January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month. As the Mid-Shore region’s state-designated Regional Navigator, For All Seasons continues to partner with a network of agencies working to respond to and prevent human trafficking. The agency’s Anti-Human Trafficking Regional Navigator program helps identify human trafficking situations, offers support to survivors and their families, and provides community outreach, awareness, and education. For All Seasons’ Red Sand Project and free Human Trafficking courses have engaged community members over the past few years to participate in the prevention efforts on the Shore and will be offered to the community again this year.

Human trafficking occurs when men, women, or children are targeted with the use of force, lies, or threats to work against their will, often for little or no pay, or have sex for money or something of value such as food, shelter, clothes, or drugs. All persons under age 18 who exchange sex for something of value are human trafficking victims regardless of the presence of force, lies, or threats.

Several factors make the Eastern Shore an attractive destination for traffickers. These include proximity to large metropolitan areas and three major international airports; a heavily traveled East Coast highway corridor; popular tourism and recreational attractions; and a high rate of seasonal employment.

In 2021, it was estimated that 38 percent of sex trafficked victims were minors and 65 percent of trafficked victims were recruited via the Internet. According to Susan Ahlstrom, Human Trafficking Regional Navigator, although these figures are based on actual reports, it is hard to determine actual numbers because the crime is so grossly underreported.

She adds, “Vulnerability has no age, gender, race, sexual orientation, or geographical location. Targeted victims may have an unstable home life, a history of sexual or physical abuse, have nowhere to live, be runaway youth, substance users, lack employment opportunities, or are simply a person who is in need of belonging or acceptance.”

To educate the community on human trafficking, For All Seasons’ Center for Learning is reaching out to provide two courses and several presentations to organizations and businesses on the Mid-Shore. First, the agency is offering a free virtual or in-person training, Human Trafficking 101, to interested organizations and individuals on the Mid-Shore. The presentation includes information about human trafficking in our region. It touches upon the intersection of online safety and trafficking, and the fact that trafficking knows no boundaries, as it affects individuals across the lifespan, of any gender and socio-economic status.

Second, recent legislation has made it a requirement for law enforcement, healthcare, social services, education professionals, and certain clergy members (all mandated reporters) to report cases or suspected cases of human trafficking to the Regional Navigator for their area. These professionals play a critical role in identifying and reporting human trafficking. To help these professionals fulfill their duties as mandated reporters, For All Seasons has launched a free course that is self-paced and available online. The course covers how to identify potential trafficking victims, including key behavioral, physical, and environmental indicators, as well as the legal obligations for mandated reporters in Maryland. Participants will also learn step-by-step guidance on how to document and report suspected cases to ensure swift, appropriate action, as well as self-care for the mandated reporter.

“This year we are also excited to partner with the Life Crisis Center to offer an event on behalf of the Maryland Human Trafficking Task Force and the University of Maryland School of Social Work Prevention of Adolescent Risks Initiative (PARI) to provide an overview on recent legislation concerning Child Sex and Child Labor Trafficking to Lower and Mid-Shore Departments of Social Services staff,” adds Ahlstrom.

In addition to providing proclamations being issued for all the Mid-Shore county governments, For All Seasons is also providing Anti-Human Trafficking presentations and workshops to the Talbot and Caroline County Local Care Teams, Queen Anne’s County Healthy Families staff, Washington College students and faculty, Kent County citizens, Easton High School AP Spanish class, BAAM, the Dorchester County Youth Action Council, and the Mid-Shore Board of Realtors.

For the past five years, For All Seasons has also been active in the Red Sand Project, a participatory art project that invites community members to question, connect, and act against vulnerabilities that can lead to human trafficking and exploitation. Participants pour red sand into cracks in surfaces like sidewalks and floors. The red sand represents the victims of human trafficking who have slipped through the cracks yet may still be hiding in plain sight.

For All Seasons’ Anti-Human Trafficking Regional Navigator program is made possible by support from the Governor’s Office of Crime Prevention and Policy. To learn more, visit WeSupportSurvivors.org. For questions about scheduling a training or enrolling in the agency’s mandated reporter training, contact Susan Ahlstrom at sahlstrom@forallseasonsinc.org.

Captions:

#1: Pictured is Dorchester County Council member Mike Detmer participating in the For All Seasons Red Sand Project at the Packing House in Cambridge last year, which addressed the issue of human trafficking.

#2: Pictured are business and community partners who participated in the Red Sand Project at the Packing House in Cambridge to highlight the complexity of the problem of human trafficking. The event invited partners such as law enforcement, social service agencies, educators, front-line workers, and community leaders to connect for greater collaboration in addressing the problem of human trafficking in the region.