Every year on January 11th, we recognize National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. And on this day, we wear blue to pledge solidarity with the estimated 20 million adults and children worldwide – including hundreds of thousands of people right here in the United States – who have fallen victim to human trafficking.
Human trafficking is no small matter. It's a crime, a form of modern day slavery in which traffickers profit from the abuse of others. As a community, we have a responsibility to educate each other on the signs of human trafficking, to take notice of the red flags, and to report suspected cases. We must do everything in our power to put the brakes on human trafficking – and it starts at home.
At PennDOT, we've been working to train our front-line Driver License Center staff to notice signs of a potential trafficking situation. The agency is working with the Pennsylvania Public Transportation Association to help arrange this training for their operators as well, and is sharing trafficking awareness information with commercial drivers who visit Driver License Centers. To date, PennDOT has trained 500 front-line Driver License Center employees, 64 Welcome Center employees and transit agent managers to recognize the signs of human trafficking and how to contact the appropriate authorities.
Working in coordination with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), along with law enforcement, government, non-governmental and private organizations, PennDOT is truly committed to making Pennsylvania a safer place by bringing those who exploit human lives to justice.
Today, I wear blue. You can join along too, using hashtag #WearBlueDay. Whether it's a photo, video, community event or other show of solidarity, we look forward to seeing how you participate in #WearBlueDay.
To learn more visit U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Blue Campaign: https://www.dhs.gov/blue-campaign
and go to our Human Trafficking Media Center: https://www.penndot.gov/about-us/media/human-trafficking/Pages/default.aspx