Human Trafficking and the Super Bowl

As sports fans prepare for a showdown between the Broncos and the Seahawks just outside of New York City, conversation about human trafficking is heating up. There is a lot of discourse about a peak in human trafficking surrounding the Super Bowl, but as our partners at the Sex Worker Project and the Urban Justice Center explain, that may be just a myth:

While we commend efforts to raise awareness about human trafficking, allegations that large sporting events, like the Super Bowl, increase the number of persons trafficked into prostitution are simply unfounded. Investigations from past Olympics, World Cups, and Superbowls, have not found large numbers of persons trafficked to these locations by force to engage in commercial sex. These claims can lead to raids and police harassment of adult sex workers, increasing danger for this population. This is a misuse of scarce resources better aimed at preventing human trafficking.

While it is critically important to understand and tackle the root causes of human trafficking and provide resources to those who are currently in trafficking situations or who are survivors, erroneous links to sporting events are not helpful toward these ends. They also distract from real issues surrounding large sporting events that do deserve our attention and are often under-reported, including instances of unsafe labor conditions for construction workers who build sports arenas, and the large scale trafficking and deaths of migrant workers.

The media’s fixation on trafficking into the sex trade has led to an unfortunate misperception about human trafficking, and missed opportunities to halt human rights abuses. We encourage journalists and members of the public to support more just working conditions in all labor sectors where trafficking exists, including restaurants, private homes, landscaping, construction, and agriculture; this will help us recognize and assist victims in need.



Written by: Sienna Baskin, Esq. Co-Director Sex Workers Project Urban Justice Center www.sexworkersproject.org

To learn more about the intersection of human trafficking and large sporting events, please see these sources:

Trafficking in Human Beings and the 2006 World Cup in Germany, Migration Research Series no. 29 , International Organization for Migration (2007), (stating that “the estimate of 40,000 women expected to be trafficked [in Germany surrounding the World Cup] was unfounded and unrealistic”).

What’s the Cost of a Rumour? A guide to sorting out the myths and the facts about sporting events and trafficking, Global Alliance Against Traffic in Women (2011).

Urban Legends and Hoaxes: How Hyperbole Hurts Trafficking Victims, Huffington Post, Rachel Lloyd, (2012), (stating that while “there have definitely been some reported cases, the statistics just don’t bear out this claim.”).

IOFA in New York State

Similiar to our work with the Cook County Human Trafficking Task Force, IOFA is helping to establish effective and successful systems of response to human trafficking in other parts of the country. In 2000, IOFA established the first anti-trafficking task force in New York City and has been working with dozens of communities around the world on the issue ever since. Below is an article about IOFA's work in New York State with the Westchester County Anti-Trafficking Task Force. For more information about how IOFA can help your county or city launch and manage a task force to fight the crime of human trafficking, call us at 773-404-8831.

Westchester Task Force Unveils Plans to Develop

Multi-Agency Protocol
Link to Full Article

The Westchester County Anti-Trafficking Task Force, spearheaded by the International Organization for Adolescents (IOFA), My Sisters’ Place, the Pound Ridge Police Department, and the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, kicked off the start to their second year by unveiling a plan to develop a multi-agency anti-trafficking protocol.

According to Ali Boak, Co-founder and President of IOFA and Special Advisor to the Task Force who will lead the group through the process of protocol development said, “The process of developing the protocol is nearly as important as the outcome document itself. We will work as a group to closely examine the role and responsibilities of each agency when a case of human trafficking is identified.”

Unlike many crimes, human trafficking often requires joint cooperation between and among local, state and federal law enforcement as well as social service providers. Audrey Stone, 2^nd Deputy District Attorney, Chief, Special Prosecutions Division, Westchester County District Attorney’s Office commented “The launch of our County’s Anti-Trafficking Task Force represents our first county-wide unified response to trafficking. Our success in tracking offenders and prosecuting traffickers will be enhanced through the Task Force’s joint work and cooperation.”

Nicholas Sensley, the Anti-Human Trafficking Strategy and Development Consultant for Humanity United, spoke to the task force at their first meeting of 2012 about his experience developing task forces around the world. “It’s encouraging to see the unity and interdependence of the Westchester County Anti-Trafficking Task Force. The essential seal for continuity and dependable resourcefulness is an operational protocol. “

“To ensure a victim-centered response, it’s critical that task force members have in place a set of guidelines about how law enforcement and social service providers, such as My Sisters’ Place, will work in collaboration to protect the rights of potentially trafficked persons and meet their needs once they are identified” says Karen Cheeks-Lomax, Executive Director of My Sisters’ Place.

The protocol development is slated to begin this Spring but the group will also continue their important efforts to train first responders across the County. To date the task force has trained over 300 law enforcement agents, hospital workers, social workers, ambulance drivers, and other professionals likely to encounter potential victims of human trafficking.

Members of the Westchester County Task Force include: Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, State Attorney General’s Office, U.S. Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security Investigations (ICE), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), State Department of Labor, Westchester County Association of Police Chiefs, Westchester County Family Justice Center (FJC), Westchester County Department of Public Safety Westchester County Department of Probation, Yonkers Police Department, Yorktown Police Department, Westchester County Office for Women, Port Chester Police Department, Peekskill Police Department New Rochelle Police Department Mount Vernon Police Department, White Plains Police Department, Pound Ridge Police Department, Mount Kisco Police Department, Child Welfare Training Academy, International Organization for Adolescents (IOFA), My Sisters’ Place, Hispanic Resource Center, Victim Assistance Services, and Hudson River HealthCare.

Left to Right: Christa Stewart,Coordinator, New York State Human Trafficking Program, Manager, Bureau of Refugee & Immigrant Assistance/OTDA, Amy Siniscalchi, Director of Programs, My Sisters’ Place, Nicholas Sensley, the Anti-Human Trafficking Strategy and Development Consultant for Humanity United, Chief David Ryan, Pound Ridge Police Department, Ali Boak, Co-Founder and President, International Organization for Adolescents (IOFA) and Advisor to the Task Force, Suzanne Luntz, Human Trafficking Coordinator, My Sisters’ Place, Bruce May, Victim Specialist, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

IOFA Executive Director, Shelby French, Interviewed on Zonta Women's Community Radio

IOFA had the wonderful opportunity to share our work and talk about the impact of human trafficking with Zonta Women's Community Radio yesterday via WVOX in New York and the global Zonta network. Zonta International is an international organization of professionals working together to improve the status of women & girls through service and advocacy.


Click hear to listen!