Support human trafficking prevention on Opening Day of the 2011 Legislative Session

HONOLULU—Today is Anti Human-Trafficking Awareness Day and January is Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. For many in Hawaii, human trafficking is a threat that hits close to home.

Hawaii is now one of five states in the nation with no local law defining human trafficking and according to federal social workers is one of the worst states in the nation for child sex-trafficking.

The mission of Pacific Alliance to Stop Slavery (PASS) is to provide services and advocacy for survivors of human trafficking. PASS also provides education and training, public awareness, and legislative advocacy for the greater community to prevent the rise of human trafficking in Hawaii, all through volunteers.

PASS and other organizations are uniting and rallying the community to stand strong against human trafficking, the world’s modern-day slavery.

Anti-human trafficking activists will gather at the Hawaii State Capitol on the Opening Day of the 2011 Legislative Session on Wednesday, January 19, from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in a peaceful gathering to show support for the survivors of human trafficking in Hawaii, the nation, and around the world.

This year, activists have the backing of Honolulu City and County Prosecutor Keith Kaneshiro, who has publicly stated his support for including a sex-trafficking criminal definition in Hawaii’s laws.

“The people of Hawaii will not be silent while Pimp Tourism replaces Family Tourism and vulnerable women and children are exploited within our state lines,” PASS asserts in a statement. “Nor will we be silent as slave laborers subject foreign nationals living in poverty to squalid living and work conditions for little to no pay, with no ability to communicate with their families or leave their places of servitude.

To see a map of public metered parking around the State Capitol, click here

For more information, visit www.traffickjamming.org or RSVP on Facebook here.