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South Range educates students, parents about human trafficking
NORTH LIMA
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Ohio State Highway Patrol Motor Carrier Enforcement Supervisor Michael Schneider educates adults and children on human trafficing at South Range High School Wed. March 2. Photo by Rebecca Devereaux
Two Ohio State Highway Patrol officers gave a presentation about the dangers and threats of human trafficking to parents and students in the South Range School District on Wednesday night.
OSHP Trooper Rodney Ramps, one of the speakers at the event, defined human trafficking as humans being bought and sold.
Schools Superintendent Dennis Dunham said although it is a tough subject to tackle, he felt the need to do it.
“One of the main duties I have as superintendent of the school district is to educate and inform and, most importantly, public safety and student safety – that’s where my goal is,” Dunham said.
“I want to protect the kids and protect the parents and community members. If we know something we want to pass it on to you.”
Ramps said this is the first time troopers brought the presentation to a school.
“We want to talk about how this affects families and kids,” Ramps said.
Michael Schneider, OSHP Motor Carrier Enforcement supervisor, said the point of the presentation aims not only to bring awareness to the subject but also to acknowledge that it’s not exclusive to foreign or impoverished countries.
“What we want to do with this program is we want you to answer two questions for yourself: How could this happen to me, and what can I do about it?” Schneider said.
Ramps said Toledo is third in the nation for the prevalence of human trafficking. Ohio is a hot spot for the crime because of the high number of truck stops and strip clubs in the state, he said.
Schneider warned parents to be conscious of their children’s Internet and phone habits and to be aware of changing attitudes and behaviors, such as isolation.
“That’s not just to the student or the teenager, but the parents too. It’s just as much about the parent doing their part as it is about the child being aware of how it happens,” Schneider said.
One point both speakers emphasized was eliminating the term “child prostitute.”
“No one wakes up and says, ‘I want to be a prostitute today,’” Ramps said. “These kids are victims in some form, whether they are brainwashed, tricked or psychologically convinced this is all they will amount to.”
It’s important to recognize this form of prostitution with minors is not a victimless crime – the young girls and boys trading sex for profit are victims, Ramps said.
Human trafficking, he explained, is second in the nation behind the drug trade for criminal profit.
“You can sell a drug one time and it’s gone. With a human being, you can sell that person over and over and over and over and over, until you completely wear them out,” Ramps said. “That’s why it’s such a financial industry.”