 September 27, 2010  Stop Human Trafficking Dayton, a new non-governmental organization based in the city to combat human trafficking locally, hosted its first annual conference on Thursday, Sept. 23, at the Dayton Racquet Club. The event was hosted in partnership with the University of Dayton's human rights program in order to raise awareness about human trafficking. The conference opened with two interpretive dances by students at the Stivers School of Arts, which were followed by four speakers, considered to have an expertise in the field of combating human trafficking. These speakers included Dawn Conway, senior vice president of corporate responsibility at LexisNexis; Todd Dieffenderfer, special advisor to Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray; Jim Slagle, chief of the criminal justice section at the Ohio Attorney General's office; and Jeffery Barrows, founder and executive director of Gracehaven, a group home and rehabilitation center for young female victims of sex trafficking. Conway works with LexisNexis, a Dayton-based national corporation, to improve its supply chain and raise awareness about trafficking worldwide. LexisNexis has partnered with the Polaris Project, a national non-governmental organization aiming to eliminate trafficking and to raise money to fund a national hotline for trafficking victims. The corporation has donated $5 million to date toward this movement. LexisNexis also is working to pass Senate Bill 235, sponsored by Sen. Teresa Fedor. According to Conway, Ohio is one of only five states to not have comprehensive legislation to fight human trafficking, and this bill will help Ohio accomplish that. "Penalties would be appropriate, and penalties would be clear [under this new law]," Dieffenderfer said. "By working together, we will definitely make a difference on this issue." The Ohio attorney general's office also is attempting to raise awareness and combat this crime in the state, according to Slagle. "For most of the public, human trafficking isn't high on their radar," Slagle said. According to Slagle, there is hope that the bill will be passed soon after mid-term elections this November. Another speaker, Jeffery Barrows, is helping to fight trafficking in a more personal way. He founded Gracehaven, a shelter near Columbus that will house victims of sex trafficking and counsel them through their hardships. This will be the first shelter for trafficked girls in the area - The closest similar organization is in Atlanta. According to Barrows, there are a minimum of 1,000 underage sex trafficking victims currently in Ohio. If populations are broken down, this means that at least 50 victims are in the Dayton community. Sex trafficking victims are among the most traumatized survivors of shocking events, often suffering more than war veterans, Barrows said. To find out more information about the organization, go to stophumantraffickingdayton.org. To read about Senate Bill 235, go to http://www.legislature.state.oh.us/bills.cfm?ID=128_SB_235. | |
| Source: flyernews.com | |
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