In 2020, the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children received 29,684 reports of suspected human trafficking incidents in the United States. In that same year, the Department of Justice initiated 425 human trafficking prosecutions with 625 defendants being convicted of human trafficking related offenses. Due to the sheer number of suspected trafficking information the statistics for 2022 and 2023 have not yet been able to be completely compiled and calculated. Human trafficking is a $150 billion-dollar criminal industry where it is estimated that less than 1% of human trafficking victims are ever actually identified. Even with all of the statistical data, it has been found by the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research that only 20% of people believe that human trafficking happens in their own communities. This is why it is of utmost importance to be educated and aware of what to look for when it comes to human trafficking, in order to do our best to keep our communities safe.

The South-Central Coalition Against Human Trafficking is hosting a human trafficking awareness presentation by speakers Steve Sternhagen and Peri DeCory. This important informational presentation will be held Wednesday, October 16th at 6 p.m. at the Wagner Theater. The presentation features Steve Sternhagen, who is a Youth Navigator Coordinator for Call to Freedom and Peri DeCory who is a statewide Rural Case Manager for Call to Freedom.

Human trafficking as defined by speaker, Steve Sternhagen, is the exploitation of people (adults and children both male and female) for commercial, sex or labor against their will by means of force, fraud or coercion. There is one exception to this definition, when children are involved in these types of activities it is ALWAYS considered trafficking without the force, fraud or coercion definition requirement. Human trafficking has become one of the fastest growing global crimes. To be honest it is happening in every corner of the world, including South Dakota, whether people want to believe or acknowledge this truth. This is precisely why Wagner is hosting this type of event, because the reality is that it is happening in or passing through our area. Also, as hunting season is quickly approaching, there will be an influx of out-ofstate visitors. That is why October was selected by the South-Central Coalition Against Human Trafficking as the time to discuss this important topic.

When asked who the target audience is for this event, Steve said, “I think that everyone should be targeted at some point [referring to the audience] – this presentation is suited for adults.” South Central Coalition Against Human Trafficking member, Lori Bouza, said that the target audience for their organization are business owners, their employees, and all other community members. The different aspects and types of human trafficking that will be discussed at this event include labor, sex trafficking and sexual exploitation. Call to Freedom also has several curriculums that they use when presenting to students. The organization has been providing education for Wagner students for the past several years.

Call to Freedom is a non-profit, Anti-Human Trafficking Agency that is based out of Sioux Falls. Their mission is to bring wholeness to all individuals that are impacted by sex and labor trafficking as well as commercial sexual exploitation through the guidance on a healing path through the organization’s continuum of care model. The organization’s core values in their treatment of those impacted by human trafficking include dignity, being person-centered, empowerment and integrity. It is the vision of Call to Freedom to create a comprehensive CommUnity model of care for individuals that have been impacted by human trafficking and supporting communities through education and advocacy to battle sex and labor trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation.

Steve has been a part of Call to Freedom for the past five years. It is important to know a little bit about his background in order to really understand not only his passion to end human trafficking but why he is an invaluable asset in the organization when it comes to his experience with children and young adults. This is not Steve’s first time being involved with a human trafficking organization. Before becoming a Youth Navigator Coordinator for Call of Freedom, he began working with the East River Human Trafficking Youth Task force team, starting in 2016. Steve began his professional career working for the State of South Dakota for 29 years. He first began at the Youth Forestry Camp in Custer. He has also been a Youth Counselor at the Human Services Center Adolescent Unit; spent 20 years working as a Juvenile Corrections Agent with the Department of Corrections; and worked in Duluth, MN for seven years as a supervisor at Northwoods Children Home. He retired from the State of South Dakota five years ago, then began his work with Call to Freedom. Steve’s entire professional career has revolved around serving and educating youth.

As a Youth Navigator Coordinator, Steve facilitates community awareness and gives prevention presentations on human trafficking to schools including both students and staff; treatment centers including residents and staff; and community programs as well as state and local organizations. He has received the proper training and certifications in order to provide any necessary training and educational programming. These training and educational programs include The Ready to Stand Curriculum and the Speak Up Curriculum. Steve’s school presentations are geared to different age groups ranging from kindergarten through college. Elementary presentations from the Speak Up Curriculum address what staying safe both in person and online should look like; helping youth identify their Triangle of Trust; and educating young people on how to speak up if something makes them feel uncomfortable. Call to Freedom programs that are geared towards 7th graders through high school seniors include lessons on social media, Healthy Relationships, Sex Trafficking presentations and Labor Trafficking presentations.

It is the goal of having this type of presentation by both the South-Central Coalition Against Human Trafficking and Call to Freedom to raise awareness in our local communities and South Dakota as a whole in order to help people be able to identify and report human trafficking red flag behavior. It is important for all communities to realize that victims of human trafficking can be both male and female, in various age ranges including children to adults.

Asking who they are, what do they look like or what kind of people are usually human traffickers is a difficult question. Traffickers look just like everyone else. They often share the same national, ethnic or cultural background as their victims. In many cases, the victims know their traffickers. Traffickers try very hard to make their victims appear that they are runaways and are EXPERTS at making promises to their victims that are aimed at filling the unmet needs of their targets in order to gain their trust and eventual control.

There are some ways that people can help prevent human trafficking. If suspicious of individuals or behavior, try to observe as many details as possible that can aid in the identification of the trafficker. If at a business tell the manager or call 911. It is very important that people act in a timely manner with their suspicions in an emergency situation, but no one should ever attempt a rescue operation of any kind except for trained law enforcement. If it is a non-emergency situation, the National Human Trafficking Hotline can be contacted at 1-888-373-7888 or any local organizations that specialize in rescue/ restore operations.

The dawn of social media such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Gaming have given traffickers access to an innumerable number of potential victims. Through social media traffickers can build intimate relationships with their victims or advertise fake or deceptive job opportunities in order to lure their potential victims into the human trafficking world. Especially for today’s youth, adolescence and young adulthood can be a very difficult time in their lives. There are some characteristics or potential risk factors that can make an adolescent/young adult more susceptible to becoming a victim. These risk factors include a lack of personal safety, isolation, emotional distress, homelessness, poverty, family dysfunction, substance abuse, mental illness, learning disabilities, developmental delay, childhood sexual abuse, sexual exploitation by family members or peers and a lack of social support to name a few.

This is just a very small piece of what can be expected to be discussed at the upcoming Human Trafficking presentation that will be held on Wednesday, October 16th at 6 p.m. at the Wagner Theater.