Every year, all around the world, millions of children and adults fall victim to human trafficking. It is one of the fastest growing crimes in the United States and involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act.
Language barriers, fear of their traffickers, and/or fear of law enforcement frequently keep victims from seeking help, making human trafficking a hidden crime. It can happen in any community and victims can be any age, race, gender, or nationality. Traffickers might use the following methods to lure victims into trafficking situations:
Violence
Manipulation
False promises of well-paying jobs
Romantic relationships
Traffickers look for people who are easy targets for a variety of reasons, including:
Psychological or emotional vulnerability
Economic hardship
Lack of a social safety net
Natural disasters
Political instability
The trauma caused by the traffickers can be so great that many victims may not identify themselves as such or ask for help, even in highly public settings.
Closer to home and with the 9th highest number of human trafficking cases per year, this hidden, traumatic crime is one of North Carolina’s most pressing issues.
Enter Shield NC, a local non-profit organization established in 2017 after founder Nicole Bernard had a “Coffee with a Cop” meeting with the Apex Police Department. Bernard decided to create the organization to help fight the human trafficking problem statewide. Shield NC co-founded and led the Demand Reduction Task Force and has advocated for statewide legislation.
I spoke to Leslie Lockhart, Shield NC engagement specialist, who provided us with an overview of the organization’s mission, strategies, and outreach.
Shield NC believes ending human trafficking begins with everyone doing their part to protect each other. They partner with communities to protect vulnerable citizens from human trafficking through empowerment, prevention, and advocacy. They engage in strategic best practices for prevention and awareness to equip professionals who are more likely to encounter a trafficking situation. And Shield NC initiates and advocates for smart, effective policy on every government level.
Shield NC Mission
Empowerment
Shield NC provides targeted training based on careers, services, and activities. Every person can shield their community by being educated about what to look for in their jobs and neighborhoods, knowing the available resources, and knowing how to best respond.
Prevention
The most effective method to stop trafficking is by targeting those responsible for perpetuating the crime, specifically, individuals who purchase sexual services or exploit others for labor. To that end, Shield NC co-founded the state’s first task force focused on identifying strategies to lower the demand for commercialized sex and forced labor.
Advocacy
Shield NC helps communities identify and fill gaps in survivor support, so victims have access to necessary resources. They advocate for policy changes and legislation at the local, state, and federal levels.
Shield NC Strategies and Programs
Community Outreach
Shield NC staff and volunteers visit local businesses that are most likely to come into contact with a trafficking situation. They provide managers with a list of red flags specific to their particular business and offer free training to their staff. The goal of this outreach is to equip local businesses with the information they need to recognize and appropriately respond when they see exploitation. “Due to costs of supplies, staff, and frequency of training, we have not been able to ramp [community outreach] to the level we would like. We are asking for funds to expand this program,” Lockhart said.
Advocacy in Legislation
In 2023, after three years of diligent advocacy from Shield NC, a North Carolina statute now makes it easier and faster for victims of child abuse material (sometimes referred to as child pornography) to attain restitution. Here in Apex, Shield NC was instrumental in the creation of a policy that requires any vendor wishing to do work for the Town of Apex to ensure their labor force is free of exploitation.
Community Collaborations
By frequently training community groups to learn how to recognize and properly respond to human trafficking, Shield NC empowers citizens to help shield our area from this crime. The organization also partnered with the Apex Police Department several years ago to create a Service Groups and Faith Alliance. The Alliance consists of local faith leaders, town council members, service providers and Wake County representatives who meet regularly to discuss issues and concerns in Apex and the surrounding area, and how to work together to address them.
Shield NC continues to co-lead the NC Demand Reduction Task Force. The Task Force consists of law enforcement officers, mental health professionals, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), attorneys, representatives from state agencies and other anti-trafficking stakeholders.
Education
Increasing awareness and educating others is key to Shield NC’s objectives. They regularly provide information to our community via their social media pages, website (shieldnc.org), and email newsletters. They choose a different specific topic each month to focus on and expand information in the public sphere. A convenient virtual Human Trafficking 101 training session is also available each month and open to the public.
If you want to get directly involved, Shield NC has many volunteer opportunities both in person and via remote access. Their volunteer interest form, including all of the areas where help is needed, can be found at https://shieldnc.org/volunteer/. Lockhart shared that most of the Shield NC staff and board members started as volunteers, so they have deep appreciation for everyone who offers their time and effort. “We love to see them take pride in making a difference in their community through their work with our organization,” she shared.
Visit Shieldnc.org to learn more, get involved, and spread the word about protecting vulnerable residents from this pervasive crime.
