Spring rejuvenates Louisville, bringing fresh landscaping and the excitement of the Kentucky Derby. Yet, beneath the pageantry lies a harrowing reality: This season marks a peak for human trafficking.
The Kentucky Derby is cited as the second-largest event in the United States for this modern-day slavery, where massive crowds drive a surge in human exploitation.
Tragically, the average victims of sex trafficking are girls aged 13-16, stolen from their families and stripped of their dignity. While sex trafficking is a major concern, exploitation also thrives in the service industry as labor demands spike among dishwashers and hotel cleaners.
This horror proliferates, because the police can't be everywhere. But you and I can. The citizens of Louisville are everywhere, and, collectively, we see almost everything. Pay attention and you might see someone who avoids eye contact and appears unusually submissive, or individuals who don't have possession of their own ID or money, or who allow a third party to speak for them.
If you see someone who looks like they might be in distress like this, don't do anything yourself, but call 911. Don't want to get involved? Stop for a second and think if your 13-year-old daughter was kidnapped and in that terrifying situation.
Just make the call. If we can help one person, we did a good thing.
I'm Bill Lamb, and that's my Point of View.
