Human Trafficking Awareness Month │ The History and Mission of Abigail’s Arms │ Your Impact and How to Get Involved
NEW YEAR, SAME PROBLEM
January is human trafficking awareness month.
According to Upbring, Texas ranks at number two in the nation for reported cases of human trafficking. In 2020 there were 987 cases reported in Texas, but many go unreported. Because of this, an estimated 313,000 victims are trafficked at any time in Texas.
Of those 313,000 victims, 79,000 are children forced or coerced into sex trafficking, and 243,000 adults being labor trafficked. Those are scary numbers… but what exactly is human trafficking?
Human trafficking is the act of recruiting, buying, selling, obtaining, or transportation of a person for the purpose of exploiting them through the use of force, fraud, or coercion. Trafficking can come in two different forms, Sex and Labor.
Many times, we think of a white van lurking for a victim but in most cases the trafficker can be someone the victim knows and trusts. Traffickers use many tactics, the most common one is the act of preying on people’s vulnerabilities, for example an unstable home, substance abuse, or houselessness. Other times they prey on young children over online chat rooms or social media.
If you suspect someone may be a victim of trafficking, call the National Human Trafficking Hotline: 1-888-3737-888 or text “Be Free” to 233-733.
Join Abigail’s Arms in GOING BLUE on January 11th to spread awareness for human trafficking across our state and nation. Tag us on social media!
THE HISTORY AND MISSION OF ABIGAIL’S ARMS
Here at Abigail’s Arms, our mission is to provide a safe space for families in crisis, to educate and empower individuals, and to create awareness in our communities.
We are an umbrella agency that began as a sexual assault hotline in 1983. In the following years, we have expanded to offer diverse services to cater to victims’ needs.
How does Abigail’s Arms provide help to victims of trafficking? Ginger Johnson, the Executive Director, tells us that one of the first clients here was trafficked when she was only 13 years old. Most victims may not realize that what has happened to them is human trafficking. As they tell their story and work with our case managers, the details are then identified. By educating our community and having the ability to find resources for victims of human trafficking, Abigail’s Arms staff do their best to help victims feel ready to step back out into the community for a new start.
YOUR IMPACT AND HOW TO GET INVOLVED
Twas the Season of Giving! Every year Abigail’s Arms looks forward to our community partnerships to serve families in Cooke County. This is done through programs such as “Adopt a Family” and “Shop with a Cop”. We continued that tradition for the 10th year in December of 2022. Through the Adopt a Family program, we supported 125 children and 20 caregivers with Christmas gifts.
At the Shop with a Cop Event, officers from Cooke County spent quality time with 10 children in our community. Officers, children, and advocates enjoyed a Chick-Fil-A meal, and afterwards rode along to Walmart to shop for Christmas.
Thank you to the many donors for their support and making these events happen! Find us on social media to include Tik Tok, Facebook, LinkedIn and more to catch a glimpse of our events in action!
