FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
One More Child Leads Training at Texas Department of Family and Protective Services Summit
One More Child’s Anti-Trafficking Mobile Team presents at Light the Way – End Human Trafficking Summit
CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, October 31, 2024 – As part of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) summit on human trafficking, leaders from One More Child presented to law enforcement, investigators and other front-line workers about the dangers and realities of commercial exploitation.
With nearly 1,000 participants attending the conference, members of One More Child’s Anti-Trafficking Mobile Team shared the latest trafficking trends, the process for accurately identifying victims and the importance of understanding the nature of trauma when working with survivors.
According to a study by the National Human Trafficking Hotline, Texas has the 2nd highest number of human trafficking cases in the United States.
“Children within the child welfare system are statistically more at risk for human trafficking and victimization,” said Olivia Littleton, One More Child’s anti-trafficking team coordinator. “The more training and information we can make available, the more survivors we can help and the more cases of trafficking we can prevent.”
Jodi Domangue, vice president of program operations and public policy at One More Child, spoke about the need for developing key partnerships. “Child welfare agencies are on the front lines in the fight against human trafficking,” said Domangue. “The leaders at DFPS deeply care about their responsibility to protect children. We are grateful to partner with them in a state that serves as a leader in the anti-trafficking movement.”
Earlier this year, One More Child hosted a “See it. Say it. Stop it.” event at Texas A&M University. Students, faculty, staff and community members gathered to learn more about harsh realities of human trafficking and how to recognize the warning signs of sexual exploitation.
One More Child also recently launched Anti-Trafficking 101, a free six-part online video training series open to the public that helps people understand the nature of trafficking and how to help stop it.
In addition to providing education and advocacy, One More Child’s Anti-Trafficking Mobile Teams provide direct services such as counseling, mentorship and other resources to individuals recovering from human trafficking. Mobile teams are currently based in Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee and Ohio with plans underway to expand into other states.
About One More Child:
One More Child operates in 26 states and 19 countries around the world, meeting the needs of foster children, hungry children, single moms, struggling families, and sex-trafficked children and teens. In 2023, One More Child provided direct services to 250,259 children and individuals while impacting an additional 143,334 individuals through advocacy, trainings, awareness and volunteering. One More Child provided more than 19 million meals nationally and globally. For more information visit www.onemorechild.org.
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Director of Human Trafficking and Child Exploitation Blanca Lance (center) with the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services presents One More Child with a Certificate of Appreciation for providing training to law enforcement, investigators and DFPS staff.
VP of Program Operations and Public Policy Jodi Domangue (left), and Anti-trafficking Team Coordinator Olivia Littleton provide training at the Light the Way – End Human Trafficking Summit in Corpus Christi, Texas.