Bowling Green nonprofit shares signs of human trafficking

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – On Tuesday, Gov. Andy Beshear announced January as Human Trafficking Prevention Month in a effort with first lady Britany Beshear and the Kentucky State Police to bring more awareness to the issue.

Millions of men, women and children are victims of trafficking around the globe and it continues to be a hard conversation to have. There is a silver lining, though. Many efforts, both locally and across the country, have worked diligently for decades to not just introduce trafficking awareness but also offer insight into what you can do to prevent human trafficking.

One local nonprofit, Phoenix Rising, is sharing how to remain aware.

“We’ve really found that it’s so hard for us to, when we learn about this, to abide with the fact that this exists. And so simply to have awareness, to have public awareness is very valuable. And then, of course, the education that goes along with it to identify it,” Phoenix Rising president Sarah Jane Zink said.

While barriers are being broken, and human trafficking awareness is becoming more widely talked about, it’s also important to know the signs of someone who might be a victim of human trafficking.

“If their family keeps them isolated, if you meet somebody, a young person that doesn’t seem to have control of their time or they don’t keep their own phone or somebody keeping their phone for them. Also, if people are moving around a lot, if you see families that are moving around a lot, sometimes that’s one of the signs that can go together with the others,” Zink said.

Phoenix Rising is just one of many organizations who have been tirelessly working to spread awareness and a teach prevention while also helping those who are victims of trafficking.

If you would like to learn more about Phoenix Rising, you can click here.