My City January 2022

MYCOMMUNITY

S C S

Since that first rescue in2018,over149 predatorshavebeenarrested.Swanson hasalsotakenG.H.O.S.T.members to35Michigancounties sothatother sheriffscouldlearnhowtoformtheirownstrike teams.And,accordingtothesheriff,humantrafficking is mobile.“Itmoves fromtowntotown,”hesays.InMichigan,any personunder theageof17whois involvedincommercial sex is, bydefinition,avictimofhumantrafficking. Education,awarenessandaftercareare important aspects ofhumantrafficking,thesheriff states.Thesheriff ’sofficeuses partners inGeneseeCounty includingVoicesForChildren andWhaleyChildren’sCenter forpromotingeducationand awareness.“Wehaveseveral aftercarepartners thathelpvictims whohavebeenrescuedget thephysical,emotional,spiritual and psychological rehabilitationtheyneed.” Of the traffickingcases thathavebeenprosecuted,Swanson ishappy toreport animpressiveconvictionrate.“That is becauseof theexpertiseandprofessionalismofG.H.O.S.T. andthe teammemberswhoworktomake ithappen–whoput cases together incooperationwiththeprosecutorwhohasbeen battle-tested,”hesays. TheG.H.O.S.T.teamhas caught theeyeofEmmyAward- winningfilmmaker,NickNanton,whofilmedadocumentary abouthumantraffickingtitled,“It’sHappeningRightHere.” TheG.H.O.S.T.membersandSwansonarebothinthe openingscene.Thedocumentary is set tobereleasedin2022.

“Ibelieve it’sgoingtobe thenumberonehumantrafficking documentaryof theyear!”Swansonexclaims. As January isNationalHumanTraffickingAwareness Month,Swansonsayspartof theirmessaging is toget the community,experts,momsanddads,grandmasandgrandpas, churches,teachersandfriendsall involvedinhelpingthe fight againsthumantrafficking.“Clearly,theycan’tbe involvedin the lawenforcement aspect,but theycanbepartof the team,” headds.The taskforcehas startedaprogramthatparallels the G.H.O.S.T.teamcalledtheG.H.O.S.T.CertifiedProgram, whichwillbe launchedat theG.H.O.S.T.openhouseevent takingplace from4-6pmonJanuary26.Attendeeswillhave the opportunity tomeetG.H.O.S.T.teammembersandalsotobe recognizedasaCertifiedG.H.O.S.T.member. Anyonewhowants tobecomeaCertifiedG.H.O.S.T. membercancompleteanonline tutorialwhichincludesashort examination.Thosewhopass theexamareallowedtoprovide asafeplace for someone togowhoneedshelporhasquestions abouthumantrafficking.Onceapersonororganizationis certified,theywill receiveasignedcertificateanda largesticker (to beusedfor identification) fromSheriffSwanson. Swansonreiterates the fact thathumantrafficking is the fastestgrowingcriminal enterprise intheworld.Withjustone victim,a traffickercangross$200,000-$250,000peryear,he reports.“It’sahugebusiness,”hestates.“Together,wecanfight it. This ismypersonal call toaction.” ®

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