Mississippians Can Report Suspected Human Trafficking On New Website
November 11, 2021Mississippi has launched an anti-human trafficking website aimed at supporting victims and providing citizens with a way to report suspected trafficking.
Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said human trafficking is occurring in small towns across Mississippi.
“We want the public to be our eyes and ears and help us when there are victims of human trafficking, people that they suspect may be victims,” Tindell said. “Giving them a means and a way to report that information and recognize those victims when they come across them.”
Globally, human trafficking affects 12 to 27 million people, from adults to children, who are held in slavery, according to the Mississippi State Department of Health.
Tindell said often times in Mississippi some families get caught up in drug use, leaving children neglected. In some cases, the children are used as commodities for drugs for family members, he said.
The department has been working with the governor’s office, state attorney general and the legislature to pass laws addressing the criminality of trafficking and how to help victims in their road to recovery.
Read the full story by Gabriela Szymanowska on The Mississippi Clarion Ledger.