Human trafficking event to be held in Uniontown Thursday night
Local advocates will speak about the dangers of human trafficking in Fayette County Thursday and teach how to identify victims and how to help at an event in Uniontown.
“We’ve used the expression, ‘It’s closer than you think,” said Pat Mowen, a speaker at the event and co-chair of the Fayette County Human Trafficking Task Force. “We do have incidents of this type of behavior here within Fayette County.”
She and human trafficking co-chair Dr. Jo Ann Jankoski will speak at the event, “Modern-Day Slavery, It’s Closer Than You Think,” at St. Mary Nativity Parish Center at 17 Gilmore Street at 6:30 p.m. Mowen is also the prevention specialist for the Fayette County Crime Victims Center, and Jankoski is an associate professor at Penn State Fayette, The Eberly Campus. The event is hosted by the Ladies of Charity of St. Mary.
“The presentation will enhance the participants’ awareness of human trafficking, risk factors, the signs and red flags, discussion about local incidents within the last two years, resources and how we can address this hideous crime as one religious community,” the Ladies of Charity announcement said. “All are welcome. Together, we can make a difference, one life at a time.”
Mowen noted that several human trafficking incidents have been reported in the county, although none reached the level of prosecution. She said many people still associated human trafficking with foreign countries and metropolitan areas, but traffickers often target vulnerable youth in rural areas.
“Fayette County is not free from being targeted from this type of criminal act,” she said.
Faith-based groups are likely to come into contact with human trafficking victims because of their outreach work, Mowen said.
To report suspected human trafficking or to get help, call local police or the human trafficking hotline at 1-888-373-7888.