While the human trafficking crisis that inflicts communities across the globe is common knowledge to most, many consider it to be a foreign problem --- failing to realize trafficking affects the U.S. too, even in Michigan.

Approximately 50 people attended the Human Rights International Conference throughout the day March 3, in the Bovee University Center Rotunda. At the conference, three panel sessions and keynote speakers discussed different perspectives and aspects of human trafficking. The College of Humanities and Social and Behavioral Sciences and Students Against Slavery RSO, has sponsored the conference every year since 2011, focusing on different human rights issues each year.

Jessica Axe, president of Students Against Slavery, said she felt passionate in her motivation to focus on human trafficking at the conference.

"When I figured out how much of an issue this is, I had to do something about it," Axe said.

The panels --- Vulnerable Populations, Coffee with A Cop and Human Trafficking in a Global Context --- illustrated aspects about the targeted victims, law enforcement perspectives and addressed the human rights violations globally.

Two keynotes speakers representing the Michigan government also presented. Sen. Judy Emmons and Assistant Attorney General Kelly Carter started and concluded the event by relating the issue to Michigan.

Conference attendee Jessica Lopez is a Lansing resident. Lopez came from a migrant farm-working family in Texas and said these families tend to live together in migrant camps.

"(The conference) got me thinking (about) if human trafficking was something happening in migrant camps."

Children are often targeted by traffickers, as emphasized multiple times during the conference. Lopez, who works to provide services for children living in these camps, expressed concern of the issues the conference brought to light.

Trafficking and legislation

Michigan Sen. Judy Emmons was the first keynote speaker who kicked off discussion for the day.

Alongside other Michigan legislators, Emmons said she has written 24 pieces of legislation to combat human trafficking in the state. As example, she cited regulations requiring dance club employees to be licensed, ensuring the cease of hiring of underage dancers.

Of the 24 pieces of legislature, 21 have passed into law, Emmons announced.

Vulnerable Populations

Populations that are vulnerable are more easily influenced by traffickers and have wide-ranging circumstances defining vulnerability.

Graduate student Shane Wery described research showing a connection between human trafficking and natural disasters. It indicates how these tragedy-struck groups in need are more likely to be targeted.

Wery’s own research at CMU is inspired by these studies on the 2015 earthquake in Nepal. He said UNICEF intercepted 250 trafficked children after the event.

Children are a serious concern for many anti-trafficking activists. Nikki Atkinson, executive director of the Chazaq Movement, focused her discussion on children's susceptibility to sex trafficking. Youth are targeted due to three factors: "vulnerability, demand and the cost and risk to the traffickers," she said.

Social media is the No. 1 asset for a trafficker, Atkinson continued, and provided several techniques practiced to trick victims.

"Romeo Pimp" refers to a tactic where a romantic partner treats the victim well, while slowly coercing them into sex work and sextortion --- threatening to make explicit photos go viral unless the victim provides a service. This is a common technique used, along with using chatrooms and email to promise fame or fortune to vulnerable people, she explained.

Melissa Steiner, community engagement manager at Underground Railroad in Saginaw County, closed the session by testing the audience’s awareness.

She provided questionable situations onscreen and asked the crowd whether it should be labeled as trafficking. For example:

"Gina is in desperate times and needs a place to stay for the night. Her friend, Mike, says that she can stay at his house in exchange for sex every now and again."

This situation, sometimes called "survival sex," is classified as trafficking, Steiner said. By requesting sex as payment for staying the night, Mike is taking advantage of Gina's "desperate time" and trafficking her for personal benefit.

Coffee with A Cop

“Your children have trafficking at their fingertips,” said State Trooper Michael White, regarding whether sex trafficking is a problem in Mount Pleasant.

He said the constant access to internet and smartphones can make anyone available to traffickers.

During the Coffee with a Cop session, attendees were able to question a panel of policemen who shared their personal experiences with trafficking.

White also discussed websites such as Backpage.com, a page protected by free speech rights that serves as a popular place for traffickers to commercialize their “business.”

Homeland Security Special Agent Kurt Fiegel discussed his experiences as a victim advocate, and said it can take up to seven interviews with female victims, sometimes over the course of two years, before they feel comfortable enough to talk.

"This person has been victimized by men, has been lied to," Fiegel said. "I (sometimes) have to slide out (of the room.)"

Human Trafficking in a Global Context

Trafficking is a crisis inflicting communities around the world. Syed S. Uddin-Ahmed, history and political science lecturer from Mid-Michigan Community College, demonstrated this by highlighting crimes against humanity committed against the Rohingya in Burma.

Banned from applying for Burmese citizenship, the Rohingya face violence from extremist Buddhist terrorist groups who kidnap and rape Muslim women and children, Uddin-Ahmed explained.

Nigeria also suffers from the crisis, as Maureen Eke, professor of English Language and Literature, detailed in the session.

Eke presented her research showing that 80 percent of female Nigerian immigrants in Europe in 2016 were sold into slavery.

Those caught facilitating the transaction are fined $1250, a small price to pay when a “high-quality” victim can turn "tricks" for $800, she said.

However, punishment is harsher when children are involved, she continued. Child trafficking charges range from 10 years to life in prison.

Consequences in Michigan

Michigan Assistant Attorney General Kelly Carter was the ending keynote speaker at the conference, and explained how sentencing depends on the severity and circumstances of the act.

"Traffickers sometimes don't realize they're trafficking," she said. "They'll be charged with human trafficking and go ‘Oh, that's not me.’"

Perpetrators convicted of trafficking in Michigan may face life in prison, especially if children are involved, Carter emphasized.

Anyone who suspects a human trafficking situation are encouraged to call the Polaris Project at 1-888-3737-888, to report the problem and help vulnerable victims.