Please join Commissioner Tim Echols on Monday, February 4, 2019 from 11:30am-12:00pm in the South Wing of the State Capitol for a Press Conference with members of the non-profit and advocacy communities for an update on their efforts to combat human trafficking in the ATL prior to and during the Super Bowl LIII events. 

Following the press conference at the State Capitol, Commissioner Echols will host a multimedia educational workshop from 1:00pm-4:30pm.  This event is co-sponsored by the Wilberforce Fellowship. 

This interactive multimedia training workshop will be held at Georgia Power (241 Ralph McGill Blvd. NE, Atlanta, GA).  The training will be open to all, from those who are “novices” in the field, to those who have been involved in efforts to combat human trafficking for years.  The workshop will provide an experiential preview of a program to be offered to school systems, hospitality, healthcare and law enforcement professionals and anyone affected by the growing community crises of modern domestic slavery.  The training event and event parking are FREE, but RSVP is required because space is limited.  Please RSVP using the link below.

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/human-trafficking-in-the-atl-training-event-tickets-54854026871

To kick off the event, we will hear from a panel of advocates involved directly in the trafficking prevention efforts leading up to and during the Super Bowl event in Atlanta, along with a short press conference and a question and answer session.  Panelists include Kasey McClure from 4Sarah, Camila Zolfaghari from StreetGrace, Karla Jacobs from the Georgia Commission on Women, Courtney Dow from Out of Darkness, Deborah Richardson from the International Human Trafficking Institute, and Tameka Rish from the Atlanta Falcons/Atlanta United.

Following the panel, we will host a screening of the award-winning feature film “American Exploitation,” produced by John Carter.

After the film, we will experience two training modules from the anti-human trafficking organization, Just Ask Prevention. This training will be presented by a certified trainer alongside a mother of a teen survivor of trafficking.  The mother will share firsthand knowledge of how trafficking affected her daughter and her family.  She will share examples when professionals working in the field could have intervened and identified what was going on but did not; and she will be able to answer any questions those in the training might have from a first person perspective.

The first training module will be ideal for novices in the arena of human trafficking, providing basic overview, common scenarios, generic warning signs look for to identify potential victims and perpetrators of human trafficking, as well as practical resources for response.

The second training will be tailored for those in the service industry, specifically technicians who are in and out of residential and commercial establishments, who should be aware of the subtle signs that trafficking may be taking place and their best response.