After the 12 Days of Christmas, try the 31 Days of Freedom!

31 Days of Freedom Step-by-Step Guide: Here are the first 5 Days!

1. Change your wallpaper on Facebook and Twitter to the icon below and let your friends know January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Awareness month.

2. Start a chain reaction! Tell two people about the issue of human trafficking and its affects in the U.S. Encourage those two people to tell another two people about human trafficking, and so on and so on. Try to educate as many people as possible on this global issue!

3. Attend an anti-trafficking awareness event. Learn more about the issue of human trafficking. Encourage others to attend as well. Please check out our calendar for events in the Tampa Bay region.

4. Do you know your slavery footprint? Visit slaveryfootprint.org to find out how many slaves work for you.

5. Become a smart shopper. Visit the app store on your phone, download fair trade product apps and use them while you shop!

6. Encourage a friend to buy a Fair Trade Products. Please visit FairTradeUSA.org for a list of Fair Trade Products.

7. Shine a light on Human Trafficking awareness! Drive with your headlights on, leave your front porch light, light a candle! Show your community that we are ALL against modern day slavery!

8. Get involved! Volunteer with an anti- trafficking organization.

9. Write a blog or letter to the editor about human trafficking. Education is the key to fighting modern day slavery!

10. Wear green as a symbol of hope! Take a picture and share it on social media and encourage others to do the same.

11. Today is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day! Encourage your local library to carry books on human trafficking.

12. Go to Change.org. Visit the Human Trafficking section and sign one of the various petitions on this issue.

13. Call or write your state representative and let them know that you support the issue of fighting human trafficking and want to see more laws passed that will better help victims of human trafficking.

14. Donate $5 to an anti trafficking organization. Encourage your friends to donate to your favorite organization as well.

15. Get the issue trending. Tweet #stophumantrafficking

16. Educate yourself. Check out domestic and int. laws about human trafficking like the Trafficking Victims Protection Act 2000.

17. Give back! Donate items that your local anti-trafficking organization needs, and get the rest of your community involved.

18. Students- join or create your own club to raise awareness on the issue of human trafficking. Get your campus involved!

19. Do you know the “red flags”? Learn the red flags that may indicate human trafficking. Visit the International Labour Organizations (www.ILO.org) website for more information.

20. Request a training- If you know or are a business, law enforcement, social service agency or a state employee request a training session from a Grassroots anti-human trafficking organization.

21. Take a picture with a sign that reads, “Stop Human Trafficking” to remind people that there is still modern day slavery today. Post the picture on Facebook, twitter, instagram or other social media sites.

22. Watch a film- Invite friends and loved ones over to watch a documentary on human trafficking.

23. Drop an F-Bomb! Educate youth on the signs of human trafficking, and show them the website http://www.droppingfbombs.com.

24. Follow @freeallslaves, @DropAnFBomb on twitter, along with other anti-human trafficking organizations. Retweet them to get the word out!

25. Wear red today! Red symbolizes the action you are taking against human trafficking. It’s time to end modern day slavery!

26. Check out the Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons Report to see how other counties are doing in the fight against human trafficking since Human Trafficking is a global issue.

27. Do you know your rights? Look up the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Start a conversation with friends!

28. Call and your local law enforcement agency and ask what they are doing to combat human trafficking. Ask about the resources provided to survivors.

29. Put the National Human Trafficking Hotline’s number in your cell phone today! The number is 1 (888) 373-7888

30. Check out your local 211 to see what resources are provided to survivors.

31. Plan for the future! At 2:09 pm, reflect on the fact that globally there are 20.9 million victims of human trafficking that are in need of assistance. Think about what is still needed to address the root causes of human trafficking in the state of Florida, the United States and globally.

31 Days of Freedom

The 31 Days of Freedom is not specific to Florida. Anyone anywhere can join this movement. It will be an easy way to help continue to raise awareness on the issue of human trafficking in all of it’s forms. On December 31st, we will share the list of what each day will entail.

Please share this with others who want to become more involved in the fight against domestic servitude. labor trafficking and sex trafficking. Hope you all can join us!

https://www.facebook.com/events/316417481887366/

2014 Results are in- FCAHT Had One Busy Year!

By foraging new partnerships and building on existing ones FCAHT continues to make great strides towards raising awareness and ending human trafficking in all its many forms. The best part is this work was made possible through the ongoing dedication of volunteers, interns and countless donations from supporters like you!

So take a look at this snapshot 2014 report and see what your support has helped us accomplish!

Human Trafficking Survivor Assistance

This year, the FCAHT team provided support with case management referral assistance to 20 domestic survivors, both adults and minor victims. FCAHT was also referred cases from HSI in Virginia, FBI Minnesota and Bilateral Safety Corridor in San Diego. Referral assistance is important because without it survivors can’t access the services they need and find pathways to health and freedom.

It’s a Numbers Game

Our Human Trafficking community awareness events, outreach and training sessions attracted a lot of attendees this year. Check out these numbers!

Florida Statewide total: 4,490
• Professional Training: 950
• Community Outreach and Awareness Programs: 3,140
• Youth Engagement: 400
• T.V and Radio Interviews: 16

But we don’t just work in isolation, founded by FCAHT in 2010, Tampa Bay Rescue and Restore Coalition (TBRRC) is a working group made up of agencies that provide services to children who are victims of crime. Through partnerships with high level organizations like the FBI, Homeland Security, Department of Children & Families, Department of Juvenile Justice, Eckerd Youth, Redefining Refuge and countless others, the TBRRC has been able to accomplish amazing things!

• Child Welfare Service Provider Training: 730
• SHOCK Education Youth Awareness: 65

FCAHT also reaches out nationally by participating in key events and training sessions across the US along with other organizations to help all Americans understand and learn how to combat human trafficking where they live.

Organization of American States Human Trafficking Panel in Washington DC: 80

National Human Trafficking Training’s: 455 people
• Birmingham, Alabama: 200
• Mobile, Alabama: 100
• Shawnee, Oklahoma: 25
• Chicago, Illinois: 50

And of course FCAHT is always looking for ways to support and engage on human trafficking with the international community, since in many cases, victims are coming from abroad and are exploited by local traffickers who bring them to the US.

International Human Trafficking Training’s: 800 people
• Asuncion, Paraguay: 325
• Ciudad del Este, Paraguay: 175
• La Paz, Bolivia: 300

In the end it is all about actions and public understanding of human trafficking that will make the most difference in this fight. So FCAHT takes every opportunity to get the conversation started. Drop and F-Bomb was a campaign FCAHT supported towards just that. We partnered with The Crisis Center of Tampa Bay, Women in Action and Dunn & Company for a youth awareness campaign aimed at getting young people talking about child sex trafficking and what to do about it. The Drop an F-Bomb campaign was featured during local events such as 97 X’s The Next Big Thing Concert. The F-Bomb Campaign also made at stop at the University of Tampa and was featured in a book titled “How You Can Fight Human Trafficking: 50 Ways to Join the Fight”.

We even got into baseball this year when the Kansas City Royals made it the World Series! FCAHT was asked by the Department of Children & Families Kansas to assist them in preparing the event staff at Kauffman Stadium on how to recognize a potential victim of human trafficking. Our staff was able to provide DCF Kansas City with a specially designed indicator card for the staff to use. This is the first time that a team of professionals outside of child welfare or law enforcement has ever asked to be trained on how to spot human trafficking. A great game, a great experience and a great year for FCAHT full of amazing learning, targeted action and fun!

Happy New Year!