TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Thursday was International Human Rights Day, commemorating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations following World War II.
Part of the declaration is a commitment to address the issue of human trafficking and Florida is preparing do just that, ahead of hosting one of the largest magnets for human trafficking for the second year in a row.
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Last year during Super Bowl LIV in Miami, 20 trafficking victims were rescued and 42 arrests of johns and accomplices were made.
Human Rights Attorney Mark Schlakman said there are a number of reasons why the event is often a magnet for traffickers.
“It’s a global event and it’s a high dollar event,” said Shlakman.
In less than 60 days Tampa will host Super Bowl LV.
The Statewide Council on Human Trafficking heard how the region is preparing in a virtual meeting Thursday.
“The goal of the campaign is to increase human trafficking awareness in Tampa Bay. Teaching and reminding communities and businesses how to recognize the indicators and report suspected activity,” said Hillsborough County Commissioner Kimberly Overman.
The Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said 333 people have already reached out to identify suspected human trafficking instances and local law enforcement have made multiple arrests as part of a two-day operation.
“We’ll continue to do this as the Super Bowl approaches, during the Super Bowl, but more importantly following the Super Bowl,” said Chief Deputy Donna Lusczynski with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office.
Also on Thursday in the state’s capital, the Tallahassee Mayor pledged to leverage the 1948 UN Human Rights Declaration to help fight human trafficking at the local level.
Schlakman said the international commitment could be used as leverage to combat trafficking during the Super Bowl as well.
“Clearly it could provide additional perspective, resources, mechanisms, visibility,” said Schlakman.
$150,000 in human trafficking awareness campaigns are planned ahead of Super Bowl 55.
It’s estimated those campaigns will reach more than 62.5 million people.
During the Human Trafficking Council meeting, state lawmakers on the council teased multiple legislative initiatives likely to come up in the 2021 session, saying next year is expected to be a big policy year for human trafficking.