The Richmond Justice Initiative's Prevention Program has reached nearly 30,000 students since it was launched in 2012. The nonprofit will hold a three-day virtual fundraiser to support its anti-human trafficking efforts next week. (Photo courtesy Richmond Justice Initiative)
The Richmond Justice Initiative, a local nonprofit focused on human trafficking prevention, will hold its yearly Benefit for Freedom fundraiser virtually next week after delaying it due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The online event will be held May 28-30, and donations will support the nonprofit's efforts to teach young people about ways to avoid forming relationships with potential traffickers.
While some may think human trafficking is a thing of the past, Richmond Justice Initiative CEO Jessica Willis says the practice is thriving today more than ever before. Human trafficking is defined by the U.S. Department of Justice as trafficking in persons or modern-day slavery, and cases have been reported in all 50 states, including Virginia. The International Labour Organization reports that traffickers exploited an estimated 40.3 victims in 2016, with an estimated 25 million in forced labor and 15 million in forced marriages.
The virtual Benefit for Freedom will kick off on Thursday, May 28, at 6 p.m. with videos featuring Willis, Henrico County Vice Detective and FBI Task Force Officer Joe Wechsler, Prevention Project Student Leader Philip Kamper, and RJI staffers and board members posted to its website and Facebook page. The organization hopes to raise $100,000 over the course of the three-day event.
The nonprofit typically offers a slate of anti-trafficking workshops such as the Prevention Project, which was launched in Henrico’s Hermitage High School in 2012 and has since reached nearly 30,000 at-risk youth in 13 states, but in-person sessions have now been put on hold. Willis says the organization is now tracking a rise in traffickers that target children and teens online, as the pandemic has forced many to spend more time on the internet for work and school.
“A lot of us are at home, either doing online schooling or working virtually … and with that, the traffickers are also heightening their activity online,” she says. “Traffickers are looking for so many different cues where they could step in and pretend to offer something that someone needs, and it’s a false offer.”
Though there’s no defining characteristic shared by all victims of human trafficking, the Department of Justice states that those who are economically disadvantaged, living in unstable conditions and otherwise vulnerable are at particular risk. To combat the rise in predatory behavior over the internet, the Richmond Justice Initiative is now offering an online safety guide for youth on its website.
“This is our largest fundraiser of the year and greatly supports these programs to effectively reach at-risk youth and to equip counselors, social workers and teachers on ways to look out for red flags and protect our students … when they come forward with confronting situations around human trafficking,” WIllis says.
