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Kamryn Lyle
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Email: kamryn.lyle25@uga.edu
Fourth Year, International Affairs Major and French Minor
How did I get involved with IMPACT?
I was warmly welcomed to the IMPACT family my sophomore year of college as a participant on the Youth Access and Advocacy trip in Clinton, SC. During the trip, we had the opportunity to serve alongside different organizations to address the needs of the community. The experience was so great, in fact, that I applied for and co-led the Shelter and Resource Access trip to the New River Valley the following year! For my final year with IMPACT and at UGA, I’m more than excited to lead with my wonderful co-site leader the Human Trafficking Awareness and Advocacy trip to Birmingham, AL. As human trafficking becomes more prevalent in the United States, I’m interested to learn with everyone how this issue can affect individual communities. This trip will give us the opportunity to not only learn about the depth of the issue, but serve alongside members of the Birmingham community who work hard to make a sustainable difference for trafficking victims.

Fun fact: My favorite color, scent, and flower are all lavender! 
Rudy Montayre
Email: 21sum14@uga.edu
Fourth Year Biological Engineering Major

How did I get involved with IMPACT?
On the spring break of my sophomore year, I had the pleasure of being a participant on the Human Trafficking Awareness and Advocacy Trip in Birmingham, AL. This trip revamped my love for service and the other aspects that IMPACT stands for. It was one the best spring break experiences I could ask for, and I knew I had to do more service learning trips like these. The following year, I was a participant on the Disability and Ability Awareness and Advocacy trip in Philadelphia, PA. Through these trips I’ve become significantly more aware of the various social justice issues that exist in our communities and I’m beyond thrilled to take the next step as a site leader for this year’s Human Trafficking Awareness and Advocacy trip in Birmingham, AL. I am looking forward to furthering the education and knowledge of the opportunities to address this issue for myself and all others on this trip. I hope that our trip will inspire the members of the Birmingham community and our UGA participants to continue service to benefit the survivors of human trafficking and other preventative efforts.

Fun Fact: I love sloths! Significantly more than your average person

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​Introduction to Human Trafficking

To help gain a better understanding of this IMPACT trip’s service and purpose, we have outlined a few key terms and facts about human trafficking. Please note that this is not a comprehensive list nor does it order the importance of these terms. The following terms and facts are intended to introduce the issue and scope of human trafficking. Our trip will focus on more heavily on sex trafficking due to its prevalence in the Birmingham and Athens communities.

Key Terms:
  • Human Trafficking: the use of force, fraud, or coercion for some type of labor or commercial sex act
  • Sex Trafficking: the use of force, fraud, or coercion for adults or juveniles to engage in commercial sex acts
  • Labor Trafficking: when domestic or foreign nationals are forced, coerced, or threatened by legal action into work or service. This often has little to no compensation
  • Domestic vs  International Trafficking: As our organization is in the United States, we will consider human trafficking in the United States as ‘Domestic’ and in other countries will be considered ‘International’
  • Human Trafficking Hotline: a 24 hour/7 days a week, 365 days a year open hotline for the United States that will receive a call in more than 200 languages to call in tips or call for help as a survivor of human trafficking
  • Modern Slavery: Commonly used term for human trafficking in western societies


Human Trafficking Facts:
  • The human trafficking industry is the third largest criminal industry in the world making nearly $150 billion annually
  • Vulnerable Demographics
    • Typical Age: 12-14 years of age
    • Sexual Orientation: Youth in the LGBTQ+ community are more susceptible to human trafficking due to higher rate of discrimination and economic instability compared to non-LGBTQ+ peers
    • Men and Women: 75% of those affected by human trafficking are female

What does this look like in Athens and Georgia?

Atlanta
  • Ranked first for cities in the United States for sex trafficking
  • 1 of 14 U.S. cities with the highest rate of child prostitution
  • ‘Unholy Tours’ bring Atlanta legislators to the places with the highest amount of sex trafficking activity
  • Hartsfield-Jackson Airport is an international airport, which has made Atlanta a hub of imports and exports for human traffickers
  • I-20 is dubbed “The Human Trafficking Highway of the United States” because it runs from Atlanta,GA to Texas. Traffickers are known to use I-20 through these several states.
  • There are dozens of non-profits in the metropolitan area that address human trafficking

Georgia Statistics
  • In 2017, 270 human trafficking cases were reported in the state of Georgia
  • 193 of those were sex trafficking cases, 57 were labor trafficking cases
  • 223 of the cases were female, 55 were male, and < 3 were gender minorities
  • 82 of those cases were for U.S. Citizens, 60 were for Foreign Nationals

Georgia Legislation
  • Georgia Code, Title 16, Chapter 5.46
  • Trafficking: a felony punishable by “10-20 years in prison, a fine of up to $100,000, or both”
  • Trafficking a minor: a felony punishable by 25-50 years in prison, a fine up to $100,000, or both
  • Forfeiture of property: Property is subject to forfeiture in civil forfeiture proceedings
  • Additional protections include:
    • Vacating a child’s criminal record where the crime resulted in their “sexual exploitation”
    • “Requires adult entertainment, emergency rooms, farm labor contractors, rest stops, hotels, massage parlors, and other businesses to post a notice informing about trafficking resources”
    • Protecting victim’s right to know about the potential release of the accused
    • Provides training for law enforcement officers in the “investigation of crimes involving human trafficking”

Organizations at UGA that address Human Trafficking
  • End-it movement at UGA
  • Amnesty International at UGA


Sources:
  1. https://www.dhs.gov/blue-campaign/what-human-trafficking
  2. https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/civil-rights/human-trafficking
  3. https://humantraffickinghotline.org/mission
  4. https://humantraffickinghotline.org/state/georgia
  5. http://blogs.harvard.edu/billofhealth/2018/06/27/the-intersection-of-human-trafficking-and-immigration/
  6. https://statelaws.findlaw.com/georgia-law/georgia-human-trafficking-laws.html
  7. https://enditmovement.com/
  8. https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/unholy-tour-takes-legislators-to-atlantas-sex-trafficking-hot-spots/85-512642567
  9. https://lds.gsu.edu/news/showcase/atlanta-studies/anaya-pollard/

Educational Material

Below are some infographics and educational articles on human trafficking
Here are some links to more infographics and educational articles:

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Intersectional Educational Material

Here are a few links for some articles, websites, and presentations highlighting how human trafficking intersects with a few (not all) social justice issues: