The San Francisco International Airport (SFO) announced its participation in a global research collaboration spearheaded by United Against Slavery to fight human trafficking via the 2021 National Outreach Survey for Transportation (NOST) project.
Over 100 contributors, including 59 oversight agencies from Canada, Brazil, the Netherlands, and the United States, will analyze frontline data from the aviation, maritime, pipeline, railroad, roadway and public transit agencies in an effort to craft policies and solutions to disrupt this criminal activity and ultimately make it difficult, unattractive and unprofitable.
In 2020, United Against Slavery (UAS) became the first-ever recipient of the USDOT Combating Human Trafficking in Transportation Impact Award. Christi Wigle, Co-Founder and CEO stated, “The survey tool is designed to collect front-line data on all types of human trafficking to inform research, programming, evaluation, and other functions of the counter-trafficking community. The aggregate findings and data analysis will be completed and disseminated by April 2022 and will guide the collaboration team in crafting global solutions to save lives. Our collaborative data collection efforts at United Against Slavery is to help victims be freed from enslavement and to empower survivors with the resources needed in their healing journeys.”
Human trafficking is one of the greatest atrocities of the 21st century. As many as 24.9 million men, women and children are sold into sexual exploitation, domestic servitude or other forced labor around the world.
SFO is committed to maintaining a strong stance against the flow of human trafficking that is happening across the transportation industry. In partnership with Airport Initiative, SFO employees are equipped to effectively identify and report potential trafficking in the terminals. Such identification and reporting by employees allows victims to receive the help they may need while still in the airport.
In January 2021, SFO announced a new initiative to combat human trafficking, installing placards to all airport restrooms to encourage victims to seek help. More than 900 placards have been affixed to the interior of every public restroom stall at SFO. Placards include a number to call, text, or scan a QR code to obtain immediate help, with calls/texts routed directly to SFO’s onsite Communication Dispatch Center. A live SFO team member is available to respond 24 hours a day/7 days a week.
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