State leaders held Florida’s first Human Trafficking Summit this week. Statistics show Florida is the third highest trafficking destination in the country. Half of the victims are children.
Human trafficking victims are usually forced into hard labor or prostitution. The state says 300,000 young people around the country are at risk of sexual exploitation and many are being trafficked in their own communities.
Florida Department of Children and Families Secretary David Wilkins says he used to think it was a crime mostly seen in movies.
“I’ve now seen it first hand with a lot of our foster children in our state, and unfortunately, you know this industry has targeted our foster children”, said Wilkins.
Florida passed two laws this year to provide tougher penalties for traffickers and services for victims who have been sexually abused.