3human Trafficking Paper[1][1]

Winston Salem Human Trafficking Awareness Campaign, 1

Winston-Salem Human Trafficking Awareness Campaign Ben Holder Salem College Comm323 March 9, 2009

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During the past two decades the modern slave trade and human trafficking industry has become an issue for human rights advocates and law enforcement agencies all over the world. In 2000, Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) in response to the rise in the humansfor-sale industry. The act requires the Department of State to produce a yearly trafficking-in-persons report. This report helps in measuring the effects of human trafficking, as well as efforts made to establish a global minimum human trafficking standard (TVPA, 2000). TVPA identifies two forms of trafficking in people: sex trafficking and labor trafficking. Sex trafficking is defined as the: Recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act, in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person forced to perform such an act is induced by forced, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person forced to perform such an act is under the age of 18 years. (TVPA, 2000; p. 103) Labor trafficking is defined as “recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage or slavery”(TVPA 2000; p. 103). In March of 2001 the first report, produced in accordance with the TVPA standards, was created by the Coalition Against Trafficking in Women (CATW). The report, entitled “Sex Trafficking of Women in the United States,” listed several areas, including three North Carolina cities, which had human trafficking concerns. The cities of Fayetteville, Greensboro, and Jacksonville were identified as areas that had human trafficking concerns in North Carolina (Raymond, Hughes & Gonzalez, 2001). In 2006, the FBI identified North Carolina as an area with human trafficking concerns and launched an information and awareness campaign to increase the public's knowledge about the modernday slave trade. An FBI press release announcing the campaign reported that local law enforcement

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agencies “recognized the importance of providing information to the public regarding the nature and scope of this crime problem within the state of North Carolina” (Charlotte FBI Internet Site, 2006). The goal of the campaign was to increase education and awareness about the modern-day slave trade that operates in North Carolina; listed were local and regional media as key members of the initiative. The FBI’s North Carolina human trafficking initiative was funded by $15 million allotted by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (Ordonez, 2006). Two months after the FBI initiative began, David Munday, director of Special Operations for the NC Highway Patrol, reported raising awareness about North Carolina’s human trafficking issues topic would be “an uphill battle” (Sheehan, 2006). Munday referred to a survey sent to all Sheriff's departments in North Carolina revealing that most survey participants had no knowledge of human trafficking. According to Munday, one survey respondent declared that he or she did not want to know more (Sheehan, 2006). The uphill battle Munday refers to continues in North Carolina. This proposed senior seminar project will address the question: How can North Carolinians become more aware of human trafficking? To address this question, the project will create a public awareness campaign for a city in North Carolina. The city of Winston-Salem has agreed to become involved in the proposed project by offering their communication resources to help raise the level of awareness among residents. Justification The geographic location is one reason North Carolina is in need of additional public awareness campaigns to educate people about the modern-day slave trade. More than 20 percent of the human trafficking cases investigated by the FBI are in the Southeast and 50 percent of the victims are from Latin America (Perlmutt, 2007). The victimization includes forced labor on migrant farms and forced prostitution (Perlmutt, 2007). North Carolina’s need for human trafficking awareness campaigns is due to its position as the fifth largest Hispanic immigrant population in the United States (Perlmutt, 2007). According to an FBI

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report, human trafficking is taking place in North Carolina in part because of the large number of illegal immigrants residing in the area. More than 250,000 immigrants are living illegally in North Carolina (Ordonez, 2006). WRAL, a Raleigh-based television media outlet, reported Officials estimate 14,000 to 17,000 people were brought to the United States with the promise of jobs, only to be intimidated, held against their will and forced into prostitution or debt bondage. North Carolina has become one of the top states for human trafficking, 61% are Hispanic, 18% are African, followed by a growing percentage of Asians. (WRAL and NC Wanted, 2007) A number of articles about human trafficking cases have appeared in NC media. For example, in 1997 Siler City police reported the murder of Manuel Garcia, killed at a mobile home park well known in the city as a brothel catering to Hispanic men. The women were immigrants who were trafficked across the United States for the purpose of prostitution (McNeal, 1999). In 2001, Asheville Police raided a Sulphur Springs Road residence that was operating a brothel staffed by immigrant females serving Hispanic men. Authorities believed the Asheville operation was part of a loosely linked national network used in trafficking Hispanic women for the purpose of prostitution (Maxwell, 2001). In 2004, more than a dozen Thai men brought to North Carolina were forced to perform manual labor without pay (E.Collins, 2005). Also in 2004, a security guard working at a Home Depot in Greensboro reported a suspicious gathering in the parking lot. Police were called and the largest sex trafficking ring in the area was uncovered. Five males and fourteen females were charged in connection in this sex trafficking ring (K.Collins, 2007). In 2005, more details of the smuggling network became public when Valente Chavez Sanchez, a Wake County brothel operator, testified that he received girls from Priciliano Mora-Bueno. MoraBueno was arrested in Greensboro for his role in the aforementioned trafficking organization. Sanchez revealed that every week Mora-Bueno would call to ask him if he needed any girls to work at his three

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brothels in Wake County. Reports revealed that Mora-Beuno’s trafficking operation delivered females to work in brothels located in Charlotte, Raleigh, Winston-Salem, Durham, Monore as well as South Carolina. The trafficked females were from Mexico and entered the United States illegally. During a 2003 investigation, Sanchez’s prostitution operation was discovered when police found two women bound and gagged in the trunk of a car in a grocery store parking lot located southeast of Charlotte, North Carolina. (Weigl, 2005). In 2006, the Durham and Raleigh police, the FBI, the U.S. Postal Inspector, the N.C. Highway Patrol and Federal Immigrations and Customs Enforcement investigated a case that involved women lured to North Carolina from Mexico with job promises that did not exist. The operation was described as organized and sophisticated by FBI Special Agent Gregory Baker. The investigation resulted in 40 people being arrested (Dopart, 2006). Raleigh police raided a brothel in 2006 and were told by the women that they were previously working as blueberry pickers in the western part of North Carolina when they were told of better jobs in Raleigh working as housekeepers. Once they arrived, the women were informed they would be working as prostitutes. Police reported that the workers were held, like prisoners, with no chance at leaving or disobeying orders (Sheehan, 2006). These cases reported in the media show that human trafficking is occurring in North Carolina, and a need for increased public awareness. According to Winston-Salem City Manager Lee Garrity, the Hispanic population has been steadily growing in Winston-Salem for the past decade and is showing no signs of slowing down (L. Garrity, personal communication, October 22, 2008).

Elevated awareness could lead to better laws

that would allow local and state officials to aggressively prosecute the operators and protect the victims. Awareness and education about the trade could also help define the scope of the human trafficking problem in North Carolina. Scholarly journals regarding human trafficking used for this project indicate that accumulating

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accurate statistics about human trafficking is difficult ( Martinez 2008). Jennifer Stuart, an attorney for Legal Aid of North Carolina, reported that, there is no accurate statistics on human trafficking in North Carolina (Martinez, 2008). Raising public awareness about the issue of human trafficking may lead to increased investigation by media and law enforcement aiding in the compilation of more, accurate, statistics and other data. Despite reports of human traffickers working in Winston-Salem the city has not carried out a human trafficking awareness campaign (L. Garrity, personal communication, October 23, 2008). Examining what scholars and organizations have reported about human trafficking as well as public awareness campaigns; this proposed project will create a human trafficking public awareness campaign for the City of Winston-Salem. After the justification, an analysis of the literature obtained during the research stages of the proposed project, will follow. Information gathered about human trafficking and public relations campaigns were used with information about the City of Winston-Salem to create a strategic plan for the proposed public awareness campaign. Review of Literature To obtain background information related to the proposed topic, several scholarly databases, web sites and newspaper articles were searched. The Newsbank database on NC Live was a valuable tool that returned articles about actual North Carolina human trafficking. Google was used to research the following terms: “Modern day slave trade,” “human trafficking,” “sex slaves,” “forced labor,” “indentured servitude” and “debt bondage.” When using Boolean methods, such as “modern day slave trade AND United States” or “Human Trafficking AND North Carolina”, the targeted information is readily available. The search also included research of documents produced by using Salem College Library system and Mass Media Complete. The proposed research used search terms such as “public awareness campaigns,” “public relations,” “social AND public awareness campaigns,” “market,” “target audience,” “human trafficking AND public relations campaign.” Personal communication was

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also utilized as a research tool. The literature review is grouped into government documents regarding human trafficking, human trafficking awareness campaigns, non-human trafficking public awareness campaigns, scholarly articles on planning public awareness campaigns, and public relations textbooks. The information gathered will help to establish the critical steps in building a human trafficking awareness campaign. The Problem: Human trafficking The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) requires that the Department of Justice publish an annual report that assesses the efforts of governments around the world to meet minimum standards to combat modern slavery (TVPA, 2000). Due to the TVPA standards, there are welldocumented government-produced reports regarding human trafficking in the United States. In the research process other reports by non-government agencies, financed by the government were found. Clawson, Lane, and Small (2006) reported that the United States is considered a “destination country” for human trafficking. Since the passage of the TVPA in 2000, the number of victims have varied widely, ranging from initial estimates of 50,000 individuals trafficked annually to more recent estimates that put the number as low as 14,500 victims per year (Clawson, Lane, & Small, 2006). These conflicting numbers, as well as questions about the reliability of the statistics, potentially impact the availability of resources for prevention, prosecution and protection of victims of human trafficking (Clawson, et al., 2006). Known issues with data reporting include but are not limited to, duplication of numbers when multiple reporting agencies serve the same victim, inconsistent reporting on data (i.e., focusing only on sexually exploited women and children and ignoring data on men and boys trafficked for other labor), conflating victims of trafficking and smuggling (Clawson, et al., 2006). Human trafficking in North Carolina is reported in “Sex Trafficking of Women in the United States” (Raymond, et al., 2006). The report, published in 2001 by the Coalition to Abolish the Trafficking of Women (CATW), and funded by the National Institute of Injustice, states that

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Fayetteville, Jacksonville and Greensboro have sexually oriented establishments that have similar characteristics that are consistent with known human trafficking organizations. Additionally, the report notes that “some servicemen reported are reported to be involved in direct trafficking of women from Korea, Vietnam and Okinawa, Japan” (Raymond, et al., 2001; p. 38). A second report, by Samarasinghe and Burton entitled, “Strategizing prevention: a critical review of local initiatives to prevent sex trafficking,” supports the need for the proposed awarenessraising projects in areas where human trafficking is occurring. The writers note, “An entrenched problem is the lack of awareness in at-risk communities of the trafficking industry, and the plight of trafficked persons from their region” (Samarasinghe & Burton, 2007, p. 55). Sex services and domestic services are the two most prevalent forms of forced labor in the United States, according to Buckley (2008) in “Forced Labor in the United States: A Contemporary Problem in Need of a Contemporary Solution.” Gozdziak and Bump (2008), in their report, “Data and Research on Human Trafficking,” found significant gaps in the research on human trafficking, despite increasing interest. They stress the need for evidence-based research. Empirical research done on the limited number of identified trafficking victims somewhat contradicts theories about human trafficking advanced by those with feminist or religious ideologies, whose activism has primarily been focused on providing services to victims. A causal relationship between legal prostitution and human trafficking has not been empirically researched; there is a need for further research in this area (Gozdziak & Bump, 2008). According to Farrell, McDevitt, and Fahy (2008), in “Understanding and Improving Law Enforcement Responses to Human Trafficking”, human trafficking is becoming an increasingly urgent international human rights issue, fueled by the financial pressures burdening residents of povertystricken nations who leave their home countries, lured by the possibility of better economic opportunities elsewhere. Despite global efforts to bring attention to the issue of human trafficking,

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more than three-fourths of local and state law enforcement agencies in the United States contacted in a random sample “perceive human trafficking as rare or non-existent in their local communities” (Farrell et al., 2008, p. 4). This highlights the need for a public awareness campaign. In the southeastern U.S., 7.3 percent of law enforcement reported investigating a case of human trafficking (Farrell et al., 2008); although in North Carolina, the number was slightly higher, at 12.9 percent (Farrell et al., 2008). Human trafficking remains successful because traffickers are rarely caught and prosecuted; in part due to a lack of awareness on the part of law enforcement, compounded by the fact that victims are not U.S. citizens, making them appear to be complicit in their own victimization (Farrell et al., 2008). The TVPA passed in 2000 was designed to combat human trafficking in three ways: the first strategy was a preventive measure. The President used funding gained from United States taxpayers to stimulate the economies of foreign countries that struggled with extreme poverty. Poverty is the most common factor for among trafficking victims (Yen, 2008). The second strategy involved stiffer penalties for those found guilty of trafficking humans. The TVPA attempted to influence lawmakers around the world to enforce more stringent penalties for those found guilty of trafficking humans. The United States enforces a life sentence for prosecuted traffickers. The third strategy was to offer better protection for trafficking victims. Since the inception of the TVPA, victims that have been trafficked into the United States can apply for a designated visa that allows them to remain in the United States and receive medical and psychological treatment (Yen, 2008). In 2005, Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) after concluding that there is a severe need for reducing the demand side of human trafficking. The TVPRA authorized $50 million for use by local law enforcement and social services agencies to create and produce initiatives to reduce the male demand as well as prosecute those that purchase sex acts. (Yen, 2008).

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Creating Awareness of Human Trafficking The Polaris Project is an anti-human trafficking organization that operates programs both locally and internationally. It has offices in Washington, DC; Newark, NJ; Denver, CO; and Tokyo, Japan. Polaris Project's programs include advocacy for stronger penalties for traffickers, victim outreach and assistance as well as public awareness campaigns that focus on victim identification (Polaris Project Action Center, n.d.). In 2006, the Polaris Project created its “Slavery Still Exists” national grassroots public awareness campaign in order to create and foster a United States based antitrafficking movement (Polaris Project Action Center, n.d.). The programs executed in the Washington D.C. office focus on victim outreach, client services, transitional housing, and law enforcement cooperation. The Polaris Project is also a member of the DC task force. The Polaris Project, the US Attorney’s Office, and the DC police department started the DC Task Force on Human Trafficking in 2004. The task force utilizes the resources of government and non-government agencies to combat human trafficking on a regional level (Polaris Project Action Center, n.d.). . The Polaris Project Action Center web site provides information related to identifying trafficking victims, providing a link that offers information regarding the characteristics of a trafficking victim. Some of the characteristics identified are: lives at their workplace, works long or unusual hours, are under 18 and providing sexual acts for money and has someone that speaks for them or being unable to speak for themselves. As noted in the justification section of this proposal, in 2006 the FBI identified North Carolina as an area with human trafficking concerns and launched an information and awareness campaign to increase the publics’ knowledge about the modern slave trade. An Attorney for Legal Aid of North Carolina told the Charlotte Observer in 2008 that human trafficking cases have increased since the FBI’s public awareness campaign (Lacour, 2008). The Clearwater Area Task Force on Human Trafficking, based in the Tamp Bay area, started in

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2006. Its mission is to “identify and rescue victims, create a coordinated law enforcement system to investigate and prosecute these crimes and to deliver social, legal and immigration services to human trafficking victims in the Clearwater and Tampa Bay area (Clearwater area task force on human trafficking, n.d.). The task force started numerous programs that include the participation of local government agencies and law enforcement. One of its goals is to produce a certain number of public presentations as well as broadcast human trafficking information on Tampa Bay public television. The parties involved in the production of these programs are law enforcement officers and the social services community. The Clearwater Task Force web site states that no less than two one-hour programs would be produced for their government access television channel The Clearwater Task Force also presents human trafficking awareness programs to local civic groups and neighborhood organizations (Clearwater area task force on human trafficking, n.d.). According to Samarasinghe and Brown (2007), the use of mass media tools for a 2004 trafficking awareness campaign based in the Caribbean proved to be extremely successful. The campaign created 10 radio soap operas based on real life human trafficking cases. The campaign also began airing 30- second public service announcements on the radio over a six-week period that featured Caribbean celebrities. The service announcement included a number for a newly created human trafficking hotline. The calls to the hotline have increased 70 percent since the campaign began (Samarasinghe & Brown, 2007). A report that was published in 2008 by the Statewide Interagency Commission on Human Trafficking was provided to the New Hampshire Legislature to provide a history of human trafficking as well as recommendations on how to combat it. One of the recommendations was to increase public awareness about human trafficking by educating law enforcement agencies, social service providers, health care providers, other first responders as well as the general public (New Hampshire‘s Interagency Commission on Human Trafficking, n.d.). The previous portion of the literature review reinforces the need for human trafficking

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awareness campaigns by identifying the United States, including North Carolina, as a destination for traffickers. It also documents problems with accurate statistics available and a lack of awareness. In addition, the North Carolina General Assembly recently began discussions about appropriating funds to create the North Carolina Human Trafficking Commission (2009). The proposed commission, if funded, will work to create accurate statistics about human trafficking in North Carolina and raise the awareness of the general public, law enforcement community, social services and faith based organizations (North Carolina Human Trafficking Commission, 2009). Strategic Planning Four scholarly sources and two textbooks that focused on the creation of public awareness campaigns were used to identify the proper way to create and manage a human trafficking awareness campaign. Two textbooks obtained from Dr. Opt and the Salem Library System were searched for possible resources, Google’s search engine was also utilized to obtain materials that were deemed as relevant in outlining the process of creating a public awareness campaign. According to Miyamoto (n.d.), a situation analysis is the first step in any public awareness campaign. According to Smith (2002) the term “situation” is another way to say “problem.” The situation/problem must be clearly defined in the initial planning stages of any public awareness campaign. Until the situation is clearly identified the campaign cannot be completed (Smith, 2002). The situation is presented as a negative or a positive and can be described as an opportunity or an obstacle (Smith, 2002). The opportunity approach presents the situation as an advantage that should be embraced because of an opportunity that could be obtained by the target audience. A negative situation or an obstacle is presented as something that is preventing the target audience and the organization from reaching their full potential (Smith, 2002). The same situation can be presented as a positive or a negative by different organizations. It depends on how the organization views the problem (Smith, 2002). Once the situation is clearly identified, it can be analyzed and the public

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awareness planning process can begin. According to Miyamoto (n.d.), the situation analysis should include information about the internal and external factors. The internal factors will deal specifically with data about the organization or the client. To identify the internal factors Miyamoto (n.d.), suggests answering questions like what is their mission statement? What kind of programs have they operated in the past? What are key personnel saying about the situation? The external factors could include examples of media coverage of the situation, government documents relevant to the situation and surveys that would help measure the public perception of the situation. The Client The City of Winston-Salem is operated by nine elected officials. Residents have the opportunity to run or vote for one of the city council positions every four years in November. WinstonSalem’s city council is made up of a Mayor, who is elected at large, and eight different representatives from each district. The City Council’s responsibility is to make decisions based on the communities greater good. They do this by approving a budget and operating in good stewardship with the taxpayer’s money. They also create and revise local ordinances and local regulations. The Council is also responsible for hiring and supervising the City Manager, City Attorney and the creation of city commissions (City of Winston-Salem, n.d.). The current government in Winston-Salem has collaborated with residents and grass roots organizations to produce a better community. Beyond Soul and Salsa is an African-American/Hispanic Race Relations Series produced by the city of Winston-Salem. This annual event promotes communication and understanding between African-Americans and Hispanics regarding the common problems the two cultures share (City of Winston-Salem, n.d.). Silk Plant Forest Committee is a committee formed by the city of Winston-Salem. However, it is a citizen led committee that evaluated and investigated allegations against the Winston-Salem Police

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Department in regard to the investigation of an assault and robbery that took place on December 9, 1995 at the Silas Creek Shopping Center in Winston-Salem. The focus of the committee is to decide if the police department made any mistakes that might have led to the imprisonment of an innocent man while the true violent offender goes unpunished (City of Winston-Salem, n.d.). The 2003 list of 1,000 issues was a partnership between the City of Winston-Salem and the grass roots not for profit organization, CHANGE. The list included complete examinations of 15 non affluent areas in the city and identified 1,000 dilapidation issues that required action from WinstonSalem Local Ordinance Officers (CHANGE Organization, n.d.). After completing the situation analysis an analysis of the organization or client can begin (Smith, 2002). According to Ed McNeal, Marketing Director for the city of Winston-Salem, public awareness campaigns are designed to gather information and distribute it to a targeted audience. The most recent public awareness campaigns that the city of Winston-Salem has conducted have utilized different resources available to the city. Winston-Salem has used TV 13, which is the television station for the City of Winston-Salem, to broadcast the messages they want the public to know about. They have put messages on their web site as well as printed messages on citizens mailed utility bills. They have also produced mass mailings to citizens in order to inform them of upcoming events (E. McNeal, personal communication, November 6, 2008). The City of Winston-Salem has launched public awareness campaigns to fight littering with their Trash Busters program. They have worked to publicize the employees in the Utilities Department in order to let people know who might be working on something on their property. Winston-Salem also created a fire prevention program geared towards children that aired on two local television stations (E. McNeal, personal communication, November 6, 2008). Winston-Salem has not created a human trafficking awareness campaign (E. McNeal, personal communication, November 6, 2008). However, it is important to educate the residents of Winston-

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Salem about Human Trafficking because of the possibilities that the industry could be operating in the city. The reality of human trafficking occurring in North Carolina has been reinforced throughout the proposal. The City of Winston Salem has been mentioned as a place where trafficking victims have been forced to work (Weigl, 2005). Thus, the situation is there is a problem in North Carolina with human trafficking and people do not know enough about it (Charlotte FBI internet site, 2006). The City of Winston-Salem has committed no money to the production of the proposed project. However, they have indicated their support for the campaign, committed the use of their resources, such as government television, access to community groups, press releases, and allotted presentation time before City Council (L. Garrity, personal communication, November 14, 2008). While the proposed budget lacks funding, the City is rich in resources and political capital. Any printed material required for the proposed project would be produced with personal resources as well as the printing made available for Salem College students. In the Methodology section of the paper, I use Smith’s Strategic Planning Exercise to obtain a better description of the situation of a human trafficking awareness campaign. Smith (2002) identifies the importance of strategic planning and provides exercises that help develop a strategic plan. One of the exercises in the text was built to help analyze situations similar to the propose research as well as defining how to build a public relations campaign (Smith, 2002). The exercise consists of two major parts with several subgroups covered in each part. The first part covers basic planning questions. The second part is the expanded planning questions and has the majority of the questions. This section has three sets of questions designed to help the public awareness campaign planner gain a solid identity of the situation/problem: background on the issue, consequences of the situation and resolution of the situation (Smith, 2002). Basic Planning The situation was defined in the situational analysis section of this paper. The background of

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the situation has been described in both the justification section and the literature review. Media reports revealed the fact that modern slavery is taking place in North Carolina in the justification section. The literature review section documents what scholars, government agencies and organizations are doing to research human trafficking. The section also included research on how a professional project is conducted. According to Smith (2002) there are three basic planning questions that are asked in the initial stages of the exercise. The public awareness campaign planner is asked to identify: 1.) the situation, 2.) the background of the situation, 3.) and the urgency of the situation (Smith, 2002). Without a solid understanding of the answers to these three questions, it would be difficult to plan an effective public awareness campaign. Background The situational background questions in the exercise ask questions such as: Has the situation ever been dealt with by the organization? Why does the situation exist? Is there any discrepancy about why the situation exists? What is the situations history? Are there important facts related to the situation? Will other groups work with the organization when working on the situation? (Smith, 2002). Consequences of the situation This part of the exercise asks the campaign planner to identify the relationship between the situation and the organization. This is done by analyzing the mission to determine if the situation warrants a public awareness campaign (Smith, 2002). If the situation corresponds to the organization's mission, then the public awareness campaign is warranted. Resolution of the situation This part of the exercise includes four questions that deal with the types of information that will affect how the situation can be resolved as well as the types of information that might be used (Smith, 2002).

This information can be obtained by answering the following: Can information affect the

situation? Can the situation be resolved for the greater good? What priority does the situation hold on

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the organization's staff? How strong is the organization’s commitment to the resolution of the situation? Answering these questions about the situation will clearly define the goals for the campaign. Campaign Goals and Objectives Once the situation/problem is identified, the next step is to establish the objectives and goals of the campaign (Wilcox, Cameron, Ault, & Agee, 2003). One of the documents found to be helpful in the planning of the proposed project defined public relations campaign goals as something that should be kept simple and stated clearly (Miyamoto, n.d.). The research presented in the justification portion of the proposed project reveal that human trafficking is taking place in North Carolina. The information used for the proposed project also examines how Winston-Salem has previously carried out public awareness campaigns. Winston-Salem has also committed to help carry out a human trafficking awareness campaign for the proposed project. According to Smith (2002), goals will give a basic outline of the situation and how the organization plans to address the problem. The goal of the proposed campaign is to have an effect on the awareness of the general public in Winston-Salem about human trafficking in North Carolina. The objective of a public relations campaign is more measureable and specific than the goals (Smith, 2002). The goal is to increase the general public’s knowledge about human trafficking. The objective is to do this by defining labor and sex trafficking, providing information about identify trafficking victims and possible trafficking situations; as well as provisions for information on where to report suspected trafficking situations. This will be done by partnering with the City of Winston-Salem and using their resources such as access to public television and speaking time at community meetings. Target Audience Identification (Who will receive the key messages?) Careful consideration of the type of media, the desired audience, and the budget should be made during the audience identification process (Wilcox, et al., 2003). Matching the audience to the media is an important procedure in any public awareness campaign. The different types of media used to reach

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audiences are print, television, radio and the Internet (Wilcox, et al., 2003). When choosing an audience it is necessary to define to whom the campaign is trying to deliver the information. Will there be help from other organizations? Will opinion leaders be utilized? What types of media are consumed by your audience? The audience analysis is designed to “identify the audience needs, document the perceived costs and benefits of addressing the needs, and formulate a program that addresses the needs in the most cost-beneficial manner to both the consumer and the agency” (Lefebvare & Flora, 1988, p.303). It is equally important to break down the target audience into three categories. There are three subgroups the make up the audience: the primary, secondary and tertiary audiences (Miyamoto, n.d.). They will be identified in the Methodology portion of the proposed project. Key Messages All public awareness campaigns present key messages stated repeatedly during campaigns to clarify the message and the purpose of the campaign (Florida Solar Energy, 2008). By using the resources the city of Winston-Salem has offered, information can be delivered in a multi-media format by incorporating presentations for neighborhood and civic groups and information broadcast on Winston-Salem’s public television station. The key messages will be a brief review of the media documentation reported in the justification portion of the proposed project to let people know that human trafficking is occurring in North Carolina. The messages will also include information from the literature review regarding the specifics about recognizing possible human trafficking situations and how to report them. Florida Solar Energy (2008) reported that a message is most effective when it is repeated multiple times to the target audience. The report admits that the number of times a message needs to be exposed to a target audience is unknown. However, what is known according to Florida Solar Energy (2008) is the most effective way of sending the message is a multi-faceted strategy. The Recent advances in technology open many avenues of communication. Utilizing web sites, blogs, social networking, cable television, government access television and mass emailing allow the campaign to

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communicate directly with a wide audience at a minimal cost, and in some cases, no cost. The proposed project would use many different channels to communicate the key messages to the targeted audience. The city of Winston-Salem’s close proximity to human trafficking cases as well as the growing multi-cultural/multi-ethnic population makes the city a good candidate for a human trafficking campaign. Winston-Salem has also been mentioned in reports as a location where traffickers have operated. (Weigl, 2005). The message is that human trafficking is occurring in North Carolina and there is little awareness as well as a lack of factual statistics to adequately combat it. Target Audience Identification Matching the audience and the media is an important procedure in public awareness campaigns. Careful consideration of the type of media, the desired audience, and the budget should be made during the audience identification process (Wilcox, et al., 2003). The different types of media used to reach audiences are print, television, radio, and the internet (Wilcox, et al., 2003). The proposed target audience is the general public of Winston-Salem. This was chosen by reviewing the situation. The situation revealed that North Carolina has a human trafficking concern. Winston-Salem is part of North Carolina. Therefore, Winston-Salem has human trafficking concerns. Other targets include the Winston-Salem city council and neighborhood organizations and community watch groups. Budget and Calendar According to Kahl, Powell, Walker, Willingham and Gohen (2007), the next step in planning a public relations campaign is to develop a calendar and a budget. The calendar should include what is going to be done and when. (Kahl, et al.,2007). The required information for a successful calendar will include individual responsibilities as well as the tactics that are being implemented. Careful planning is needed during the building process of the calendar and the budget. The budget of a public relations campaign is directly related to the calendar because the budget ultimately dictates the strategies used during the campaign (Kahl, et al., 2007). It should contain “details tactics for the targeted audience and

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objectives” (Kahl, et al., 2007, p. 13). In summation, the calendar and budget should answer the following questions: Who is going to receive the message and when? Who is going to deliver the message and when? What is it going to cost to deliver the messages? Methodology The methodology for the proposed project, is a mixed methodology (quantitative and qualitative), researching human trafficking locally, and statewide, by public relation campaigns; as well as by the City of Winston-Salem community and government resources. The review of the literature along with the discussions about Winston-Salem’s efforts to produce public awareness campaigns will be discussed in this section along with the specific plan to formulate a human trafficking awareness campaign for the city of Winston-Salem. Background on the issue response The city of Winston-Salem has never created a human trafficking awareness campaign, according to City Manager Lee Garrity (personal communication November 3, 2008). Human trafficking exists because it is a lucrative business. Experts believe that the growth of economic globalization has enhanced the trafficking in women between the United States and third world countries (Kanics, 1998) The local history of the situation defined in the justification of the proposal, outlines media documentation of human trafficking cases that have occurred in North Carolina; as well as, organizational efforts to combat the industry. The important factors surrounding the situation are multiple reports from scholars that reveal a lack of hard numbers and awareness of the human trafficking industry. There is little doubt that North Carolina has a human trafficking issue (Charlotte FBI internet site, 2006). What is not known is exactly how big of a problem actually exists (Martinez, 2008).

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Consequences of the situation response The mission statement for the city of Winston-Salem is, “The City of Winston-Salem provides quality, affordable services that ensure the health, safety and well-being of citizens, while collaborating throughout the community to ensure its economic, social and environmental vitality” (City of WinstonSalem, n.d.). The situation of raising the public’s awareness about human trafficking is strongly related to the health, safety and well-being of the public and is consistent with Winston-Salem’s mission. However, the seriousness of the situation is unknown due to a lack of information about human trafficking in Winston-Salem. The documented cases reported in the justification section of the proposed project acknowledge that North Carolina is not free from human trafficking. The questions related to the duration of the situation and the potential impacts the situation may have on the mission are unknown at this time due to a lack of documentation of human trafficking in Winston-Salem. Finally, the situation exercise asks if the situation will be presented as a positive or a negative. The situation of raising public awareness about human trafficking is a positive. It provides the community an opportunity to become aware of an issue that experts are saying requires our attention. Resolution of the situation response The information that will be used in the proposed project has been gathered from scholarly reports, organizations, and media documentation of human trafficking concerns in North Carolina. Information, such as the definition of human trafficking, used with actual reports of human trafficking taking place in North Carolina, will be presented in a multi media format. One of the questions in this section of the exercise asks the planner, “How can this situation be resolved to the mutual benefit of everyone involved?” (Smith, 2002; p. 27). In answering that question, it is important to talk about the information obtained during research to resolve the current situation. The resolution of the situation is directly related to the information package that is sent to the target audience and the mutual benefits cannot be measured until the information is delivered because the success of the campaign will only be

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known once the target audience responds. Government television viewers, neighborhood organization members and community leaders will be given an assessment of the current situation as well as examples of North Carolina human trafficking cases during the proposed campaign. Examples of the type of information that might affect the resolution of the situation would define a trafficking victim, offer information about warning signs that may indicate a human trafficking situation along with contact information for authorities. Due to the seriousness of the situation, the effects could be life saving. Research Program This part of the strategic planning exercise asks the planner to explain the basis for the existing information used to answer the previous questions and identify any missing information that may be required for the proposed project. The research is complied from scholarly articles, government documentation, media reports, and organizations that have conducted public awareness campaigns. The existing information is accurate, but additional information regarding the effects human trafficking could have on the targeted audience would be valuable to the proposed project. The research methods employed will obtain additional information including personal interviews and statistical data. The Winston-Salem human trafficking campaign proposed would be developed into different stages and would be done in partnership with the city of Winston-Salem. The city has agreed to allow the use of their mass media tools to increase the audience. The first stage of the campaign would include the creation and production of presentations that would be performed for live audiences. The key message delivered during these presentations is modern slavery is taking place in North Carolina and the law enforcement community as well as the general public needs to become more aware of it. The specific audiences targeted will be the general public, the city council and neighborhood organizations. Reaching the Target Audiences

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As previously expressed in the literature review, there are three types of audiences (Miyamoto, n.d.). The first presentation would reach the primary, secondary and tertiary audiences at one time. However, the focus of the first presentation would be the tertiary audience. The tertiary audience is an audience made up of organized groups that can lend credibility and resources to the proposed campaign. Video, handouts and a Power Point presentation about human trafficking in North Carolina would take place during a televised council meeting. The meeting is shown live and replayed several times during the following two-week period. The television aspect gives many opportunities for the other two audiences to be reached. The primary audience is the general population of Winston-Salem. The secondary audience is neighborhood watch groups and community organizations. The endorsement of the secondary groups will make the job of reaching and educating the primary audience more obtainable. After the presentation, the council would be given the opportunity to ask questions. The need for their participation during the next steps of the proposed campaign would be emphasized. Their participation or endorsement of the proposed campaign would give further credibility to the message. One important component needed for successful message delivery is source credibility (Wilcox, et al., 2003). The endorsement and participation of elected officials would help make the message more credible. The City Manager and the City Council members will select all presentation dates, and will be televised on cable TV 13. According to Ed McNeal, there are over 89,000 subscribers to cable in the City of Winston-Salem (E. McNeal, personal communication November 6, 2006). This presentation would take place during a regularly scheduled televised meeting and would last no longer than 5 minutes. The presentation would include information and statistics on human trafficking cases in North Carolina, including the Piedmont/Triad. The production would also include geographical concerns as well population statistics that help justify why Winston-Salem needs to become more educated about

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the issues of human trafficking. The goal of this presentation is to encourage the Council to endorse the presentation and help promote it, as well as to introduce the campaign to the public. The council could also direct certain departments to assist in the production of future presentations for the campaign. After the first official presentation to the tertiary audience is completed, the secondary audience would be targeted. Vanessa Smith; City of Winston-Salem Neighborhood Development Staff Member, was recently designated by the city manager to help with creating a contact list of neighborhood groups in Winston-Salem (L.Garritty, personal communication, October 26, 2009). These groups will be contacted and asked if their group would like to become a part of an audience for the proposed projects messages. The expectation is that the city council/tertiary audience can help introduce this idea. Once these groups begin agreeing to host a presentation at during one of their meetings, a schedule can be produced and press releases can be made. Examples of the kind information included in the presentations would be how to identify a trafficking victim or a trafficking situation. The schedule should include no more than one presentation per week and should incorporate handouts and brochures about the North Carolina human trafficking problem. The brochures would include the North Carolina Human Trafficking Hotline Number and would be printed in Spanish and English. The audiences reached would be given a survey that would help with deciding the effectiveness of the campaign as well as the public’s desire to learn more about the human trafficking crime. The surveys would also include opinion questions regarding the possibility of Winston-Salem developing a human trafficking response system. The second stage of the campaign would include poster/flier distribution and archived presentations. Posters about human trafficking would be put up at local businesses in less affluent areas. The posters would be printed in English and Spanish. The main target areas for poster drives would be criminally infested areas, non affluent areas and areas that posses a high immigrant

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population. These areas could be identified with the help of the Winston-Salem Police Department and Forsyth County Social Services. In order to give government staff adequate time to identify these areas, official public records requests for this information should be sent before the first city council presentation is conducted. These posters will also include the North Carolina Trafficking Hotline Number and any other number of a social service or government agency that could be of help to someone with or who needs information about human trafficking. The creation of a thirty second program to be aired on government access television would then take place. The purpose for the televised program would be to raise the viewer’s awareness of human trafficking. The Recommendations The final stage of the campaign would be the mass emailing of a questionnaire to all WinstonSalem Police Department employees. The questions would deal with basic information that was covered in the initiatives’ past presentations. Questions for the survey would come directly from the community presentations, the posters and the television program. The questionnaires, submitted to the City Manager’s office, could assist in deciding if the police department needs more specialized or intense human trafficking awareness programs. The proposed project would not only fulfill a requirement for Salem College but would be extremely beneficial to the entire City of Winston Salem. The reality of human trafficking has been reinforced throughout this proposed project and WinstonSalem, North Carolina’s residents are not exempt from human trafficking concerns. The proposed project would also create a relationship between the City of Winston-Salem’s public relations and Salem College’s Communication Department. The resources that the city has are invaluable to those working to create professional projects from their senior seminars. The following is a schedule of events for the proposed project. The proposed project was completed after extensive research was completed and analyzed. Once the problem of human trafficking in North Carolina was identified, scholarly research was developed to learn more about the issue and how to combat it in Winston-

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Salem, North Carolina. This scholarly proposed research helped develop key messages that would be delivered in a public awareness campaign. Several documents were analyzed and interviews with key city staff members were conducted to develop a strategy that would inform Winston-Salem residents about the issue of human trafficking. This helped create an informed plan of action as well as a way to provide city officials with a recommendation developed by the targeted audiences. This proposal is a request for permission to continue the actual delivery of the key messages to fulfill the senior seminar requirements. The next section of the proposed project will be launched once the proposal is approved. Careful consideration of the situation, the goals, the audience, the message and the budget was done to create the calendar. Winston-Salem has made it clear that there will be no money allotted for the proposed project. However, Winston-Salem has offered their resources and their political capital to the proposed project; the strategy to deliver the message was dictated by the resources Winston-Salem has offered. Those resources include access to neighborhood organizational meetings, speaking time at televised council meetings and mass emailing capabilities. These channels are the only channels that will be made available for the proposed campaign (L.Garritty, personal communication, January 5, 2009). Thus, like every other public awareness campaign the proposed project will take the resources available and attempt to reach the targeted audience. The proposed use of the allotted resources was developed by researching public relation campaigns and learning what scholars were saying about the creation of such campaigns. For example, the less affluent/criminally infested areas are going to be reached with bi-lingual posters because the research shows that part of the problem is the areas that are most likely home to a trafficking situation are the least informed (Samarasinghe & Burton, 2007, p. 55). Another example of how the research and the resources were analyzed to produce a calendar event is the access to Winston-Salem’s public television station. The proposed project will use it to potentially reach over 80,000 viewers (E.

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McNeal, personal communication, November 6, 2008). However, it was the research that showed that public television ads have been successful when attempting to raise the public’s awareness about human trafficking (Samarasinghe & Brown, 2007). Allotting speaking time at council meetings was given to the proposed project by the city and will be used to encourage council to learn and talk about human trafficking in North Carolina (L.Garritty, personal communication, January 5, 2009). The research shows that it is important to get people like elected officials to endorse the campaign because it lends credibility to the messages (Wilcox, et al., 2003). The surveys that would be collected at the end of the proposed project would be turned over to the city council in order to better help them understand what their constituents would like to see initiated to combat human trafficking.

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Proposed Project Schedule 1. March 9-19: Build presentation schedule for neighborhood associations. Contact media about proposed project to attempt to obtain free advertising. Begin story board for 30 second human trafficking awareness video. Create surveys for presentations. Produce public records request to identify criminally infested areas in Winston-Salem. This information would be sent to the Crime Analysis Division of the Winston-Salem Police Department. 2. March 19-22: Finalize presentation schedule. Finalize 30 second video. 3. March 23: Presentation to Winston-Salem City Council. Show 30 second video to council and viewers. 4. March 24-31: Begin neighborhood organization presentations. Begin poster placement in identified criminally infested areas. 5. April 1-7: Continue Neighborhood presentations. 6. April 8-17: Finish neighborhood presentations. Begin analyzing surveys and compiling information for project recommendation. 7. April 20: Deliver results and recommendations to city council at televised meeting. Request permission to launch 30 second video on Channel 13 for extended time period to enhance public awareness.

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Buckley, C. (2008). Forced labor in the United States: A contemporary problem in need of a contemporary solution. Retrieved December 14, 2008, from http://www.du.edu/korbel/hrhw/digest/slavery/us.pdf. Charlotte FBI Internet Site. (2006). Charlotte’s Special Agent-In-Charge calls For Community Awareness of Human Trafficking Problem. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://charlotte.fbi.gov.pressre/2006/ce012406.htm. CHANGE Organization Internet Site. (n.d.). List of 1000. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.changeiaf.org/whoweare.htm. City of Winston-Salem. (n.d.). City Council. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.cityofws.org/Home/CityGovernment/CityCouncil/Articles/CityCouncil. Clawson, H., Layne, M. and Small, K. (2006). Estimating Human Trafficking in the United States: Development of a Methodology. Retrieved December 5, 2008 from http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/njj/grants/215475.pdf. Clearwater Area Task Force on Human Trafficking, (n.d.). A law enforcement and social services coalition to fight human trafficking in the Tampa Bay Area. Retrieved October 25, 2008 from http://www.catfht.org/. Collins, E. (2005, May 12). 5 who moved prostitutes are sentenced-Greensboro was an exchange point for prostitutes working on the east coast. Greensboro News & Record. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Collins, K. (2007, March 10). Workers: promise became a prison. News & Observer. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Dopart, B. (2006, August 29). Prostitution sting nets 8 arrests so far - authorities: women lured from Mexico to brothels with phony promises of jobs. Herald-Sun. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com.

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Farrell A., McDevitt J., & Fahy, S.(2008). Understanding and Improving Law Enforcement Responses to Human Trafficking. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/222752.pdf. Florida Solar Energy, Green Building Public Awareness Campaign Plan, (2008). Retrieved October 23, 2008 from http://www.myfloridagreenbuilding.info/pdf/GBW_PAC_Plan_1-25-08.pdf. Gozdziak E., and Bump M. (2008). Data and Research on Human Trafficking, Bibliography of Research-Based Literature. Washington, DC: Institute for the Study of International Migration. Retrieved October 23, 2008 from http://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/222752.pdf. Kahl, D., Powell M., Walker K., Willingham J., and Gohen A. (2007). The importance of public relations and surface water conditions. Retrieved January 7, 2009 from http://www.oznet.ksu.edu/library/h20ql2/kelp_mod/kelp_3_2.pdfhttp. Kanics, J. (1998) Trafficking in women, International Relations Center, Foreign Policy in Focus. Retrieved January 7, 2009 from http://www.fpif.org/pdf/vol3/30ifwom.pdf. Lecour, G. (2008, July). Human trafficking may be on the rise in North Carolina, The Charlotte. Observer. Retrieved October 10, 2008 http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Lefebvre, C., Flora, J. (1988). Social marketing and Public Health intervention, Health Education Quarterly, Vol. 15 (3). Retrieved October 18, 2008 from http://socialmarketing. Blogs.com/ Publications/Social_Marketing_and_Public_Health_Intervention.pdf Martinez,R. (2008, December 10). Freeing the world’s slaves. The News & Observer. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Maxwell, T. (2001, September 1). Prostitution investigation continues. Asheville Citizen-Times. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Miyamoto, C.(n.d.). How to write a public relations plan. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.geocities.com/WallStreet/8925/prplan1.htm.

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McNeal, N. (1999, March 23). Murder trial near end. The News & Observer. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. New Hampshire’s Interagency Commission on Human Trafficking. (n.d.). The Hidden Problem of   Human Trafficking: Addressing Modern Day Slavery in New Hampshire.  Retrieved from  http://www.nhcadsv.org/Maureen/Human Trafficking in NH Report – Nov 2008.pdf. North Carolina Human Trafficking Commission Act of 2009, S. 353, General Assembly of North Carolina (2009). Retrieved February 26, 2009 from http://www.ncleg.net/Sessions/2009/Bills/Senate/PDF/S353v1.pdf. Ordonez, F. (2006, January 29). Sex rings prey on immigrant women-human traffickers trap hundreds of female Hispanics here into prostitution, exploiting their fear of deportation. Charlotte Observer. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Perlmutt, D.(2007, July 26) N.C. joins crackdown on human trafficking-federal officials train authorities, advocates to id and aid victims. The Charlotte Observer. Retrieved October 15, 2008 http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Polaris Project Action Center. (n.d.). Slavery Still Exists. Retrieved October 25, 2008 from http://www.actioncenter.polarisproject.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2 82&Itemid=91slaverystillexists/index.htm. Raymond, J.G, Hughes, D.N & Gomez, C.J. (2001). Sex trafficking of women in the United Sates: International and domestic trends. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.uri.edu/artsci/wms/hughes/sex_traff_us.pdf. Samarasinghe, V, Burten, B. (2007). Strategizing prevention: a critical review of local initiatives to prevent female sex trafficking. Development in Practice, 17, 1.(1), 51-64. Retrieved November 12, 2008, from http://www.informaworld.com/10.1080/09614520601092378

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Sheehan, R. (2006,April 30) Sex trafficking. News & Observer. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Smith, R., (2002). Strategic Planning for Public Relation. Mahwah, New Jersey: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Trafficking Victims Protection Act. (2000). Washington, DC: US Government Printing Office. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.state.gov/g/tip/rls/tiprpt/2006/65994.htm. Weigl, A. (2005, December 16). Brothel kingpin pleads guilty. News & Observer. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://infoweb.newsbank.com. Wilcox D., Cameron, G., Ault, P., and Agee, W.(2003). Public Relations, Strategies and Tactics. Boston, Massachusetts: Pearson Education, INC. WRAL and NC Wanted (2007). Human Trafficking: Hidden Slavery. Retrieved October 15, 2008 from http://www.ncwanted.com/sidebars/story/1664329/. Yen, I. (n.d.). Of vice and men: a new approach to eradicating sex trafficking by reducing male demand through educational programs and abolitionist legislation. The Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 98, 2. Retrieved November 10, 2008 from http://web.ebscohost.com.internaldns.salem.edu/ehost/pdf?vid=4&hid=6&sid=62605c4c-4951-41c7-8ab40b7dfb1c57bf%40sessionmgr8.