HSI Kansas City and Kansas City Police raise awareness on combating human trafficking

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Kansas City and the Kansas City Police Department (KCPD) are inviting the public to take part in #WearBlueDay to raise awareness on human trafficking.

Jan. 11 is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day.

HSI Kansas City and KCPD are asking the public to take photos of themselves and their friends, family and colleagues wearing blue clothing to share on Facebook, X, formerly known as Twitter, and Instagram with the #WearBlueDay hashtag. Anyone can participate — all you need is a piece of blue clothing.

Each year, HSI, in conjunction with the DHS Blue Campaign, raises awareness to prevent human trafficking, conducts outreach to the public via the media and nongovernmental organizations.

“Addressing this issue in Kansas City is especially salient because Missouri ranks fourth on the list of the states with the highest human trafficking rate in the United States,” said HSI Kansas City acting Special Agent in Charge Taekuk Cho. “To this end, we believe that we need to take a collaborative approach in addressing human trafficking in Kansas City.”

The Blue Campaign is a DHS public awareness campaign designed to educate the public, law enforcement authorities and industry partners to recognize the indicators of human trafficking and how to appropriately respond to possible cases.

Human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act. Every year, millions of men, women and children are trafficked worldwide — including right here in the United States. It can happen in any community and victims can be any age, race, gender or nationality.

HSI Kansas City special agents use their broad range of authority and international footprint to identify, investigate and disrupt domestic and transnational criminal organizations engaged in human trafficking. These special agents work closely with the HSI Kansas City Victim Assistance Program to ensure that human trafficking victims are afforded their rights and have access to the services to which they are entitled by law.

Moreover, HSI provides expertise and leadership to other federal, state, local and international law enforcement partners by organizing training on strategies and best practices that can be utilized to counter this heinous crime of exploitation.

“KCPD is always proud to partner and work alongside HSI for this important task: Taking on human trafficking,” said KCPD spokesperson Jacob Becchina. “Of particular significance is this time of drawing attention and awareness through the Wear Blue Day.”

One of the best tools to combat human trafficking is an aware and alert community looking out for the signs and reporting them to authorities. Recognizing key indicators is the first step in identifying victims, which can help save lives.

You can download or order the Blue Campaign Blue Campaign indicator card, which is a small, plastic card that lists common signs of trafficking and how to report it. Here are some common indicators to help recognize human trafficking:

• Does the person appear disconnected from family, friends, community organizations or houses of worship?
• Has a child stopped attending school?
• Has the person had a sudden or dramatic change in behavior?
• Is a juvenile engaged in commercial sex acts?
• Is the person disoriented or confused, or showing signs of mental or physical abuse?
• Does the person have bruises in various stages of healing?
• Is the person fearful, timid or submissive?
• Does the person show signs of having been denied food, water, sleep or medical care?
• Is the person often in the company of someone to whom he or she defers? Or someone who seems to be in control of the situation, including where they go or who they talk to?
• Does the person appear to be coached on what to say?
• Is the person living in unsuitable conditions?
• Does the person lack personal possessions and appear not to have a stable living situation?
• Does the person have freedom of movement? Can the person freely leave where they live? Are there unreasonable security measures?

Not all indicators listed here are present in every human trafficking situation, and the presence or absence of any of the indicators is not necessarily proof of human trafficking.

Members of the public can report crimes or suspicious activity by calling the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888. Anti-Trafficking Hotline Advocates are available 24/7 to take reports of potential human trafficking.

Learn more about HSI Kansas City’s mission to combat human trafficking on X, formerly known as Twitter, @HSIKansasCity.

Source: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE.gov)