National Human Trafficking Awareness Day

EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (WEAU) – Today is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, a day dedicated to the awareness and the prevention of the illegal practice.

Human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.

Cat Morgan with Fierce Freedom, a non profit organization in Eau Claire, is working to educate and prevent human trafficking.

“We just want to have opportunities for awareness to build, to have conversations about what the reality of human trafficking is and sharing real stories. The goal is to help people develop sort of empathy, compassion and awareness for someone that's potentially a victim,” Morgan said.

Fierce Freedom said human trafficking is a global problem that affects millions of people, including some in the Chippewa Valley.

“We've had survivors even recently say that this has happened to them locally, in our community and in our city,” Morgan said.

Morgan said that people who are more susceptible to victimization often live in the margins of society.

“Anytime that there is homelessness, any time that there is somebody that doesn't have provision for their needs dependent on somebody who might be an abuser or a trafficker, again, that that might be a telltale sign that someone is being trafficked or groomed to be trafficked,” Morgan said.

According to Regi Giessler, HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital ER manager, medical professionals are also at the forefront of identifying and helping victims.

“We have an obligation to try to assist and discover any victims of human trafficking. We may be their only chance to get out of whatever situation that they are in,” Giessler said.

Geissler stresses that even if you can't see human trafficking, that doesn't mean it isn't around.

“So you may not see the outside injury. So there may not be the the bruising in the battered stuff. It may be all internal. We do a lot of education to make sure that we are up to date on our training and that we have a better access to uncovering the hidden crime of human trafficking,” Geissler said.

Geissler also said that health care professionals continuously work to make hospitals a safe place for victims to seek help.

If you are a victim of human trafficking or have any evidence of suspicious activity, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1 (888) 373-7888 for help.

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