WEST CHESTER, PA (October 22, 2018) – Chester County Fund for Women and Girls (CCFWG), the Chester County Anti-Human Trafficking Coalition (CCAT) and West Chester University (WCU)’s Undergraduate Social Work Department gathered on Wednesday, October 3rd, with over 200 students, non-profit representatives and concerned citizens, for a free film screening and panel discussion of I Am Little Red. The program helped raise awareness about human trafficking in our communities and create discussion around preventative measures we can take to protect our children.
I Am Little Red, an animated short aimed at children most at risk for sex trafficking, provides a modern take on the classic Little Red Riding Hood fairy tale. Its narrator outlines awareness and preventative measures that can help Little Red stay safe from tactics typically used by a “wolf” (trafficker) to lure Little Red off his or her path.
Top: Map of locations of potential trafficking cases as reported by the National Human Trafficking Hotline; Bottom Left: Ann Marie Jones, Peer Recovery Specialist at Dawn’s Place, speaks about her personal experiences as a survivor of sex trafficking; Bottom Center: The audience listens to our experts during the panel discussion; Bottom Right: Carol Hart Metzker, survivor-ally, author and human trafficking advocate, moderates the program and discussion.
Moderator Carol Hart Metzker, survivor-ally and human trafficking advocate, opened the program by providing statistics about the prevalence of human trafficking in our county, debunking the widely held belief of “not in my community”. Our expert panelists also spoke to their varied experiences with human trafficking. Ann Marie Jones, sex trafficking survivor and current Peer Recovery Specialist at Dawn’s Place, gave a personal account of her life in the streets; the Pennsylvania State Police shared their experiences with investigating and intervening in human trafficking cases; Katrina Stopfer, case manager at The Salvation Army’s New Day Drop-in Center, spoke of the services provided by the center to female survivors of commercial sexual exploitation; and Toni Keg, Policy and Research Analyst with Senator Dinniman’s office, delivered a timely update on the current Safe Harbor legislation designed to provide protections for sexually exploited children.
“As long as there is one child in our community being targeted and harmed by traffickers and other predators, all our children are at risk,” said Carol Metzker, author of Facing the Monster: How One Person Can Fight Child Slavery. “When neighbors work together to know where our kids are and how they’re using their cell phones, to know the signs of human trafficking and who to call for help, and to speak out against buying sex, we form a shield of protection and prevention.”
Unfortunately, human trafficking is happening in our communities; it is through conversation and collaboration throughout Chester County that advocates hope to raise awareness, aid survivors and ultimately eliminate human trafficking.
To report suspected human trafficking in the United States, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center’s 24-hour toll-free hotline at 888-373-7888. For nationwide statistics and resources about human trafficking, visit https://humantraffickinghotline.org.