Local Clinic works to fight against Human Trafficking
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – When people hear the term “human trafficking,” their minds may go to a certain issue or group of people, but it can affect anyone.
Human trafficking is the sale of human beings for forced labor, sexual exploitation, and for organs, and often times these cases go unreported.
Human Trafficking is a crime impacting more than 50 million people worldwide, with more than a million of those in the United States. That’s according to the CEO of Altus Solutions, Ashleigh Chapman, who says those at highest risk are people running away from or aging out of the foster care system.
Many of the victims don’t realize that they are victims.
“Traffickers are preying on people that our communities have lost sight of,” Chapman said. “They first present as a friend with promises of love, shelter, food, support, whatever it might be, and pretty swiftly, they will turn that scenario into a nightmare that the individual can no longer get out of. And they’re also not connected to safe people or supportive systems in their communities, and that makes it even harder.”
And why is this so common?
“Trafficking is a high-reward, low-risk crime, criminal business,” Chapman said. “Which means that I am likely to make a lot of money, and I’m very unlikely to get caught doing that…until a community can make trafficking other human beings more risk than reward, we will continue to fight this war, and it will continue to escalate.”
She says research in the U.S. has shown that up to 90% of victims are coming into local health care settings many times while they’re being trafficked.
“What they’re coming in for is being cared for, but what is occurring to them is not,” Chapman said.
This is why Chapman believes healthcare has an important role to play in identifying victims and helping them get to safety.
The team at Allegro Family Clinic became aware that this issue was happening in the area. So, it was important for them to have a trained staff to know what to do in these situations.
That led them to become the first clinic in the nation to launch the “Just in Time” tool for healthcare.
Just in Time allows citizens to learn more about human trafficking and gives resources to victims.
“If you freeze in the moment and think, I’m not sure who to call, you can open the app, and it will tell you step by step on who to call, what to do, and that’s what we’re trying to do is just ease that tension, ease that trauma or traumatic moment so that people know what to do. We’re trying to make it so easy, just plug and play- you need some help, here are the resources,” said President of Allegro Family Care Amy Bouge.
“It’s been interesting. I believe Allegro has about 140 staff, and their Just in Time has had over 1,000 or almost 1,000 unique viewers. What that would suggest is that it is being shared within the community. In addition, each viewer, on average, is visiting that Just in Time tool over 5 times. That suggests a relevance that represents a community learning about an issue and being equipped to help in the moment or to be able to access help if they need it,” said Andrea Sorensen, the Founder & Chief Executive Officer at Viiision.
Allegro Family Clinic President Amy Bogue says it’s important to educate healthcare professionals and others in the community to look past the original sign and symptom.
Lt. Rhonda Sanders says if you know of a human trafficking situation, the first call should be to law enforcement.
Chapman says it’s important to remember there is not a one size fits all scenario in human trafficking, and it impacts every city across the nation.
“There is not one face of a trafficking victim, and there is not one face of a trafficker. So, we need to keep our eyes open to everyone around us,” Chapman said.
So, how can we as a community disrupt human trafficking?
“I think as a community, if we come together and put all of our resources together, we will be able to put a big dent into this trafficking,” Sanders said. “I just want the community to be vigilant, to see, hear, and report. If you think something is not right, report it.”
“It’s when we realize that this is happening in our own community,” Chapman said. “And when we’re equipped with the information that we need to know how to see this in our community, whether we’re in our schools, our healthcare facilities, our engagement with law enforcement, with local businesses, when we know those signs and how to see that, and what to do when we see that, and then further, how to work together as a community to address it, that is when a community can really identify and disrupt this issue as well as care well for people impacted by it.”
There are resources available for victims. For resources and more information, visit the Just in Time App. 
Chapman says you can also take a free 1-hour human trafficking course online at learnwithjusticeu.com to help get educated.
