By Dewey Terrill
JC Post
Human trafficking was the focus of a Thursday evening session in Junction City.
Geary County Attorney and Flint Hills Human Trafficking spokesperson Krista Blaisdell, Deb Kluttz of Homestead Ministries and female victims of human trafficking who now reside in the region were in attendance to provide information, tell their stories and answer questions.
Much of the information focused on human sex trafficking. Blaisdell said she believed it brought personal information to the Junction City community. “I think we had an opportunity to listen to testimonies from victims who’ve been trafficked and bring home that human perspective of what this crime entails, and how we can best as a community support those victims.”
Blaisdell said she believes Junction City is a hot spot for human trafficking. “We’re right on the I-70 corridor so we have a strong east-west presence. Although there’s some pretty prevalent highways running north and south here in this region. There’s apparently a market here, it becomes a hot spot, and we know there’s a history here.”
Homestead Ministries, based in Manhattan, works to help victims recover and leave the human trafficking lifestyle. They provide housing and support. Human trafficking exists in many areas, and several of the victims who spoke Thursday evening were originally from multiple cities and states across the nation ranging from Wichita and Atlanta to Mississippi and Alabama.
Kluttz answered a question from JC Post on how prevalent is the problem in the Junction City area? “Very, very prevalent. It’s one of the hot spots, it really is. I mean I-70 is going right by here. “Kluttz added when Homestead Ministries goes into the clubs to reach out to the women “they’re from all over the place.”
What can the community do to help with this problem? Kluttz stated, “I think the more people that are aware and there are more eyes on it I think that’s what needs to happen. There’s signs, there’s things to look for. I gave the hotline number out, when they see something that looks sketchy, just getting ahold of the hotline and letting it be approached by those who know how to approach things.” That hotline number is 1-888-373-7888.
There was information about what you need to know about people and places to be aware of trafficking. They can range from people who are comforting and showing the way to taking control. Trafficking can occur in places such as hotels and parks. The face of a predator is unknown since they can be male, female, younger or older, fathers or even members of law enforcement and the legal system.
Those who reside in Homestead Ministries housing while they are working to recover need to be 18, speak English, be a survivor of sex trafficking and be ready to change their own lives. A holistic approach is taken with some residents remaining there long term and working on job or career training. SIx girls currently reside in the Homestead Ministries group home and others live in five off-site venues which are host homes. If you need help go to their website at homesteadministry.org. There’s an inquiry button on the web site.
On possible growth and expansion of the program Kluttz stated, “We are poised to actually do Homestead chapters in other communities. That’s our next step, actually.” When asked if Junction City was a possibility Kluttz responded by saying, “Always. We’re talking to Salina right now as well.”