WASHINGTON—
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) today announced a new
alliance between the DHS Blue Campaign— the unified voice for DHS’
efforts to combat human trafficking— and Western Union.
Through
this alliance, Western Union will provide the Blue Campaign’s
multilingual training and awareness materials to select agent locations
across the country. Participating agents will also receive additional
training from Western Union on how to identify and recognize indicators
of human trafficking, as well as how to report suspected cases of human
trafficking.
“Today,
we are pledging to do more to combat human trafficking by broadening
our network of partners which will enable us to better identify and
rescue victims of this inexcusable crime, and bring the perpetrators to
justice,” said Acting Secretary of Homeland Security Rand Beers. “We’re
grateful to have the participation of Western Union in this important
effort, which will help save lives, protect innocent victims, and
prevent this form of modern day slavery.”
The
Blue Campaign works in collaboration with law enforcement, government,
non-governmental and private organizations, to protect the basic right
of freedom and to bring those who exploit human lives to justice.
Working
with DHS, Western Union will use training and awareness materials
developed by the DHS Blue Campaign to educate its agents who regularly
interact with the public on potential indicators of human trafficking
and how to identify potential victims.
In June 2013, the DHS Blue Campaign unveiled new public awareness materials including a Public Service Announcement, posters and handouts
to educate on victim identification and crime reporting, the case
investigation process, and available resources for victim support.
Western Union will display these multilingual materials at Western Union
Agent locations throughout the country.
“Ending human trafficking is possible only if everyone steps in and plays a role,” said Barry Koch, chief compliance officer for Western Union.
“We are committed to using the trust, reach and power of our brand
along with our Agent network to engage the public and arm them with
awareness and the resources to spot the signs and report suspect
activity.”
In
Oct. 2012, DHS announced a partnership with the Department of
Transportation and Amtrak to train over 8,000 Amtrak frontline employees
and Amtrak police officers to identify and recognize indicators of
human trafficking, as well as how to report suspected cases of human
trafficking.
To learn more or to join the fight against human trafficking visit www.dhs.gov/bluecampaign. You may also visit us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
**Note: Share
the Blue Campaign PSA to support us in the fight to combat this heinous
crime. “Out of the Shadows” is available for download through DVIDS (http://www.dvidshub.net/feature/BlueCampaign#.Udw5yKw2SZQ