San Clemente: Join The Fight Against Human Trafficking

Press release from the City of San Clemente:

January 06, 2021

January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month. The crime deprives a person of their liberty through force, fraud, or coercion for labor or sexual exploitation.

Sadly, human trafficking is a huge problem in Orange County. Research shows that California consistently has the highest human trafficking rate in the United States, with 1,507 cases reported in 2019. About 80% of human trafficking victims from around the country wind up in affluent Orange County, according to Spectrum News.

The Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) raises awareness of human trafficking through its Be the One (BT1) campaign, which educates people about the crime. Because victims might be using Orange County buses, stops, and transit centers, coach operators are trained to recognize and help victims. Hundreds of coach operators have received annual training from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department Transit Police and the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force.

You can Be the One to help. Here’s what you need to recognize and report human trafficking:

• Fearful, anxious, depressed, submissive, tense, or nervous/paranoid behavior
• Lack of knowledge of whereabouts and/or time
• Signs of malnourishment, physical abuse or restraint, confinement, or torture
• Few or no personal possessions
• Under control by another person

Here’s what you should do:

Contact one of the agencies listed below. Please note the ethnicity, sex, age, height, hair color, distinguishing features, and potential victim location. Wait to report until you are in a safe place:

• Speak to an OCTA driver, who is trained to discreetly contact police
• Call the National Human Trafficking Hotline (888-3737-888, open 24/7) and remain anonymous
• If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, please call 911

Click here to learn more about human trafficking and what you can do to join the fight against it.

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This press release was produced by the City of San Clemente. The views expressed here are the author’s own.