HENRICO COUNTY, Va. -- Several nonprofits in Central Virginia are teaming up to prevent youth from being trafficked for sex or labor, saying there's been an increase in concern over juveniles falling prey to predators online.
Henrico Too Smart 2 Start Coalition planned a town hall meeting Thursday with representatives from Attorney General Jason Miyares's office, as well as representatives from Henrico County Public Schools and Henrico Police, in an effort to educate families on how to spot the signs of possible human trafficking.
"We think about the movie 'Taken,' we think about 'Sound of Freedom,' we think about kidnapping and going to another country," said Terrell Pollard, Chair of Henrico Too Smart 2 Start Coalition. "Human trafficking is another word for slavery."
Human trafficking is "defined as the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act" by the Department of Homeland Security.
Traffickers may lure victims into trafficking situations using violence, manipulation, false promises of well-paying jobs, and romantic relationships.
Victims are often vulnerable, lacking secure housing, food stability, or a steady source of income.
"When people need food, when people need housing, people are asking for them to do awful things," Pollard explained. "And a lot of times it's people who are young, who may not be aware of the services that are available, other resources, or just haven't had a lot of life experience to realize that there are other avenues, so they're really preying on vulnerable people."
According to the International Labor Organization, human trafficking is a $150 billion enterprise globally.
In Virginia, labor trafficking accounts for about 40% of trafficking cases.
"Predators lure them in with money, with drugs, they lure them in saying the sky's the limit, I can buy you anything," said Travis Woods with Youth Impact, who's partnered with Henrico Too Smart 2 Start for the town hall.
Youth Impact's goal is to build relationships with youth in Central Virginia, partnering with different nonprofits to get them access to social services and job opportunities.
"If young people knew they could make their own money and have their own career, and so forth, it would eliminate those factors," Woods said.
Woods is encouraging both young people and their families to be social media savvy to spot behaviors that may lead to trafficking.
"That's why it's so important for you to put alerts on your children's phones, to be aware of what's going on, and most importantly, build relationships with your children," Woods said.
A list of recognizing the signs of human trafficking can be found here.
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