Kentucky Secretary of State joins national event on combatting human trafficking

FRANKFORT, Ky. (FOX 56) — Dozens of leaders and stakeholders from around the nation connected for a forum in Washington, D.C., exploring the impact and prevention of human trafficking.

“It’s like an obvious thing. Of course, we should be doing things like this, but we’re just starting because we just thought of it. There’s so many opportunities for cooperation in government that we just, we eventually, fortunately, realize we should be doing all this all the time,” Sec. Michael Adams told the gathering on Monday.

The office’s prevention program is only about 6 months old, but it has partnered with more than a thousand businesses in a unified effort to combat human trafficking.

“We’re really focused on ones that have foot traffic, ones that convenience stores, hotels and motels, and so forth. Places that actually are going to be able to see people who are in the situation,” Adams said.

In January, Adams, the chief business official for the state, launched the Kentucky Businesses Against Human Trafficking initiative to bring the business community to the table, start a conversation on raising awareness, and make clear where victims can get help.

“This business, this business, that business may be part of it, but this one not. Well, why not? And it’s a conversation that they have at the local level that talks about what they do. And it does include training. It does include, you know, constant reminder of that you’re part of this program,” U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Thomas Ruck said.

Ruck is a senior adviser for DHS’s Blue Campaign, a nationwide human trafficking prevention initiative.

Ruck and Adams joined each other for a panel held during a day-long forum on human trafficking prevention hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce. Adams discussed how other states can model the program and how it measures success, both in expected and unexpected ways. Ruck briefly mentioned an encounter with a victim at a KBAT media event in Louisville earlier this year.

“At a break, a lady came up to me and she said, ‘I need help.’ I said, ‘How can I help you?’ She said, ‘I’m being trafficked, and I don’t want to go home.’ I immediately, at that time, took her to you. And threw all the resources we had,” Ruck said

“We referred the case to the Louisville Metro Police Department, and we were able to correspond with the investigator who was assigned to that case afterward. And it was successful. She was extracted,” Adams said.

Businesses can learn more about getting involved on the Kentucky Secretary of State’s website.