Join the Anti-Human Trafficking Effort as Governor Edwards’ Heads to Rome

NEW ORLEANS, La. – In light of Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards’ trip to meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican regarding anti-human trafficking initiatives, the Archdiocese of New Orleans is highlighting its own efforts to prevent and stop human trafficking and the global Catholic Church’s response to the issue of human trafficking.  Pope Francis has said, “Human trafficking is a crime against humanity. We must unite our efforts to free victims and stop this crime that’s become ever more aggressive, that threatens not just individuals, but the foundational values of society.” Responding to the Holy Father’s call, The elimination of human trafficking and serving and empowering trafficking survivors is a priority issue for the Catholic Church.  Locally, the archdiocesan Respect Life Office works tirelessly to help victims of human trafficking and spread awareness of the issue by both reaching out directly to victims and by fostering awareness of the issue through information and prayer. 

Archdiocesan Respect Life Coordinator Debbie Shinskie and Catholic Charities Division Director Martin Gutierrez  are available for interviews today between 9 am and 3 pm to discuss the local Catholic Church’s work to end human trafficking.

Below are local initiatives and points the local Catholic Church has engaged in to bring awareness to the issue and encourage prayer for the victims, buyers and sellers involved in human trafficking so that this heinous crime can be eliminated from our communities:

·         Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans holds a contract with Covenant  House to provide immigration and legal services and awareness to immigrant victims of human trafficking.

·         Catholic Charities also holds a sub-contract with the USCCB to provide case management services to foreign victims of human trafficking; this is work the local Catholic Church has been in engaged in for several years.

·         Archdiocese of New Orleans is part of the Greater New Orleans Human Trafficking Task Force, which includes Covenant House, the Jefferson Parish Sheriff Office, US Attorney’s Office, the FBI and other community and law enforcement agencies.

Upcoming Local Events:

·         February 6 - The the Loyola Institute for Ministry and the Respect Life Committee of St. Alphonsus Parish are sponsoring Respect Life webinars in 2017. Restoring Hope for Victims of Human Trafficking will be on Monday February 6 from 8-9pm. Presenter is Suzanne Dietzel, Executive Director, Eden House. The web site is http://gps.loyno.edu/lim/webinars

·         February 8 - Day of Prayer & Awareness for Human Trafficking In Solidarity with their Silence…Don’t post…Pray! This day of silence is a fast that can be offered up for the end of Human Trafficking & a pause that reminds us to pray instead of posting. A complete social media campaign will begin on February 1, 2017. 

·         February 9 - The monthly Respect Life Gathering with a focus on Human Trafficking will be held on Thursday February 9 at 6:30pm at St. Peter Parish, 125 E 19th AVE in Covington. More information available at https://respectlife.arch-no.org/ckeditor_assets/attachments/104/rlghumantraffickingflyer.pdf 

 Special notes: 

Please be aware of the signs of trafficking using http://polarisproject.org/recognize-signs. National Human Trafficking Hotline: 888-373-7888.

More resources from CRS can be found here and from the USCCB here.