Human Trafficking Awareness Month, January, is dedicated to raising awareness of sexual slavery and human trafficking worldwide. Here at Kristi House, we serve child victims of human sex-trafficking every day through our Project GOLD program. Human Trafficking Awareness Day started in 2007, when the U.S. Senate designated Jan. 11th as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day in the hopes of raising awareness to combat human trafficking. It began as a U.S. initiative, and the United Nations has started to highlight this topic and work toward global awareness with days such as International Day for the Abolition of Slavery.
Today, there are between 21-30 million people enslaved in the world, more than at any time in human history. Modern slavery is especially brutal for children in poverty — children become soldiers, young women are forced into prostitution, and migrant workers are exploited in the workforce. Kristi House’s Project GOLD provides outreach and services to children exploited in sex trafficking to help them escape dangerous lives at the hands of traffickers and predators. Here is a peak of what Project GOLD was up to during Human Trafficking Awareness month.
A wonderful team of women from Junior League Miami came to Project GOLD, to sort, organzine and prepare donations for our boutique. The Gold Boutique is a place for our victims to “shop” for their clothing, shoes and other needs right on site.
At the Commercial Sexual Child Exploitation (CSEC) Multidisciplinary Team staffing with our partner agencies, Kristi House wore blue in observance of Human Trafficking Awareness Day. The Blue Campaign is the unified voice for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) efforts to combat human trafficking. DHS understands how difficult it can be for victims to come forward and work with law enforcement due to their trauma. DHS is committed to helping victims feel stable, safe, and secure.
Juliana Ospina, the Associate Director of Project GOLD, stopped by Life FM radio to chat. Discussion is an important part of spreading awareness and bringing darkness to light on this important issue.
Project GOLD Program Director, Maria Clara Rodriguez Harrington, had the honor of presenting to the United States Department of Justice Deputy Attorney, Rod Rosenstein, about our anti-trafficking efforts and programs during his visit to Miami at the U.S. Attorney’s Office Human Trafficking roundtable.
Kristi House at Florida National University (FNU) Powerhouse Human Trafficking Awareness Walk.
Maria Clara presented “Commerical Sexually Exploited Girls: Challenges and Triumphs of Group Work” at the ASGW National Conference in Savannah, Georgia. Maria Clara Harrington, Project GOLD Program Director, is joined by Dr. Maureen C. Kenny and Claire Helpingstine of Florida International University (FIU).
