Workshop will help you spot sex traffickers

COEUR d’ALENE — The buying, selling and sexual exploitation of human beings hits closer to home than many probably realize.

"A lot of our borders are subject to traffickers coming in and out of Idaho, and Spokane happens to be one of those borders," said Jennifer Zielinski, director of the Idaho Anti-Trafficking Coalition. "We know in the Spokane area, definitely, law enforcement has expressed to us that there's an increase in some of that activity on that border of Spokane."

The Idaho Anti-Trafficking Coalition is a Boise-based nonprofit raising awareness and developing educational materials about sex trafficking in Idaho.

According to the coalition's website, www.idahoatc.org, more than 80 suspicious ads advertising girls in Boise were posted on Backpage.com in March. Backpage has since been seized by the government.

Statistics on the Idaho Anti-Trafficking Coalition's website also state that 416 calls from Idaho have been placed to the National Human Trafficking Hotline since 2007.

"We are working with law enforcement and specific safe harbor laws for protections," Zielinski said. "We are in the process of pursuing a safe house for minors who are victims of trafficking."

Zielinski and her team are creating visibility across the state and bringing the serious issue of human trafficking to the attention of every community.

The Idaho Anti-Trafficking Coalition and Community Outreach Behavioral Services, a Meridian-based nonprofit that provides trauma care for victims of human trafficking, will host the anti-trafficking training event "End the Silence. Know the Signs" from 6 to 8 p.m. Monday in Lake City Church, 6000 N. Ramsey Road in Coeur d’Alene.

The workshop will empower community members to identify signs of distress, recognize when they encounter a victim and what to do when someone needs help. Zielinski said many times the age difference between victims and their captors will be drastic.

"Oftentimes, you'll see signs of malnourishment. They may be lethargic, giving off a vibe or look of being drugged, isolated. They don't have access to their own license or information," she said. "If you have that gut feeling that something doesn't seem right, law enforcement will take it seriously if you contact them."

The free training session comes to Coeur d'Alene after the coalition received inquiries from North Idaho residents following a workshop that was conducted in southern Idaho earlier this year, Zielinski said. The Boise event welcomed more than 200 people.

"They were getting requests from the northern part of the state asking for that training," she said. "Just on Facebook we have well over 700 (North Idaho) people interested."

At the Monday training, Zielinski said, a call to action will be announced.

"We’ll really start pushing for the community to create visibility, prompting people to stay educated and reach out if they want to expand these efforts," she said.

Info: www.idahoatc.org