Human Trafficking is an international issue. Worldwide, it is estimated that approximately 24.9 million individuals are victims of human trafficking. North Carolina currently ranks number eight of the states with the highest rates of human trafficking. There were 287 reported cases throughout the state in 2018. 

The prevalence of human trafficking in North Carolina is due to many factors, including the existence of major highways that run through the state, a transient military population surrounded by sexually oriented businesses, rural agricultural areas with a high demand for cheap labor, and the number of gangs.

Know the Warning Signs

Human traffickers use a variety of means to recruit their victims: confinement, isolation, economic abuse, threats, emotional abuse, and physical abuse. Trafficking victims may present the following behaviors:

• Acts fearful, anxious, submissive, tense, or paranoid
• Unusually afraid or anxious around law enforcement
• Avoids eye contact
• Has very little personal property
• Not in control of their identification documents or money
• Does not know where they are or what city they are in
• Claims to be just visiting the area with an inability to clarify where they are living
• Does not have access to healthcare
• Shows signs of physical abuse, physical restraint, or confinement
• Always accompanied by someone and unable to speak for themselves.

What Can You Do?

If you or someone you know is a victim of human trafficking, ask for help by calling the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 or Text HELP to BeFree (233733). If you suspect Human Trafficking in our community, report it to the Greensboro Police Department’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 336-373-1000. 

Working together, we can put the brakes on Human Trafficking. United we ride.