On March 11, Georgia State University College of Law’s Student Health Law Association and Family Law Society co-hosted a panel discussion on preventing human trafficking. Panelists included Jonathan Todres, Distinguished University Professor at Georgia State Law, and Ruth Leemis, Behavioral Scientist at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The panelists discussed the forms of human trafficking and addressed the effects that the COVID-19 pandemic has had on trafficking. According to the panelists, COVID-19 has affected human trafficking in three main ways. The pandemic has increased vulnerability to trafficking through job loss, eviction, homelessness, and child maltreatment, as well as internet exploitation. The outbreak also added barriers to the already difficult process of identifying survivors, such as through closing of schools and limiting patient visits to the emergency room, two places where identification might occur. Lastly, COVID-19 has also made it harder to deliver integrated services to survivors with many businesses operating remotely.
To better respond to the problem of human trafficking, both panelists suggested shifting from one-off educational campaigns to a focus on the underlying causes of trafficking and on ensuring survivors have a meaningful voice in the response. Those who want to make a difference should educate themselves with reliable sources to help figure out how their specific skillset could be relevant to helping end human trafficking.
"Professor Todres and Ruth Leemis are experts on the complex issue of human trafficking. We appreciate the time they took out of their day to speak with us about the ways the legal field is combatting trafficking,” said Amber Maynard (J.D. ’22), president of the Family Law Society. “Awareness and education are the first steps in combatting any issue, so it was amazing to see so many fellow law students tuning in to learn about human trafficking and ways to prevent it."