloween. What I don't remember from the early days is wondering where the chocolate in these candy bags came from. Now that I am old enough, I think about where everything comes from.

Here are a few things that were done in the few weeks leading up to Halloween, and also a few ideas that you can do for next year.

The Dark Side of Chocolate

The International Labor Rights Forum, along with Global Exchange, Green America and Oasis USA, organized screenings of The Dark Side of Chocolate all across the country. This new documentary exposed the ongoing use of child labor, forced labor and trafficking in the cocoa industry in West Africa. It is a great resources for increasing awareness of this critical labor rights issue.

As part of the Raise the Bar Hershey campaign, they asked concerned individuals to host screenings in their communities throughout October 2010, especially during a national week of action from October 25 through October 31.

For more information, please contact Tim Newman at Tim.Newman@ILRF.org or 202-347-4100

Reverse Trick-or-Treating
Ten to twenty thousand groups of children, college students, and activists (including myself) handed chocolate back to adults during their regular neighborhood trick-or-treating rounds this Halloween. They distributed Fair Trade certified chocolate attached to a card explaining the labor and environmental problems in the cocoa industry globally and how Fair Trade provides a solution. The event, Reverse Trick-or-Treating, was launched to raise awareness of the pervasive problem of child labor, forced labor and trafficking in the cocoa fields, to empower consumers to press the chocolate industry for more fair cocoa sourcing policies, to shift the industry toward sourcing Fair Trade certified cocoa, and to inform consumers about Fair Trade companies that are leading the way to industry reform. Fair Trade standards prohibit the use of abusive child labor, contain extensive environmental sustainability protections, and enable farmers to escape poverty.