Human Trafficking is an Everyone Issue
In my four years of advocating against human trafficking, I’ve noticed that men are sometimes hesitant to get involved in the fight. Whether this hesitancy stems from intimidation of the topic itself, or the misconception that this majority female-led cause has no room for men, Dressember is here to say that anyone can be an advocate.
Our first step is recognizing that although recorded data shows that more females than males are in human trafficking situations, women can’t fight this fight alone. The misconception that trafficking is an issue that affects only women and is therefore a problem that should only be handled by women is an enormously harmful one. The space for anti-trafficking advocacy has never been and should never be restricted to just one gender; this is a human rights issue, not a gendered one. Though we’re careful not to take the saying “it can happen to anyone” too literally (for sake of ignoring very real factors that make certain groups and individuals vulnerable to exploitation), trafficking is a crime that affects women, men, transgender individuals, nonbinary people, young and old across 163 countries and 175 nationalities. By reducing human trafficking down to a “women issue,” you also minimize and erase the very real experiences of nonbinary and male victims and survivors.
Photo by Albert Dera on Unsplash
Dressember encourages men to help uplift the voices of all survivors in this fight and contribute their own piece in growing awareness around trafficking.
Here’s how anyone can get involved:
Talk to your family, friends and colleagues. The best thing we can do to grow awareness around human trafficking is normalizing discussion about it. As it is, many people find it too intimidating a topic to tackle, or too far away it fails to register as a relevant issue.
Participate in the Dressember Style Challenge. By wearing a dress or tie every day of December, you invite conversation and signal to the people in your life that the fight against human trafficking is a conversation worth having.
Fundraise, fundraise, fundraise. Members of the Dressember Network are working to grow awareness around trafficking and provide resources, access and care for survivors. Register as an advocate, set a fundraising goal and help Dressember fight this fight all year round.
Support organizations and businesses led/owned by survivors. Organizations like Jasmine Grace Outreach (one I’ve personally worked with and love!) are accessible ways to engage with survivors who have reclaimed agency back for themselves and are working to help others.
As the president of Boston College’s anti-human trafficking student organization, I’m always excited to welcome in male members in a female-majority club; it tells me that men recognize the value of their voices in this field and know that their contributions matter. Many times, men will come in with the (well-intentioned) misconception that they’re solely supporting women. They walk away at the end of the semester with the knowledge that the fight to end trafficking is an issue that affects people across the gender spectrum and across all kinds of backgrounds.
Your voice matters. Your actions matter. Your contributions matter. Regardless of who you are and how you identify yourself, you can join the fight against human trafficking.
About the Author
Mckayla Yoo is a proud resident of the Jersey Shore getting her History and English degrees in Massachusetts. A lover of slow fashion, she believes in conscious consumer choices and the five R's. In her free time, you can find her researching cold case mysteries and perfecting the art of iced coffee.