“The media often portrays trafficking as involving international kidnapping and smuggling, but it’s more likely to happen at home and online. Just like other abusers, traffickers strategically target and groom their victims. They look for children who are vulnerable and easy to isolate, such as those who lack support at home or school, don’t know digital safety practices or have experienced previous trauma. Between 70-90% of sex trafficked kids were sexually abused in a non-commercial manner prior to being trafficked. This link shows that if we can prevent or intervene early in child sexual abuse, we can interrupt the path to trafficking.”
Darkness to Light, a non-profit committed to empowering adults to prevent child sexual abuse shared the above on their Instagram page.
Canopy Center Staff took the Darkness to Light Steward of Children training as part of a comprehensive plan to educate ourselves on how to better support the increasing number of children we serve who have experienced or are at risk for sex trafficking. Currently, more than 25% of the children our Court Appointed Special Advocates of Dane & Columbia County Program serves fall into this vulnerable category, a stark increase from just 5% two years ago. This alarming trend underscores a pressing need to address the gaps in service designed to protect and support these at-risk youth.
The Human Trafficking Institute’s most recent human trafficking report on Wisconsin confirms that the number of human trafficking cases has increased from 2000-2020; this is perhaps even more concerning as many sources estimate that less than 1% of human trafficking cases are identified while the rest go undetected.
What we are seeing is that these youth are unable to have their basic needs met - due to limits on what the county and other agencies are able to provide. However, we know that until their basic needs (food, water, shelter) are met - these youth cannot achieve stability. Area shelters aren’t equipped to provide the specialized support these youth require and there are no dedicated housing options available in either Dane or Columbia County. As a result, many of these youth are being held in detention facilities without any criminal charges, solely due to the lack of suitable placement options. This situation is compounded by the fact that runaway and homeless youth often resort to exchanging sex to meet their basic needs, such as food, shelter (oftentimes a couch to sleep on for the night) and transportation.
What are we doing?
Education
We spent 2024 educating our staff and volunteers on how to provide targeted advocacy for survivors and at-risk youth. In addition to the Stewards of Children Training, we also attended the JuST Conference, hosted by Shared Hope International; Ending the Game Training; Collaborative Rapid Advocacy for Youth Conference and more. We joined teams and participated in conversations on the county and state level, such as the Anti-Child Sex Trafficking Multidisciplinary Team, to improve coordination and communication among agencies, enhancing support and resources for survivors.
We became experts on the risk factors associated with sex trafficking and how best to support those who have already experienced victimization.
Advocacy
Every day, Canopy Center staff and therapists are talking to judges, social workers and other community supports. We are meeting with politicians and speaking to local service clubs- working to dismantle the stigma and assumptions around trafficked and at-risk youth, ultimately improving outcomes and reaching youth who may have otherwise gone undetected.
Healing
Canopy Center’s Oasis Program is a certified mental health clinic that specializes in child sexual abuse treatment. Remember that statistic shared from Darkness to Light? It bears repeating: “Between 70-90% of sex trafficked kids were sexually abused in a non-commercial manner prior to being trafficked.” Intervention is key. Oasis Therapists are certified in a range of treatment modalities to help heal the trauma of sexual abuse; promote safety and stability; and foster skills to prevent further abuse.
How can you help? Visit our Ways to Give Page for information on how you can volunteer or donate to support our work. If you know of a grant or funding opportunity that you think would be a fit, please reach out to development@canopycenter.org. Thank you!
