Phoenix - The Maricopa County Administration Building will turn blue every night for the month of January in recognition of Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Governor Doug Ducey signed a proclamation on January 2nd and announced an awareness campaign that includes training for people on the front lines and support for child victims.
“Maricopa County departments and elected offices are unfortunately all too familiar with this issue,” said Maricopa County Board of Supervisors Chairman Clint Hickman, District 4. “Our sheriff’s deputies, county attorneys, Juvenile Court and Human Services Department play an important role in stopping traffickers and helping victims, and I appreciate all they do.”
Human trafficking can take on many forms and the 2019 Youth Experiences Survey found that more than half of homeless young adult participants were denied their freedom in some way. The governor’s proclamation states 231 Arizona cases were reported to the national Human Trafficking Hotline in 2018, and 158 of those were for sex trafficking.
“This is a worldwide problem,” said Chairman Hickman. “While our employees work on these issues every day, we can take another step to raise awareness by turning the building blue.”
You can learn more about the Arizona Human Trafficking Council here.