PEORIA, Ill. – Human trafficking isn’t just a big city problem…it’s everywhere, even here in Central Illinois.
Thursday, January 11th is observed as Human Trafficking Awareness Day, and Peoria’s Center for Prevention of Abuse is asking everyone to “wear blue” in support of victims.
The Center’s CEO Carol Merna says they help victims of all types of abuse, including human trafficking.
“We receive people that are survivors of human trafficking that are really looking for healing, looking for safety, looking for a pathway to peace. And, we work with them through counseling, through emergency shelter, through housing, through financial aid, through Master’s level therapy, through a variety of things depending on what they need,” Merna says.
Human trafficking is any abuse that involves force, fraud, or coercion to control someone else, usually for financial benefit.
“Two of the most common forms of human trafficking are commercial sex trafficking and labor trafficking, which affect over 28 million people around the globe, raising about $150 billion annually,” Merna says.
The Center for Prevention of Abuse created a department specifically to help victims of human trafficking in 2018. They’ve assisted over 200 victims so far, ranging in age from 8 to 62 .
Merna says 80-percent of human trafficking victims in Central Illinois are coerced in the commercial sex trade, but other types of human trafficking include “begging rings” and people selling candy bars or other products door-to-door without any type of credentials.
If you suspect that someone you know is being trafficked, call 9-1-1, or call the Center for Prevention of Abuse Crisis Hotline at 1-800-559-SAFE.
To learn more about Human Trafficking Awareness Day, or the signs that someone might be a victim of human trafficking, click HERE.
