BATON ROUGE, La (BRPROUD) – Gov. John Bel Edwards announced the new statewide human trafficking resource center website for the state of Louisiana. With the help of the new online resource, survivors, victims, service providers, stakeholders, and citizens will be able to learn more about human trafficking, how to identify when someone needs help, and more.
The new campaign, Stop Trafficking LA: Human Trafficking is R.E.A.L stands for Recognizing the signs, Educating others, Acting immediately, and Listening to the victims and survivors.
“Eradicating human trafficking, preventing any more suffering and helping survivors regain control of their lives is something that Donna and I are committed to achieving,” said Gov. Edwards. Thanks to Donna using her platform as well as the state legislators, I am proud to say that our efforts here in Louisiana are making a difference and we’re gaining national and international attention about the need to educate people about this heinous crime. I’m grateful to Dr. Dana Hunter for leading our new Office of Human Trafficking Prevention. She has demonstrated a strong commitment and expertise in programs and practices to help those who are vulnerable. Under her leadership, Louisiana has secured nearly 2.7 million federal dollars to improve outcomes for child and youth victims of human trafficking. And with this new website, I’m confident our efforts will continue to connect resources with those who need them and help us fight this scourge on our society.”
Latest Trafficking Data from Dept. of Children and Family Services:
- In 2020, there were 759 victims reported, a figure we suspect was suppressed due to the pandemic
- 94% were either sex trafficking victims or labor-and-sex trafficking victims
- Victims’ ages ranged from 2 months to 63 years, with 93 sex trafficking victims age 12 or under
- In fact, 7 out of 10 of the reported victims were juveniles
To learn more about human trafficking visit the Human Trafficking Prevention Resource Center of Louisiana at HumanTrafficking.la.gov and to learn more about the statewide public awareness campaign visit StopTraffickingla.com.