Slave Trafficking in Wisconsin

Human trafficking, also known as modern-day slavery, is the second largest and fastest growing crime industry in the world after drug trafficking. Currently there are 27 million people estimated to be slaves worldwide, including some in Wisconsin. That total is ten times the number of slaves trafficked during the trans-Atlantic slave trade of the 17^th, 18^th and 19^th centuries.  

A presentation on human trafficking hosted by Slave Free Madison in partnership with the Sequoya Branch Library, drew over 50 participants last night, from a wide array of Madison-area non-government organizations, concerned citizens and local government.

Last night’s presentation clarified the legal definition of human trafficking, as articulated by federal law, and gave an overview of what is known about human trafficking in the state of Wisconsin.

In 2008, as part of an effort to ascertain the extent of human trafficking locally, the Wisconsin Office of Justice Assistance released the report Hidden in Plain Sight.  Dane County was one of the counties in which both labor trafficking and sex trafficking occurred. The report, based on survey responses from March to August  of 2007, revealed startling numbers, that most experts agree grossly under-represent the actual cases in Wisconsin:

· 200 – number of WI cases of human trafficking reported to the survey — both domestic and international and in rural and urban communities

· 76 – the percent of WI cases that were sexual exploitation – 15% involved minors

· 13 — the percent of WI cases that were labor exploitation — domestic helpers, service workers (primarily hotel/restaurant), agricultural workers and factory workers

· 15 — counties that reported sex trafficking of a minor

· 10 — counties that reported adult sex trafficking

· 10 — counties that reported labor trafficking

·   Dane County reported each of these types of trafficking

As of this writing none of these cases have been prosecuted under Wisconsin law.

If you suspect human trafficking, DO NOT INTERVENE YOURSELF.  Contact the National Human Trafficking hotline:  1-888-3737-888  (available 24/7).  The hotline helps determine if you have encountered human trafficking and it helps connect victims to local and area service providers.

You can also contact local police or social service agencies – but, at this time, they may not be as well prepared to respond as quickly or effectively as the hotline can. Madison Police Officer Justine Harris, representing the Madison Police Department, acknowledged the difficulty of educating the public and local government agencies on this issue. “I wish I could say that we are wonderfully on top of this. We aren’t.”

Slave Free Madison is a new anti-human trafficking coalition committed to public education on the issue of human trafficking, also known as modern-day slavery. The group began officially in 2009, but sprung from the kernel of an idea from 2005 when members of the Madison chapter of the Zonta Club learned about a case of human trafficking that had been uncovered in Florida by Zonta members there. Zonta members in Madison and other Wisconsin towns decided to take steps to build a community-wide coalition to raise awareness about the existence of human trafficking locally. Since they first began meeting in 2009, they have drawn concerned community members from many different organizations, churches and government agencies.

Slave Free Madison plans to hold more presentations like this for interested service groups, faith-based organizations, school groups, and neighborhood groups. To schedule a presentation for your group, contact Slave Free Madison at slavefreemadisoninfo@gmail.com .

Related:

UW’s LaFollette School of Public Affairs will be hosting an all-day conference on human trafficking April 30^th. Madison native, Ben Skinner, author of A Crime So Monstrous will speak at 4:30 PM.  For more information visit http://www.lafollette.wisc.edu/research/seminar/index.html.