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Anti-Human Trafficking

Human Trafficking is the modern equivalent of slavery.

Every day, men, women and children are sold into slavery, prostitution, or forced to serve as soldiers in conflicts throughout the world. It is happening on almost every continent and country.

Many times smugglers take their captives into other countries making their whereabouts almost impossible to trace. The United States government cites 170 countries where human trafficking is taking place. It has been called the fastest growing criminal industry in the world, with the total annual revenue estimated to be between $30 billion and $40 billion.

Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur around the world are committed to exposing and correcting these abuses. 

Key Facts

  • 12.3 million adults and children are in forced labor, bonded labor and prostitution around the world.
  • 1.8 per 1000 people in the world are trafficking victims...in Asia and the Pacific, this number is 3 per 1000 people.
  • There is an appalling difference between the number of estimated victims and the number of identified victims.
  • Many countries and states remain unable to adequately prosecute traffickers.
  • Many trafficking survivors never receive rehabilitation services including immediate needs for physical safety, housing and health care.
  • Most Americans do not know what human trafficking is, or if they do, they think it is a problem that only occurs in other countries (Adapted from Education for Justice)

Here are some ways you can help:

  • Consider a gift to the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur to help us continue in our fight against human trafficking.
  • Educate yourself about the trafficking of women, children and men in your area, the United States and around the world. One of the best ways to help combat human trafficking is to raise awareness and learn more about how to identify victims. Check out the State Department’s 20 ways you can help fight trafficking here.
  • Ask your Congressperson to co-sponsor HR 467 “Reducing the Demand for Human Trafficking Act of 2019” . Follow this bill in the House and call your senators to demand it be heard in the Senate.

  • Be aware of where your consumer choices affect persons being trafficked. For example, our dependency on minerals found in East Congo and used cell phones, laptops and other devices is fomenting and complicating civil war there. The diamonds most of us wear in our jewelry have been mined by children forced to do so by warlords. The mica in most of our make-up is gathered by children forced to do so by tribal elders. Contact the State Department and ask for stronger action on these issues at 202-466-5431.