The Annual Human Trafficking Summit is planned to be held virtually by the Santa Clarita Valley (SCV) Human Trafficking Committee every evening from Thursday through Sunday of next week.

The summit, which is set to raise awareness of human trafficking, is coordinated by the SCV Human Trafficking Committee, sponsored by the College of the Canyons (COC) Student Health and Wellness Center, COC MyGenMyFight Club, COC Human Relations and COC Civic Engagement and is scheduled to be held from 7 p.m. to 7:45 p.m. each evening from Thursday, Sept. 24th through Sunday, Sept. 27 over zoom, with a link that can be accessed by RSVPing to the event here.

“We really want everyone to be aware of the problem from the local to the international,” said Larry Schallert, assistant director of the COC Health and Wellness/Mental Health Program and co-chair of the SCV Human Trafficking Committee and MyGenMyFight at COC. “For this program we are really looking into what’s happening locally, how people can help, and how they can be aware of what’s happening in Santa Clarita and in Los Angeles. We want to help people recognize and give help to victims of human trafficking.”

The first night of the Human Trafficking Summit is set to focus on understanding human trafficking. On the second night, Jerome Elam, a survivor of child sex trafficking and CEO of Trafficking In America Task Force, is scheduled to tell his story. The third night plans to raise the question of whether prostitution should be decriminalized, and on the fourth night information would be provided on how businesses can help victims of trafficking, whether that be through employing survivors and being aware of their sensitivities or by knowing the signs of human trafficking.

COC is getting involved in raising awareness for human trafficking “on a number of levels”, said Schallert, including training mental health staff to recognize signs of human trafficking, as mental health is a struggle for many victims.

Additionally, the COC chapter of MyGenMyFight works with local providers like ZOE International, local human trafficking teams and human trafficking clubs on other campuses to raise awareness for human trafficking.

Reporting of human trafficking and abuse has gone down by 50 percent in the face of COVID-19, according to Dr. Jason Plunkett, United States director of ZOE International. Although reporting has decreased, trafficking and abuse have not.

The decrease in reporting can be attributed to the fact that Department of Public Social Services (DPSS) staff were not allowed to visit homes at the beginning of the pandemic shutdown. Life coaches and advocates were also unable to visit. Because children are not attending school, teachers have not been able to interact with victims as closely and report on suspected abuse and trafficking.

“We all need to be the eyes and ears now,” concluded Dr. Plunkett. “If you see something, say something.”

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