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On this episode we dive into a topic not yet covered on Driving Freedom: labor trafficking. Transportation was number 10 in the list of Top 10 Industries associated with labor trafficking victims in the US on temporary visas that were reported to the National Human Trafficking Hotline and BEFREE text line. Individuals exploited when an employer compels or deceives them into providing involuntary labor -- often through use of violence, threats, manipulation of debt or blackmail -- number in the tens of thousands in the US. Learn from Rafael Bautista, a survivor of labor trafficking and a consultant and advisor for many federal and local agencies, as he shares cases to help us identify how we might intersect with labor trafficking and play a role in getting victims the support they need to live their own lives of freedom. Resources: National Human Trafficking Hotline: https://polarisproject.org/labor-trafficking/ Labor Trafficking and Temporary Work Visas https://polarisproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/Labor-Trafficking-in-the-US_A-Closer-Look-at-Temporary-Work-Visas.pdf TAT’s Labor Trafficking brochure: https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/labor-trafficking/

One way victims of human trafficking can find a way out of “the life” is through interventions by ethical law enforcement. In this episode of Driving Freedom, we hear from retired Sgt. Dan Nash, who shares his wealth of knowledge and compassion from over 20 + years of working human trafficking cases. He provides some best practices in conducting undercover operations, the victim methodology he has developed and teaches to other law enforcement throughout the country, and how, through building trust and rapport with the truck stops in his state, he was able to conduct a series of successful undercover operations that resulted in victim recovery and services offered.

Today's episode focuses on a key challenge that survivors face after getting out of "the life". Oftentimes survivors of human trafficking have extensive criminal records from their time being trafficked and those records can prevent them from obtaining employment and sometimes even access to housing. Beth Jacobs, TAT's field trainer, helps explain how these outdated laws often affect human trafficking survivors and some ways all of us, including private industry and advocates, can help make positive change in this area. 

The demand for commercial sex is directly tied to human trafficking. Hear from TAT's own Louie Greek as we drive into how movies and culture have influenced what it means to be a man. We also dive into how men spend their free time together as it relates to male-dominated industries and how seemingly harmless activities can fuel sex trafficking. No buyers mean there are no victims. Resources: TAT's Man-to-Man Campaign https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/man-to-man-campaign Men, Fight for Me -  by Allen Smyth www.fightforme.net The Demise of Guys - Ted Talk https://www.ted.com/talks/philip_zimbardo_the_demise_of_guys?language=en

Joy Friedman is the Sexual Assault Street Outreach Advocate for the Minnesota Indian Women’s Resource Center, a wraparound non-profit whose mission is to empower Native women and families to exercise their cultural values with integrity, and to achieve sustainable lifeways, while advocating for justice and equity. Pulling from her own lived experience of exploitation and survival, Joy walks alongside her clients, building trust and providing services that empower and enable them to rebuild their lives.  Resources: Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center https://www.miwrc.org/ TAT's casino materials page https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/get-our-materials/#casino-materials

Would you know the red flags of human trafficking to look for if you were a professional in an industry that was routinely entering homes? Would you be able to recognize signs of trafficking inside a residential brothel or other residence where a person was being exploited? Professionals in the moving and in-home delivery spaces are regularly in and out of homes and businesses in ways that other members of TAT’s mobile army are not. So, we have created a new training for this niche part of transportation that equips anyone -– but specifically, the 90K+ members of the moving and storage industry -- to recognize and report trafficking. In this episode of Driving Freedom, we are joined by TAT Training Specialist and Survivor Leader Liz Williamson to hear more of her story and what movers likely saw -– and either missed or ignored –- when helping her family with professional moves during the course of her exploitation. Also joining us is Jeff Schimmel, vice president of Transportation Services at Atlas Van Lines. Jeff shares his experience using the TAT training at Atlas for several years and the excitement behind this new video TAT has created for the industry. Learn the red flags for spotting trafficking inside a home from Liz’s first-hand experience, and be encouraged by Jeff as we uncover what companies in the moving and in-home delivery industries can do to help combat this issue. Resources: Link to new training page: https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/movers-in-home-delivery/ Link to Tip Sheet for Movers: https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/TAT-Mover-Tip-Sheet.pdf Link to Tip Sheet for In-Home Delivery Professionals: https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/In-Home-Delivery-Tip-Sheets.pdf

Elesondra DeRomano is the founder of STARS Toledo. Standing Together Against Real Slavery (STARS) is a survivor-based organization dedicated to supporting and empowering young women who have experienced or are at high risk for commercial sexual exploitation (sex trafficking). STARS is located in Toledo, Ohio and offers a unique crisis prevention/intervention program with personalized case management and mentorship. Recognizing that sex trafficking doesn’t happen in a vacuum, and leaning on her own lived experiences with substance dependency, sexual abuse and trafficking, Ele crafts services that address all of the factors that have led to the victimization of her clientele.

Are you looking for tips on how you can help stop trafficking? Welcome to our first episode of the Driving Freedom Podcast! On this episode, Annika Huff, Truckers Against Trafficking's training specialist,  shares her story as a sex trafficking survivor. Annika shares what vulnerabilities in her life led to her trafficking, some of the manipulation techniques her traffickers used to keep her stuck in the life and what interactions made a difference in her escape from the life. Truck drivers and community members will learn the importance of taking a victim-centered approach once they recognize the signs of human trafficking and how to report it, so they can prevent human trafficking. Resources:  www.truckersagainsttrafficking.org you can find our training video on our homepage and additional resources here:  https://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/get-our-materials/

Why does trafficking exist? Our guest, Alan Smyth, executive director of Saving Innocence, a Los Angeles-based non-profit that serves, empowers, and advocates for child victims of sex trafficking, dives into the cultural expectations that foster trafficking and addresses the action steps we can each take to be a part of reducing demand. Alan shares his experiences as a dad raising a son, wrestling with how to express and talk about masculinity. He shares how those types of conversations impact human trafficking. Ultimately, truck drivers, bus drivers, energy employees and community members can address this at three levels -- in ourselves, conversations between family and friends, as well as education at a broader level, including corporate policies. Alan asks, “How can men become a big part of ending trafficking? Live a life that honors, serves and protects women and call other men into that.”  Resources:  Saving Innocence: https://savinginnocence.org/  Addressing Demand: Man to Man by Truckers Against Trafficking resources: http://truckersagainsttrafficking.org/man-to-man-campaign/

Is trafficking something I would really come across and be able to stop? Christine McDonald, an internationally recognized author, speaker and consultant, invites us to go behind the veil of commercial sex to see what that “choice,” that “life” was really like. She’ll explain why and how victims, like herself, often don’t know they’re trafficking victims. She didn’t know until two years after she got out, when she saw her man arrested on TV. Christine explains how the amount of humanity she experienced in the world of commercial sexual exploitation was such a microscopic spec that there was hardly any hope to hold onto. The way Christine shares her story not only gives us insights into the truth behind the facade of “choosing” prostitution, but depicts what it would look like for truck drivers and travel plaza or truck stop employees to make a powerful difference in the lives of victims in the short and long term. Christine’s familiarity with the complex vulnerabilities leading to and coming out of trafficking strengthens our understanding of the ways we can work towards stopping sex trafficking. Resources: Relentless Pursuit: Rpor.org  Schedule an event with Christine and find her books: Christinesvision.org  Christine’s Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEj5RbFpuzjx_CuksAqgyXA

Why are truck drivers strategic in the fight against sex trafficking? TAT has trained nearly 1 million people with our materials, but why did we decide to start working with drivers? In this episode, TAT Communications Director and co-founder Lyn Leeburg answers the oft-asked question of “why truckers?” and shares about the genesis of the idea for TAT. We hear about what it was like in the early days (How were the first wallet cards produced? What, if any, connections to the trucking industry did Lyn have?) and get Lyn’s take on the tremendous growth of the organization over the last 10+ years. We also hear about why Shari’s story* is one of Lyn’s most favorite examples of this work in action. Listen in to get a peek behind the curtain of the founding and start-up of TAT and how one simple idea has had such a tremendous ripple effect in helping to save and change countless lives. Learn how you could do the same.  Resources Shari’s story is featured in our complete training video. If you haven’t already, please check that out here.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IclP1x3s3mE&feature=youtu.be

Why do so many conspiracy theories involve child sex trafficking? These days, a lot of inaccurate information is circulating about human trafficking. In recent months and years, some of these myths have been baked into conspiracy theories that have spread like wildfires on social media, harming the anti-trafficking movement and potentially putting victims at greater risk. In this episode, TAT’s Busing on the Lookout program team, Annie Sovcik and Lexi Higgins, discuss the dangers with these conspiracy theories, debunk some common human trafficking myths and share helpful tips on how we can all be better consumers of information and more savvy in our use of social media. Resources: Polaris: “How Unproven Trafficking Stories Spread Online and Why Stopping Them Matters” https://polarisproject.org/blog/2020/07/how-unproven-trafficking-stories-spread-online-and-why-stopping-them-matters/ Common Sense Media: “What is media literacy, and why is it important?” https://www.commonsensemedia.org/news-and-media-literacy/what-is-media-literacy-and-why-is-it-important