This event, supported by 250 airport employees, was coordinated by the FLY-SFO Administrative Office and raised $150,000 to support Freedom House – Freedom House is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization with a mission to bring hope, restoration,and a new life to survivors of human-trafficking by providing a safe home and longterm aftercare.
NBC News story HERE and more HERE
The event began with a one-mile remembrance walk around the airport that included SFO Airport Director, John Martin. It concluded with informational presentations by Freedom House Founder, Jaida Im, as well as a graduate survivor of the Freedom House program at the Aviation Museum. Nancy Rivard, of Airline Ambassadors, commended coordinators, citing her goal to provide another training at SFO airport before Super Bowl 2016.
Over 250 airport personnel participated. 80% of human trafficking victims are women and girls; in a show of solidarity, the remembrance walk was comprised of men walking while women and men raised pledges to support them.
Here is Nancy Rivards’s comments at the event:
“Sunday was the SuperBowl in Phoenix, and law enforcement agencies in 17 states arrested nearly 600 people and rescued 68 victims of human trafficking. It’s particularly meaningful that this sting culminated on the day of the Super Bowl, which unfortunately has emerged as a prominent haven for sex trafficking.”
When I started Airline Ambassadors in 1996 to help orphans and vulnerable children I had never heard of human trafficking. Like most of us I thought slavery ended with the Emancipation Proclamation. But in 2009 after correctly identifying trafficking on four airlines…(one of those cases led to the bust of a pornography ring in Boston saving 86 children) we learned the truth, that human slavery is more prevalent now than at any time in human history. According to the ILO 2014 report it is a 150 Billion industry!
Traffickers move their victims frequently, often using the speed and convenience of commercial air travel. This keeps victims powerless – so they don’t have any friends or family or to places where they don’t speak the language. I knew as a flight attendant that airlines have infrastructure to train staff annually and this issue could be added to annual emergency procedure training.This one step alone would provide thousands of eyes and ears in the air, potentially saving thousands of lives. We researched the issue and learned horrifying statistics statistics that 600-800,000 victims are trafficked across borders annually and in our own country up to 100,000 children are at risk of exploitation. Working closely Customs Border Protection we developed an industry specific training which we kicked off with Congresswoman Jackie Speier in this very room in 2012. We will provide our 27th airport training in Chicago with the Dept of Aviation on Feb. 20, 2015.
Last month was Human Trafficking awareness month. Two bills were passed in Congress and our local Congressman Mike Honda introduced new legislation. We partnered with Bay Area Anti Trafficking Coalition to provide a training with Congressman Honda in San Jose last year, and with support from the Bay Area’s Bothman Construction, we will be able to do another training here at SFO as well before the SuperBowl in Santa Clara next year. Those of us in this room are all in a position to recognize and report human trafficking. We can be aware of indicators; Notice children and who accompanies them; or young women traveling alone; if a person is under control of a travel companion; has possession of their passport and travel documents; do they seem ashamed, frightened or nervous?;Afraid to make eye contact ; Afraid of uniformed security ? If a situation does not feel “right” we encourage everyone to go with their gut and call the DHS TIP Line. 866-347-2423. I have wallet cards with the TIP Line number for everyone in the room. You hope you are wrong, but that one action may save a life
