Red Lake Victim Services Hosting Inaugural Human Trafficking Conference

With the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Relatives coming up on May 5th, community organizations are coming together to talk about an issue that heavily affects Native communities: human trafficking.

The inaugural Red Lake Human Trafficking Conference began on March 3rd to start the conversation surrounding this epidemic. Spanning from the Canadian border past the Twin Cities metro area, this epidemic greatly affects Indigenous people. For the Red Lake Victim Services department, this conference is an important step toward educating and raising awareness about human trafficking in the area.

A 2020 report from the Minnesota MMIW Task Force found that along with other people of color, sex trafficking disproportionately affects Indigenous people. In 2017, 20% of trafficking victims identified as Native American. And from April 2017 to March 2019, 15% of Indigenous trafficking victims came from greater Minnesota.

The Red Lake Human Trafficking Conference will host speakers from area law enforcement, the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the recently established MN MMIR Office in St. Paul, and the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension. The talks will focus on a variety of different factors that relate to human trafficking, such as warning signs, case studies, what people can do to prevent it, and the impact of human trafficking and exploitation on Native youth.

The conference will be held through May 5th at Oshkiimaajitahdah in Redby. Doors will open for people to sign-up at 8 a.m. and run until 3 p.m. each day.