Students Organize National Human Trafficking Conference
This Saturday, Tech students are bringing a national conference to campus that will shed light on the issue of human trafficking in Atlanta and beyond.
The 2015 National Human Sex Trafficking Conference, sponsored by the student group One Voice Atlanta, will give Georgia college and high school students an opportunity to hear from leaders who are working to stop sex trafficking, providing support to victims, and educating those who are most vulnerable to becoming victims in the future.
“It’s a good avenue to get people from all over the state involved, and we’re really excited to reach so many people,” said Anna Arnau, a fourth-year Tech student and president of One Voice. Around 350 people are expected to attend. Arnau and fellow student Erin Greenhaw will participate in an afternoon panel discussion. DanceTech and Pulse, both Tech dance groups, will perform during the evening. The conference, which comes at the beginning of the state's Human Trafficking Awareness Month, runs from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. at the Scheller College of Business and is free.
One Voice planned the event with Daphne McQuarter, a national activist dedicated to helping women who have been victims of trafficking. McQuarter has also been involved with the #bringbackourgirls campaign and founded I Am Her Voice, the hosting organization for the conference. Other speakers at the conference include Sam Olens, attorney general for the state of Georgia; Camila Wright, assistant attorney general and Georgia’s statewide prosecutor for human trafficking; and Nekia Hackworth, assistant U.S. Attorney for the northern district of Georgia.
In addition to sponsoring the conference, this year One Voice is working to engage more men in the conversation about sex trafficking. Atlanta is consistently cited as one of the largest hubs for human trafficking in the country.
“Women seem to be more educated on this — it’s hard to get people to really grab onto this as much as other issues,” Arnau said. One Voice partnered with the Student Government Association in the fall to produce a video called “What If?” The video was directed at Tech students and featured male students taking a stand against a related issue, sexual assault.
One Voice is also partnering with a downtown Atlanta church to help with after-school tutoring and activities, where Tech students will encourage young students to stay in school and talk with them about college and other future opportunities.
“These are kids who are most at risk to being trafficked based on their neighborhoods,” Arnau said.
One Voice also continues to work at raising awareness and funds for other local partner organizations such as Out of Darkness, a local organization that does outreach to rescue women from trafficking and other commercial exploitation.
To learn more about One Voice Atlanta, visit the organization’s website or Facebook page. Register for the 2015 National Human Sex Trafficking Conference at Eventbrite.