FORBES LIVING FALL
2020
Save Our KIDS T
here is a global mission, urgently burning, to help save youth all around the world, and in the USA, from a horrific reality: modernday human trafficking. Together, athletes, other celebrities and several nonprofits have banded together to help bring awareness and solutions to this problem, which too many people think is something in our ancient past, very uncommon, or “only happens to other people.” Right now, in our own communities, there is the very real and widely pervasive horror of human trafficking and modern slavery. In fact, human trafficking is the fastest growing and most profitable crime in the world today. The FBI estimates there are more than 100,000 girls (ages 9-19) being trafficked in the United States. The average target age for girls is 13 and 12 for boys. Only an estimated 1% of victims are able to escape this life.
TIFFANY THOMSON
This isn’t just a problem for the impoverished, minorities and immigrants, runaways or sex workers, as many people assume. Human trafficking impacts every race and every social demographic. According to the FBI, every 6 seconds another person becomes a victim of human trafficking, and while some segments of society may be at higher risk, young people from every walk of life are vulnerable. Click here for resources. This isn’t just an American problem, either. From a global perspective, the numbers are equally staggering. In data reports from 2016, 40.3 million people were estimated to be in modern slavery. This translates to approximately 5.4 people out of every 1,000 individuals in the world who are victims of modern slavery, and 1 out of every 4 victims of modern slavery is a child. Click here for more statistics. Tiffany is the founder of a nonprofit organization that is fighting to rescue victims and help them become survivors. She was a victim of rape and years of sexual, mental, and physical abuse, herself. Although she wasn’t technically trafficked, her personal story of surviving repeated sexual assault and abuse, then breaking free ignited a personal mission for her. When she became aware of this widespread crime and the intimate trauma each victim endures once entering into human trafficking rings, Tiffany erupted with action! She formed her own organization 10 years ago, yet struggled to get anyone to pay attention. Recently, Tiffany joined forces with a national movement that has a similar mission as hers: Sports World Against Trafficking (SWAT). FORBES LIVING SPOTLIGHT SPONSOR PAGE
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