Identifying Sex Trafficking: What You Need to Know

Sex Trafficking in Our Own Backyards: What you need to know to protect your kids Temple Emanu-El of Westfield will host a powerful and timely program on “How to Identify Sex Trafficking in our Own Backyards,” on Tuesday, October 21 at 7:30pm. The presentation will feature internationally-renowned lawyer, activist, educator and writer Lauren Hersh, Founder & National Director of World Without Exploitation, who will shed light on how trafficking has shifted from the streets to social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok, where perpetrators target youth ages 12–16. Designed for parents, grandparents, and teens (7th grade and up), this session will explore who is most vulnerable, how trafficking happens, and, most importantly, how to protect our children online and off. The evening will include a 50-minute talk followed by Q&A, offering practical tools, insight, and hope in the fight to safeguard our communities. Ms. Hersh's work to combat gender violence began at the Kings County District Attorney’s Office, where she prosecuted a wide range of cases impacting women and girls. Realizing that situations of sex trafficking were going unrecognized, in 2008, Ms. Hersh created one of the first Sex Trafficking Units in the United States. In 2015, she led a movement to pass the Trafficking Victims Protection and Justice Act, and recently spearheaded efforts to pass FOSTA-SESTA, federal legislation to hold websites accountable for online exploitation. Ms. Hersh has been honored with numerous awards, including the National Organization for Women’s Susan B. Anthony Award, Mount Sinai Hospital SAVI Award and New York Law Journal's 2016 Rising Stars award. She is recognized as one of New York’s New Abolitionists, a campaign launched in 2013 by the New York State Anti-Trafficking Coalition to raise awareness about human trafficking and modern-day slavery in the state and to honor individuals fighting against it. Ms. Hersh has lectured at the United Nations and the European Parliament, and has written extensively on issues of gender-based violence. Her work has been featured by WABC-7 News, CNN, The New York Times and numerous other print and broadcast media outlets. This program is open to the public free of charge, but please register! Visit https://www.tewnj.org/sex-trafficking-in-our-own-backyard to sign up.

Event Links

Website: https://go.evvnt.com/3299204-0

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