Students Create Awareness About Human Trafficking

Part-time East Haddam resident and University of Hartford student Jordan Shoesmith, along with fellow student Maria Arroyo and St. Joseph College student Jessica Perez, will be presenting on Human Trafficking and Modern-day Slavery tonight at the University of Hartford. The event will act as a community awareness night to shed light on a global issue with its local implications in America, and more specifically, Connecticut.

"Today, the topic of human trafficking has an international scope...in terms of its portrayal, (it is considered to be) very local to various parts of Europe",  Shoesmith says. This portrayal and public disinterest in the topic, he argues, has made most Americans unaware of the issue.

The student presentation, titled Human Trafficking: From Abroad To Our Neighborhood, will be followed by the documentary film "Cargo: Innocence Lost". The film, directed by Michael Cory Davis,  is a "compelling and educational film that explores the world of sex trafficking in the United States". 

The presentation asserts that both large Latin American networks and local trafficking rings are widespread in the U.S., from rural towns in Texas to Hartford and other parts of New England. 

"We just want to take the time to make visible an otherwise largely ignored topic", Shoesmith says.

"By doing so, (we) hope to help the fight against an age-old atrocity, slavery."

The event is supported by the Politics and Government Department, PeaceJam Northeast and the University of Hartford organization, Women for Change.

The presentation will take place at 7:30pm tonight, April 28th, in lecture room Mali 1 in Dana Hall at the University of Hartford. The school is located  at 200 Bloomfield Avenue in West Hartford. Refreshments will be provided. No pre-registration is required.