December 5, 2023 • 32 mins
Want to know more about one of the most significant events in the fight against human trafficking? Join us on a fascinating journey as we discuss the highlights of the 20th annual Human Trafficking and Social Justice Conference with our esteemed guest, Anna Schram. We explore the incredible success of the conference, which welcomed 1,400 attendees from 27 countries and 49 states. Hear about the thought-provoking tribute to Dr. Celia Williamson, and a stirring video featuring survivors' experiences. Learn about the innovative use of gamification and our virtual platform, which created a more interactive and engaging experience for attendees.
We also share insights about the affordability of the conference, the smooth technology experience, and some standout vendors. Discover the story behind the ethically sourced shirts from Worthwhile Ware and the exclusive 20th annual t-shirts. We wrap up with a discussion on the impactful feedback we received, particularly from the session on moral injury, which resonated strongly with survivors. As we look forward to the 2024 conference, we encourage individuals from all backgrounds to submit their presentations for consideration. Listen in, as we reveal how to submit your abstract to present at next year's conference!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
You know the why human trafficking work is needed
To fight for the freedom ofmodern day slaves.
But love, passion, commitmentisn't all you need to be an
effective and successfulanti-trafficking advocate.
Learn the how.
I'm Dr Celia Williamson,director of the Human
Trafficking and Social JusticeInstitute at the University of
(00:23):
Toledo.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation podcast, where I'll
provide you with the latest andbest methods, policy and
practice, discussed byexperienced experts in the field
, so that you can cut throughthe noise, save time and be
about the work of saving lives.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation.
This is Episode 201.
(00:44):
I'm Dr Celia Williamson, andtoday we have Anna Schram back
with us to talk about thisyear's Human Trafficking and
Social Justice Conference.
So hi, anna, hi Celia, thanksfor having me back.
Yeah, so you know, every yearfor the past 20 years, we have
(01:05):
hosted the Human Trafficking andSocial Justice Conference.
It is a global conference withmany, many people that attend.
So, anna, first tell us forthis year how many people
attended, how many countries,how many representatives across
US states.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
Yes, so we had our 20th annual conference back in
September.
It was September 20th throughthe 22nd, which now that it's
December, that's, like you know,two and a half months ago,
which is crazy because it justfeels like we just had it and
I'm still recovering from it.
(01:47):
But it went well.
It was a very successful 20thannual conference.
We had 1,400 attendees who cameover that three-day conference.
Of that 1,200, 235 of thoseattendees were survivors or
lived experience experts, whichwas very exciting because that
(02:09):
is, you know, those are thepeople that we do this work for.
And then we also had 400college students who attended,
which is also very exciting.
You know, being part of theUniversity of Toledo, we had a
lot of University of Toledostudents, but we also had
several other college studentsfrom other universities across
(02:31):
the country who attended, whichis great for them to get
exposure to an academicconference, learn from some of
the top researchers andadvocates, people in healthcare
and law enforcement from aroundthe world.
So it's a great opportunity forthem.
And then, so, overall, of those1,400 attendees, they came from
(02:54):
49 states within the UnitedStates, so very close to getting
all 50 states at one conference.
That will hopefully be our goalfor future years to get every
single state at one conference.
And then we had 27 countriesthat were represented at this
(03:15):
year's conference, which is huge.
All of them were new countries,including Cameroon, columbia,
greece, crizzixan, new Zealandand Portugal were all new
countries that have never hadanybody come before.
So that is very exciting.
We are continuing to see, youknow, growth and expansion every
(03:37):
year.
Word of mouth.
It's great to get these newpeople.
So now we're up to.
Over the past 20 years, we'vehad attendees from 57 countries,
so our numbers just keepgrowing and it's very exciting,
yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:53):
And while we have had all 50 countries at one point,
or all 50 states, I should say,at one point or another, that
have come to the conference inone year, 49 states.
So we have to call out that onethat didn't show up.
So which state was?
Speaker 2 (04:07):
that.
I know it was New Hampshire whodid not come this year.
They have come.
They even came last year andthey've come several of our
previous years.
But New Hampshire let us down alittle bit this year.
So New Hampshire, if anybodyfrom New Hampshire is listening
or you've come to the conferencebefore please come back next
(04:28):
year.
Help us get to all 50 states inone year.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
That's right.
What up New Hampshire?
Like you were not in the placerepresenting your state, but
that's okay.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
They took a year off and it was the wrong year to
take off.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
Exactly so tell us any highlights from this year's
conference.
I mean, it was the 20th year,so anything that we did special
this year.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Yeah, we did a couple things special.
We put together somecompilation videos of pictures
and messages from previous years, just kind of looking back, you
know, when you hit those bigmilestones.
You kind of look back over theyears on, you know how you
started where you've come andwhere you've grown into now.
So we did kind of, you know, alittle blast into the past and
(05:18):
then we did a video hearing fromsurvivors who have come over
the past 20 years and how theconference has impacted them.
We also I also did a littlesurprise thing for Celia that
she didn't know about andsurprised her on the last day of
individuals who have workedclosely with her over the past
20 years on the conference andkind of some serious and funny
(05:42):
memories that they've had ofCelia, and so that was very
touching just to celebrate Celiaand all the work that she has
done over these past two decades.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yeah, that was so funny because the day that that
video was shown I had no idea,of course, and Anna is sort of
rushing through this agenda thatwe have laid out and I'm
thinking to myself, oh my gosh,she's going too fast, like we're
going to run out of time, we'regoing to just have dead air and
we're not going to be able toget a little nervous about that.
(06:13):
But, and that was wonderful,because all my friends and my
peeps and my village from allaround the world spoke about the
conference and our worktogether and it was amazing
amazing, I would have to say.
I love the compilation videosas well.
My favorite was just thesurvivors talking about what the
(06:37):
conference has meant for themand their participation and
whatever their own words wasjust really just grounded us in
the reasons very vividly andvery directly that we should
continue another 20 years.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
So, yeah, keep on going.
A couple other of the like newthings that we did this year we
updated our virtual conferenceplatform that we call the
conference web app with a littlesort of like gamification to
encourage attendees to exploremore, see all the things that it
has to offer.
So attendees could earn starsby completing achievements.
(07:21):
So that was just a fun thing.
And then in our conferencedirectory, where it lists
everybody's name, it also showshow many stars you've earned
under your name, so you can seeoh, this person's only earned
one star.
This person earned all fourstars that they could get.
So just a fun little somethingto encourage people to interact
(07:42):
with it more and interact witheach other.
And then another huge thingthat we did this year that was
kind of apart from ourinternational conference was we
launched our new high schoolonline program that we're
calling HSOF, because we love agood acronym here.
So high school online program,hsof.
So this replaced our live highschool summit that we used to do
(08:07):
in conjunction with ourinternational conference every
year.
We just weren't getting a lot ofengagement from students.
It's difficult for them to takeout time during a school day
and it being virtual, so wedecided to create content that
was going to be freelyaccessible online at any time of
the year so teachers orstudents can access it on their
(08:30):
own schedule.
Teachers can incorporate itinto their curriculum throughout
the year if they want.
Our students can look at it intheir free time or even, like
after school programs or thingslike that, can use it.
So, very excited about that.
We've already had many peoplesign up to get access to that.
So it is only specifically forhigh school students and those
(08:53):
who work with high schoolers.
So if that is you listening andyou work with high schoolers,
you're in a school or you knowpeople that work with high
schoolers, check out our website, traffickingconferencecom, or
email me attraffickingconferencegmailcom so
we can get you hooked up withthat high school online program
curriculum.
It's a lot of great informationabout human trafficking, but
(09:17):
also about sexual assault, drugabuse, gun violence, internet
safety and then kind of withineach of those, what to look for
and then what you can do.
It can give you steps on likehow to get involved.
So it's not just information,it's also action steps.
So we were very excited tolaunch that this year and it
(09:37):
kind of just stayed.
It kind of lined up with itbeing our 20th annual conference
, so that was another way thatwe were able to celebrate this
year.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
Yeah, it's like a sort of work smarter, not harder
so giving access all year round, not just one day, and I'd love
to do a podcast just morespecifically on HSOP and kind of
walking people through it.
But they can get startedchecking it out now and having
access to it now.
So that is our gift to theworld for the 20th year.
(10:11):
So, and people that, of course,attended the conference got the
jump.
They got to learn about thisearly, so, but of course, it's
accessible and free to anybodywho wants to access it and have
information already ready madefor you.
So, anything else in particularabout this year's conference,
(10:33):
anything that you that stood outto you that you really liked-
Well, for me it was great.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
We have just had another seamless, good year.
Every year with this virtualevent, I feel like we are
getting better and better,growing and growing, but I only
get to experience a little bitof part of it, or behind the
scenes.
Just I don't get to sit in anyof the sessions, so I just get
to hear from attendees and so wehave an overall conference
(11:03):
evaluation that attendees fillout at the end.
And I was able to go throughthat not too long ago and kind
of read through the comments ofpeople who attended, what they
liked, what they thought.
You know, maybe we couldimprove for next year's what
they walked away with in somespecific sessions.
So I pulled some quotes thatkind of stood out to me.
(11:24):
So I'd love to kind of just gothrough a couple of those, if
that works for you, celia.
Oh yeah goodie the excellent.
So just a couple of likeoverall things.
One person said you know we'vebeen talking about it being the
20th annual one.
So somebody said I loved thatthis conference has been around
for 20 years providinginformation and tools to
(11:46):
providers and survivors.
The tribute to Celia was greatPeople deserve their flowers.
I also love the diversesurvivor led topics and insights
from providers.
So there's somebody you knowacknowledging the great work
that we've done for these 20years and that they loved the
conference.
Another person said that thiswas my first year attending.
(12:06):
I liked that there were so manydifferent things to learn from
and that even though I wasattending one session, I could
download information fromanother.
So love to hear this from afirst time attendee, love that
we're still getting new peopleevery year and that you know
they kind of just highlightedthat even though there's so many
sessions, they could watch somelive and then afterwards they
(12:27):
could watch more later or theycould still access those
PowerPoint slides.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
So before you move on , explain that a little bit.
How many sessions did we have?
What are you talking about?
Can watch it after theconference.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
Yes, so this year we had about 110 presentations over
the three days, which is somany to choose from.
So people probably had betweeneight to 10 breakout sessions
during each breakout time tochoose from.
And since that is so many andsince we are an international
conference with people indifferent time zones, we allowed
(13:02):
attendees for three entireweeks after the conference to be
able to watch the recordedpresentations on demand on their
free time, and they were alsoable to download PowerPoint
slides, download any handout, sothey could still access all the
information that they wanted toif they couldn't get it during
the live conference.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Yeah and that, and can you just remind us the cost
of the conference, because Iknow conferences are six and
$700.
I've gone to conferences that's$800.
So how much is our conference?
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Yeah, this past year it was $250 for the three days.
So yeah, with 110 breakoutsessions, that's a pretty good
bank for your buck.
I was even looking atconferences that are upcoming.
This morning when I was workingand I was seeing like $400 to
$500 and that's less than whatyou had mentioned, but that was
(14:01):
still a little bit of stickershock for me.
So we are try to make this asaffordable as possible.
The prices might increase alittle bit For next year.
We'll be revisiting that in thespringtime, so stay tuned.
Stay tuned for that.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
Yeah, we have to keep the technology crisp.
We have to, and so it starts toget a little bit costly, but
we're gonna try to keep thoseprices more affordable for
people so that they can reallycome and partake of the
information and not break thebank.
So, but yeah, read some morecomments of people's thoughts.
(14:38):
I think that's awesome.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Yeah, so kind of on the same lines, like with that
technology, someone said theonline format allows people from
all over the world to attendand collaborate.
This also allows people whowould not normally be able to
attend due to other conflicts tosqueeze in a session or two
when possible.
So I know that people do missthe in-person format and there
is definitely a place for thatand I love that conferences are
(15:02):
getting back to in-person.
But with us we are in a uniqueopportunity as a virtual
international conference to justbring people from all over the
world who might not necessarilyhave the funds to be able to
travel internationally or can'ttake the time off work, so
they're able to just fit in asession or two.
So I love that.
That person highlighted that.
(15:24):
And then another thing withtechnology.
Someone said technology wasseamless this year.
In the past years there wassome more issues, which is
understandable.
However, each year the teamseems to get better at figuring
them out.
So I was happy that someone hada good technology experience
with the conference this year.
Of course, we're always goingto have some of those things
(15:45):
that we can't foresee or fix,but we are trying to get better
and better each year.
Yeah, and I think.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
Zoom has helped us out.
Like because of the pandemic,unfortunately, people have had
to meet using Zoom a lot, and sopeople are becoming more
comfortable clicking on thingsand following along, and we've
made our sessions and places tovisit and see people's materials
(16:16):
and things like we made it sosimple and easy to do that even
people who have a veryrudimentary understanding of
technology are able to getaround at our conference, not to
mention that you, every so manyhours, actually go through
(16:38):
things that actually remindpeople.
Okay, don't forget to clickhere, and there's little arrows
that you have that show people,remind people how to do their
session evaluations and theoverall evaluations and how to
get to the vending area to lookat people's materials.
And so can you recall any ofthe vendors that we had this
(17:02):
year?
That might have been prettycool.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
We had about 25 vendors this year that were a
mix between resource vendors whoprovided just information on
services they provide, so thatincluded, you know, some of our
local organizations that areinvolved with our coalition were
there providing informationabout their programming and
(17:27):
things like that.
So there was Child WelfareInformation Gateway, relinkorg,
which provides, you know, a hubfor a bunch of different
services.
We had the SOAP project and wehad a safe at home from Maryland
(17:47):
State of Health and HumanServices.
So those were pretty cool.
And then some of the other onesthat sold products that were
our retail vendors.
My favorite personally it wascalled Ring True and they had
they actually gave us severalproducts to raffle off for free
to several lucky winners andthey had these really fun like
(18:09):
fidget rings that were a set oftwo.
I thought those were reallycool.
And then they also had somereally pretty bracelets and I
got some of those as Christmaspresents this year for people in
my life, so love them.
And then there was also somepeople who were selling
consulting services, like SaylaConsulting, and they gave away
free, like a three hourconsulting to an organization,
(18:32):
which was great.
Some people who were sellingbooks and selling other like
trainings and resources.
So we love our vendors and loveto highlight them.
Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
And the SOAP, by the way, are these little SOAPs that
people give to hotels andmotels, so they were a good
resource vendor for people whomight just want to be involved
in providing.
And on the back of the SOAPsare the 1-800-HUMAN-TRAFKING
number.
And then that Ring True.
We did a, I did a podcast withthem and they are amazing.
(19:08):
They're two sisters goingthrough the pandemic and one of
them was like hey, let's juststart this business and help
people.
It's like, oh, do we know aboutbusiness?
No, do we know how to makejewelry?
No, let's do it, it'd be great.
And they did it.
It's actually very successfuland they're able to help
(19:29):
programs, not only like makedonations, but now they're
starting to train peoplesurvivors with lived experience
to make the rings.
So it's like it really caughton.
I mean, I wouldn't advisepeople to go out and just create
something.
You know nothing about thebusiness in and nothing about
the creative in.
But man, they did it and itcame together and it worked very
(19:51):
well.
So in our 20th year we alsowere able to produce some really
cool t-shirts and get thoset-shirts, and what did?
Speaker 2 (20:06):
they say yes, we had exclusive 20th annual t-shirts
that had our logo andcelebrating 20 years on them,
and then we had a brand fromWorthwile Ware, who was also
another vendor at our conference, and so they provide these
ethically sourced, organic, fairtrade shirts that you know.
(20:27):
We were able to put our ownbrand on them, and so they do
that for other businesses andagencies that want to sell their
branded t-shirts, and then Ibelieve they also sell.
Worthwile has their own productline too, if you just want to
shop and support them.
So that was really exciting andI think you did a podcast with
(20:47):
them as well, celia.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Yeah, I did, and they do, a lot of anti-trafficking
work in terms of now gettinginto hiring people who are
survivors doing all kinds ofgreat work.
So, yeah, if your companyhappens to be ordering t-shirts
or ordering products, pleasecheck them out first.
Put your money where your mouthis and purchase people who are
(21:12):
trying to do that great work.
Anything else about this pastconference that we need to tell
people about?
Speaker 2 (21:21):
Just a couple other things and quotes, wanted to
highlight a couple sessions thatpeople really enjoyed.
I have a long list ofpresenters and sessions that
people loved that we're hopingto bring back for next year, but
some of the ones that reallystood out.
We had several sessions thisyear on familial trafficking and
so I'm glad that we have beenhighlighting that over the past
(21:44):
several years.
Each year we get a couple moresessions on familial trafficking
.
So a couple of people said so.
One individual said that they Iam a survivor of familial
trafficking so my heart, goingto this, was to understand how
this is being talked about,understood and addressed with
service providers.
(22:04):
I think there is a long way togo with helping service
providers to understand and knowhow to address childhood trauma
, but I think these presentersare absolutely amazing.
So we do have a long way to go,but I love that it is being
talked about, especially havingsurvivors of familial
trafficking who are presentersbut then who are also attending
(22:24):
these other sessions and seeingthemselves in these
presentations, and that they'renot alone and they have this
community with them.
Another person said to havesurvivors who have thrived to
the level of strength andcompetence to equip themselves,
to reach back and help others isthe ultimate level of
self-sufficiency and growth.
(22:45):
This specific presenter is arole model for survivors who can
reach this stage of recoveryand personal growth.
Thank you for your raw honestyand passion.
I've commented before about theincrease in conference sessions
pertaining to familialtrafficking.
Most of us assume that childrencaught in this web of horror
are runaway, throwaway giveawayvictims.
(23:05):
It is difficult to think thatchildren cannot find safety
within their own homes, which isnothing new.
So again, just bringing tolight familial trafficking and
to have these really strong,thriver presenters at the
conference is amazing.
Speaker 1 (23:22):
Well, I love people in their evaluation really take
their comments to heart.
Like sometimes you go to aconference and it's like I'm
just gonna check off the bomband I don't write anything
because who cares?
They're not gonna really.
But people that come to ourconference, they really make
their comments, are thoughtful,intentional, and we actually
(23:45):
read them and we focus on themand we try to make improvements
based on people's thoughts.
So I just hope that people willcontinue to be passionate and
intentional when they speak tous about the conference and what
we're doing well and what wecould improve.
So but go ahead.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
Yeah, there was just one other session that people
spoke highly well, severalsessions that people spoke
highly on, but this one kind ofstood out to me too.
It was the session on moralinjury and there was a couple of
survivors who wrote some prettyprofound and powerful comments.
So one person said thispresentation was timely for
(24:24):
where I'm at in my recovery.
It didn't just speak to me, itscreamed to me in a good way
towards healing.
I'm looking forward to watchingthe recorded session and
researching the idea of moralinjury.
I hope professionals will pickup on the importance of this
concept and seek to understandit more, and I hope I'll be able
to figure it out more formyself.
Once again, thank you.
(24:45):
And then another person in thesame session wrote thank you so
much for this session.
I'm still reeling from how thissession impacted me.
I've been on my own rollercoaster healing journey for 24
years and after seeing thispresentation I know this is what
my life in healing journey ismissing.
I will for sure be looking intothis more.
(25:06):
I hope to continue to hear moreabout moral injury in the
future.
Thank you so much.
So those just stuck out to meand it gives me a little bit of
chills, and I love that we arestill able to bring new concepts
and these powerful topics thataren't just for our service
providers, our academics, ourresearchers, but are also really
(25:27):
impacting survivors on theirhealing journey.
Speaker 1 (25:31):
Yeah, I think that's so powerful.
I mean, that is something thatsomebody that took the time to
reflect and again gave ussomething thoughtful, very
intentional, and you're right,like this is the purpose of the
conference.
Yes, we have to get academics,yes, we have to get
practitioners to understand thattrafficking is not one
(25:54):
dimensional.
There's a lot ofintersectionalities, there's a
lot of complexity.
It's not like a caricature ofsomething.
It's very complex and there arenuances and we have to get
people on the right page asthey're doing research, as
they're practicing.
But we also try and it seemslike we've gotten through to
(26:17):
send the message that the worldis standing with you to support
you and your recovery and tohonor what you are trying to do
as you walk your path to healing.
I think that is something thatwe try to convey and it seems,
at least in these people thatcommented, that you read the
(26:42):
message received.
So that is worth all of the workthat we do all year, because
that is exactly they're speakingto us to keep this up and to
keep going down that path.
I mean, we have some areas thatwe know we can improve upon.
(27:04):
We can always improve intechnology.
We can, you know.
But yeah, I think that they'respeaking loud and clear to tell
us to keep doing what we'redoing.
So anything else we need to add.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
I think, just on the note of keep doing what we're
doing, I'd love to talk aboutsome of the key dates for our
2024 conference.
So looking forward to next year.
So not only you know we wrappedup everything with 2023.
Now we're moving on to nextyear already and planning that.
So I just announced thismorning on our social media
(27:44):
pages the save the dates fornext year.
So we are remaining virtualagain for our next year's
conference.
So it will be on September 18ththrough the 20th.
Again, that is a Wednesdaythrough Friday.
So the three day virtualconference Very excited about
that.
Our registration will open June3rd.
(28:06):
So I know it's like you know,we're getting into the cold
winter months.
June and summer seems so faraway, but believe me, it will
come quickly.
Keep up to date on our website.
If you want to be on our emaillist, email me at
traffickingconferencegmailcom.
But probably the date that iscoming up quickest is our call
(28:28):
for presentations.
So if you are interested inbeing one of the many breakout
presentations at our conferencewhether you are a direct service
provider, run a program, havecompleted research, you work in
healthcare, law enforcement orin the legal side of things,
whether you're a survivor whowould like to share their story
(28:50):
we are accepting presentationsstarting on Monday, january 8th.
So that is just about you know.
A month from now, we will bestarting to accept presentations
and then that will be open fora couple months and the last day
to submit will be March 31st.
So you've got that Januarythrough March to put in your
(29:11):
application for presentations.
So you know we're just hittingthe ground running in the new
year and excited to see what2024 brings.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
Absolutely.
I mean, and you know also, ifyou're a social worker, a nurse,
a teacher, a politician, I meanthere are so many ways, so many
perspectives, so much workbeing done out there.
Like, don't count yourself out.
Maybe you have some greatinformation to share, maybe
you've been doing a few years ofsome really good work.
(29:42):
So you should know that whenyou submit your abstract, people
will review it, will critiqueit and you'll be selected.
So also don't think justbecause you submit an abstract
you will be presenting there is.
It is competitive.
But please, if you haveinformation, if you have a level
(30:03):
of expertise, please submit,because some of the issues with
some of the people doing thebest work is they don't feel
like they're perfect, thatthey're not ready, that they're
not, and so a lot of this greatknowledge from these people
doing great work.
(30:24):
We don't get to learn aboutwhat you do.
So if you're doing somethingyou think it's at the level, you
need to share it.
If there's a level of expertisethere, as people need to know,
please try.
And you know what?
If you don't get selected thisyear, so what?
It doesn't mean that you're notdoing great work.
(30:44):
It just means that it is highlycompetitive.
There are a lot of peoplesubmitting.
But please try it, because ifyou're not selected this year,
maybe next year.
But please don't sit on yourgreat, creative, hard advocacy
work that you've done and thinkthat people don't want to hear
(31:05):
about it.
So, if you so choose, try tosubmit an abstract and be a part
of the family, be a part of thevillage and share what you know
next year.
So anything else, anna.
Speaker 2 (31:21):
No, I think that about wraps it up for this
year's conference.
So thanks again to everyone whowas a part of it, from the
presenters to the attendees,volunteer sponsors, and thanks
to you, celia, again for layingthe groundwork and doing this
fight for, I know, at least twodecades with the conference, but
more before that.
(31:41):
So it's been another great yearin the books.
Looking forward to next year,stay up to date on our website,
traffickingconferencecom.
Email me with any questions attraffickingconferencegmailcom
and we will see you all nextyear.
Speaker 1 (31:56):
Thank you so much, anna.
Thank you for what you do toorganize all of these countries
and states and the platform andthe vending booths and the
t-shirts and the giveaway giftsand all of the things that make
this conference amazing andkeeps people coming back and
brings new people.
So with that we'll say we'llsee you next year at the
(32:19):
conference.
As the fight continues, let'snot just do something, let's do
the best thing.
If you liked this episode ofEmancipation Nation, please
subscribe and I'll send you theweekly podcast.
Until then, the fight continues.
You know the why human trafficking work is needed
To fight for the freedom ofmodern day slaves.
But love, passion, commitmentisn't all you need to be an
effective and successfulanti-trafficking advocate.
Learn the how.
I'm Dr Celia Williamson,director of the Human
Trafficking and Social JusticeInstitute at the University of
(00:23):
Toledo.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation podcast, where I'll
provide you with the latest andbest methods, policy and
practice, discussed byexperienced experts in the field
, so that you can cut throughthe noise, save time and be
about the work of saving lives.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation.
This is Episode 201.
(00:44):
I'm Dr Celia Williamson, andtoday we have Anna Schram back
with us to talk about thisyear's Human Trafficking and
Social Justice Conference.
So hi, anna, hi Celia, thanksfor having me back.
Yeah, so you know, every yearfor the past 20 years, we have
(01:05):
hosted the Human Trafficking andSocial Justice Conference.
It is a global conference withmany, many people that attend.
So, anna, first tell us forthis year how many people
attended, how many countries,how many representatives across
US states.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
Yes, so we had our 20th annual conference back in
September.
It was September 20th throughthe 22nd, which now that it's
December, that's, like you know,two and a half months ago,
which is crazy because it justfeels like we just had it and
I'm still recovering from it.
(01:47):
But it went well.
It was a very successful 20thannual conference.
We had 1,400 attendees who cameover that three-day conference.
Of that 1,200, 235 of thoseattendees were survivors or
lived experience experts, whichwas very exciting because that
(02:09):
is, you know, those are thepeople that we do this work for.
And then we also had 400college students who attended,
which is also very exciting.
You know, being part of theUniversity of Toledo, we had a
lot of University of Toledostudents, but we also had
several other college studentsfrom other universities across
(02:31):
the country who attended, whichis great for them to get
exposure to an academicconference, learn from some of
the top researchers andadvocates, people in healthcare
and law enforcement from aroundthe world.
So it's a great opportunity forthem.
And then, so, overall, of those1,400 attendees, they came from
(02:54):
49 states within the UnitedStates, so very close to getting
all 50 states at one conference.
That will hopefully be our goalfor future years to get every
single state at one conference.
And then we had 27 countriesthat were represented at this
(03:15):
year's conference, which is huge.
All of them were new countries,including Cameroon, columbia,
greece, crizzixan, new Zealandand Portugal were all new
countries that have never hadanybody come before.
So that is very exciting.
We are continuing to see, youknow, growth and expansion every
(03:37):
year.
Word of mouth.
It's great to get these newpeople.
So now we're up to.
Over the past 20 years, we'vehad attendees from 57 countries,
so our numbers just keepgrowing and it's very exciting,
yeah.
Speaker 1 (03:53):
And while we have had all 50 countries at one point,
or all 50 states, I should say,at one point or another, that
have come to the conference inone year, 49 states.
So we have to call out that onethat didn't show up.
So which state was?
Speaker 2 (04:07):
that.
I know it was New Hampshire whodid not come this year.
They have come.
They even came last year andthey've come several of our
previous years.
But New Hampshire let us down alittle bit this year.
So New Hampshire, if anybodyfrom New Hampshire is listening
or you've come to the conferencebefore please come back next
(04:28):
year.
Help us get to all 50 states inone year.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
That's right.
What up New Hampshire?
Like you were not in the placerepresenting your state, but
that's okay.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
They took a year off and it was the wrong year to
take off.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
Exactly so tell us any highlights from this year's
conference.
I mean, it was the 20th year,so anything that we did special
this year.
Speaker 2 (04:57):
Yeah, we did a couple things special.
We put together somecompilation videos of pictures
and messages from previous years, just kind of looking back, you
know, when you hit those bigmilestones.
You kind of look back over theyears on, you know how you
started where you've come andwhere you've grown into now.
So we did kind of, you know, alittle blast into the past and
(05:18):
then we did a video hearing fromsurvivors who have come over
the past 20 years and how theconference has impacted them.
We also I also did a littlesurprise thing for Celia that
she didn't know about andsurprised her on the last day of
individuals who have workedclosely with her over the past
20 years on the conference andkind of some serious and funny
(05:42):
memories that they've had ofCelia, and so that was very
touching just to celebrate Celiaand all the work that she has
done over these past two decades.
Speaker 1 (05:51):
Yeah, that was so funny because the day that that
video was shown I had no idea,of course, and Anna is sort of
rushing through this agenda thatwe have laid out and I'm
thinking to myself, oh my gosh,she's going too fast, like we're
going to run out of time, we'regoing to just have dead air and
we're not going to be able toget a little nervous about that.
(06:13):
But, and that was wonderful,because all my friends and my
peeps and my village from allaround the world spoke about the
conference and our worktogether and it was amazing
amazing, I would have to say.
I love the compilation videosas well.
My favorite was just thesurvivors talking about what the
(06:37):
conference has meant for themand their participation and
whatever their own words wasjust really just grounded us in
the reasons very vividly andvery directly that we should
continue another 20 years.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
So, yeah, keep on going.
A couple other of the like newthings that we did this year we
updated our virtual conferenceplatform that we call the
conference web app with a littlesort of like gamification to
encourage attendees to exploremore, see all the things that it
has to offer.
So attendees could earn starsby completing achievements.
(07:21):
So that was just a fun thing.
And then in our conferencedirectory, where it lists
everybody's name, it also showshow many stars you've earned
under your name, so you can seeoh, this person's only earned
one star.
This person earned all fourstars that they could get.
So just a fun little somethingto encourage people to interact
(07:42):
with it more and interact witheach other.
And then another huge thingthat we did this year that was
kind of apart from ourinternational conference was we
launched our new high schoolonline program that we're
calling HSOF, because we love agood acronym here.
So high school online program,hsof.
So this replaced our live highschool summit that we used to do
(08:07):
in conjunction with ourinternational conference every
year.
We just weren't getting a lot ofengagement from students.
It's difficult for them to takeout time during a school day
and it being virtual, so wedecided to create content that
was going to be freelyaccessible online at any time of
the year so teachers orstudents can access it on their
(08:30):
own schedule.
Teachers can incorporate itinto their curriculum throughout
the year if they want.
Our students can look at it intheir free time or even, like
after school programs or thingslike that, can use it.
So, very excited about that.
We've already had many peoplesign up to get access to that.
So it is only specifically forhigh school students and those
(08:53):
who work with high schoolers.
So if that is you listening andyou work with high schoolers,
you're in a school or you knowpeople that work with high
schoolers, check out our website, traffickingconferencecom, or
email me attraffickingconferencegmailcom so
we can get you hooked up withthat high school online program
curriculum.
It's a lot of great informationabout human trafficking, but
(09:17):
also about sexual assault, drugabuse, gun violence, internet
safety and then kind of withineach of those, what to look for
and then what you can do.
It can give you steps on likehow to get involved.
So it's not just information,it's also action steps.
So we were very excited tolaunch that this year and it
(09:37):
kind of just stayed.
It kind of lined up with itbeing our 20th annual conference
, so that was another way thatwe were able to celebrate this
year.
Speaker 1 (09:45):
Yeah, it's like a sort of work smarter, not harder
so giving access all year round, not just one day, and I'd love
to do a podcast just morespecifically on HSOP and kind of
walking people through it.
But they can get startedchecking it out now and having
access to it now.
So that is our gift to theworld for the 20th year.
(10:11):
So, and people that, of course,attended the conference got the
jump.
They got to learn about thisearly, so, but of course, it's
accessible and free to anybodywho wants to access it and have
information already ready madefor you.
So, anything else in particularabout this year's conference,
(10:33):
anything that you that stood outto you that you really liked-
Well, for me it was great.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
We have just had another seamless, good year.
Every year with this virtualevent, I feel like we are
getting better and better,growing and growing, but I only
get to experience a little bitof part of it, or behind the
scenes.
Just I don't get to sit in anyof the sessions, so I just get
to hear from attendees and so wehave an overall conference
(11:03):
evaluation that attendees fillout at the end.
And I was able to go throughthat not too long ago and kind
of read through the comments ofpeople who attended, what they
liked, what they thought.
You know, maybe we couldimprove for next year's what
they walked away with in somespecific sessions.
So I pulled some quotes thatkind of stood out to me.
(11:24):
So I'd love to kind of just gothrough a couple of those, if
that works for you, celia.
Oh yeah goodie the excellent.
So just a couple of likeoverall things.
One person said you know we'vebeen talking about it being the
20th annual one.
So somebody said I loved thatthis conference has been around
for 20 years providinginformation and tools to
(11:46):
providers and survivors.
The tribute to Celia was greatPeople deserve their flowers.
I also love the diversesurvivor led topics and insights
from providers.
So there's somebody you knowacknowledging the great work
that we've done for these 20years and that they loved the
conference.
Another person said that thiswas my first year attending.
(12:06):
I liked that there were so manydifferent things to learn from
and that even though I wasattending one session, I could
download information fromanother.
So love to hear this from afirst time attendee, love that
we're still getting new peopleevery year and that you know
they kind of just highlightedthat even though there's so many
sessions, they could watch somelive and then afterwards they
(12:27):
could watch more later or theycould still access those
PowerPoint slides.
Speaker 1 (12:31):
So before you move on , explain that a little bit.
How many sessions did we have?
What are you talking about?
Can watch it after theconference.
Speaker 2 (12:40):
Yes, so this year we had about 110 presentations over
the three days, which is somany to choose from.
So people probably had betweeneight to 10 breakout sessions
during each breakout time tochoose from.
And since that is so many andsince we are an international
conference with people indifferent time zones, we allowed
(13:02):
attendees for three entireweeks after the conference to be
able to watch the recordedpresentations on demand on their
free time, and they were alsoable to download PowerPoint
slides, download any handout, sothey could still access all the
information that they wanted toif they couldn't get it during
the live conference.
Speaker 1 (13:23):
Yeah and that, and can you just remind us the cost
of the conference, because Iknow conferences are six and
$700.
I've gone to conferences that's$800.
So how much is our conference?
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Yeah, this past year it was $250 for the three days.
So yeah, with 110 breakoutsessions, that's a pretty good
bank for your buck.
I was even looking atconferences that are upcoming.
This morning when I was workingand I was seeing like $400 to
$500 and that's less than whatyou had mentioned, but that was
(14:01):
still a little bit of stickershock for me.
So we are try to make this asaffordable as possible.
The prices might increase alittle bit For next year.
We'll be revisiting that in thespringtime, so stay tuned.
Stay tuned for that.
Speaker 1 (14:16):
Yeah, we have to keep the technology crisp.
We have to, and so it starts toget a little bit costly, but
we're gonna try to keep thoseprices more affordable for
people so that they can reallycome and partake of the
information and not break thebank.
So, but yeah, read some morecomments of people's thoughts.
(14:38):
I think that's awesome.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Yeah, so kind of on the same lines, like with that
technology, someone said theonline format allows people from
all over the world to attendand collaborate.
This also allows people whowould not normally be able to
attend due to other conflicts tosqueeze in a session or two
when possible.
So I know that people do missthe in-person format and there
is definitely a place for thatand I love that conferences are
(15:02):
getting back to in-person.
But with us we are in a uniqueopportunity as a virtual
international conference to justbring people from all over the
world who might not necessarilyhave the funds to be able to
travel internationally or can'ttake the time off work, so
they're able to just fit in asession or two.
So I love that.
That person highlighted that.
(15:24):
And then another thing withtechnology.
Someone said technology wasseamless this year.
In the past years there wassome more issues, which is
understandable.
However, each year the teamseems to get better at figuring
them out.
So I was happy that someone hada good technology experience
with the conference this year.
Of course, we're always goingto have some of those things
(15:45):
that we can't foresee or fix,but we are trying to get better
and better each year.
Yeah, and I think.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
Zoom has helped us out.
Like because of the pandemic,unfortunately, people have had
to meet using Zoom a lot, and sopeople are becoming more
comfortable clicking on thingsand following along, and we've
made our sessions and places tovisit and see people's materials
(16:16):
and things like we made it sosimple and easy to do that even
people who have a veryrudimentary understanding of
technology are able to getaround at our conference, not to
mention that you, every so manyhours, actually go through
(16:38):
things that actually remindpeople.
Okay, don't forget to clickhere, and there's little arrows
that you have that show people,remind people how to do their
session evaluations and theoverall evaluations and how to
get to the vending area to lookat people's materials.
And so can you recall any ofthe vendors that we had this
(17:02):
year?
That might have been prettycool.
Speaker 2 (17:06):
We had about 25 vendors this year that were a
mix between resource vendors whoprovided just information on
services they provide, so thatincluded, you know, some of our
local organizations that areinvolved with our coalition were
there providing informationabout their programming and
(17:27):
things like that.
So there was Child WelfareInformation Gateway, relinkorg,
which provides, you know, a hubfor a bunch of different
services.
We had the SOAP project and wehad a safe at home from Maryland
(17:47):
State of Health and HumanServices.
So those were pretty cool.
And then some of the other onesthat sold products that were
our retail vendors.
My favorite personally it wascalled Ring True and they had
they actually gave us severalproducts to raffle off for free
to several lucky winners andthey had these really fun like
(18:09):
fidget rings that were a set oftwo.
I thought those were reallycool.
And then they also had somereally pretty bracelets and I
got some of those as Christmaspresents this year for people in
my life, so love them.
And then there was also somepeople who were selling
consulting services, like SaylaConsulting, and they gave away
free, like a three hourconsulting to an organization,
(18:32):
which was great.
Some people who were sellingbooks and selling other like
trainings and resources.
So we love our vendors and loveto highlight them.
Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 1 (18:44):
And the SOAP, by the way, are these little SOAPs that
people give to hotels andmotels, so they were a good
resource vendor for people whomight just want to be involved
in providing.
And on the back of the SOAPsare the 1-800-HUMAN-TRAFKING
number.
And then that Ring True.
We did a, I did a podcast withthem and they are amazing.
(19:08):
They're two sisters goingthrough the pandemic and one of
them was like hey, let's juststart this business and help
people.
It's like, oh, do we know aboutbusiness?
No, do we know how to makejewelry?
No, let's do it, it'd be great.
And they did it.
It's actually very successfuland they're able to help
(19:29):
programs, not only like makedonations, but now they're
starting to train peoplesurvivors with lived experience
to make the rings.
So it's like it really caughton.
I mean, I wouldn't advisepeople to go out and just create
something.
You know nothing about thebusiness in and nothing about
the creative in.
But man, they did it and itcame together and it worked very
(19:51):
well.
So in our 20th year we alsowere able to produce some really
cool t-shirts and get thoset-shirts, and what did?
Speaker 2 (20:06):
they say yes, we had exclusive 20th annual t-shirts
that had our logo andcelebrating 20 years on them,
and then we had a brand fromWorthwile Ware, who was also
another vendor at our conference, and so they provide these
ethically sourced, organic, fairtrade shirts that you know.
(20:27):
We were able to put our ownbrand on them, and so they do
that for other businesses andagencies that want to sell their
branded t-shirts, and then Ibelieve they also sell.
Worthwile has their own productline too, if you just want to
shop and support them.
So that was really exciting andI think you did a podcast with
(20:47):
them as well, celia.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Yeah, I did, and they do, a lot of anti-trafficking
work in terms of now gettinginto hiring people who are
survivors doing all kinds ofgreat work.
So, yeah, if your companyhappens to be ordering t-shirts
or ordering products, pleasecheck them out first.
Put your money where your mouthis and purchase people who are
(21:12):
trying to do that great work.
Anything else about this pastconference that we need to tell
people about?
Speaker 2 (21:21):
Just a couple other things and quotes, wanted to
highlight a couple sessions thatpeople really enjoyed.
I have a long list ofpresenters and sessions that
people loved that we're hopingto bring back for next year, but
some of the ones that reallystood out.
We had several sessions thisyear on familial trafficking and
so I'm glad that we have beenhighlighting that over the past
(21:44):
several years.
Each year we get a couple moresessions on familial trafficking
.
So a couple of people said so.
One individual said that they Iam a survivor of familial
trafficking so my heart, goingto this, was to understand how
this is being talked about,understood and addressed with
service providers.
(22:04):
I think there is a long way togo with helping service
providers to understand and knowhow to address childhood trauma
, but I think these presentersare absolutely amazing.
So we do have a long way to go,but I love that it is being
talked about, especially havingsurvivors of familial
trafficking who are presentersbut then who are also attending
(22:24):
these other sessions and seeingthemselves in these
presentations, and that they'renot alone and they have this
community with them.
Another person said to havesurvivors who have thrived to
the level of strength andcompetence to equip themselves,
to reach back and help others isthe ultimate level of
self-sufficiency and growth.
(22:45):
This specific presenter is arole model for survivors who can
reach this stage of recoveryand personal growth.
Thank you for your raw honestyand passion.
I've commented before about theincrease in conference sessions
pertaining to familialtrafficking.
Most of us assume that childrencaught in this web of horror
are runaway, throwaway giveawayvictims.
(23:05):
It is difficult to think thatchildren cannot find safety
within their own homes, which isnothing new.
So again, just bringing tolight familial trafficking and
to have these really strong,thriver presenters at the
conference is amazing.
Speaker 1 (23:22):
Well, I love people in their evaluation really take
their comments to heart.
Like sometimes you go to aconference and it's like I'm
just gonna check off the bomband I don't write anything
because who cares?
They're not gonna really.
But people that come to ourconference, they really make
their comments, are thoughtful,intentional, and we actually
(23:45):
read them and we focus on themand we try to make improvements
based on people's thoughts.
So I just hope that people willcontinue to be passionate and
intentional when they speak tous about the conference and what
we're doing well and what wecould improve.
So but go ahead.
Speaker 2 (24:03):
Yeah, there was just one other session that people
spoke highly well, severalsessions that people spoke
highly on, but this one kind ofstood out to me too.
It was the session on moralinjury and there was a couple of
survivors who wrote some prettyprofound and powerful comments.
So one person said thispresentation was timely for
(24:24):
where I'm at in my recovery.
It didn't just speak to me, itscreamed to me in a good way
towards healing.
I'm looking forward to watchingthe recorded session and
researching the idea of moralinjury.
I hope professionals will pickup on the importance of this
concept and seek to understandit more, and I hope I'll be able
to figure it out more formyself.
Once again, thank you.
(24:45):
And then another person in thesame session wrote thank you so
much for this session.
I'm still reeling from how thissession impacted me.
I've been on my own rollercoaster healing journey for 24
years and after seeing thispresentation I know this is what
my life in healing journey ismissing.
I will for sure be looking intothis more.
(25:06):
I hope to continue to hear moreabout moral injury in the
future.
Thank you so much.
So those just stuck out to meand it gives me a little bit of
chills, and I love that we arestill able to bring new concepts
and these powerful topics thataren't just for our service
providers, our academics, ourresearchers, but are also really
(25:27):
impacting survivors on theirhealing journey.
Speaker 1 (25:31):
Yeah, I think that's so powerful.
I mean, that is something thatsomebody that took the time to
reflect and again gave ussomething thoughtful, very
intentional, and you're right,like this is the purpose of the
conference.
Yes, we have to get academics,yes, we have to get
practitioners to understand thattrafficking is not one
(25:54):
dimensional.
There's a lot ofintersectionalities, there's a
lot of complexity.
It's not like a caricature ofsomething.
It's very complex and there arenuances and we have to get
people on the right page asthey're doing research, as
they're practicing.
But we also try and it seemslike we've gotten through to
(26:17):
send the message that the worldis standing with you to support
you and your recovery and tohonor what you are trying to do
as you walk your path to healing.
I think that is something thatwe try to convey and it seems,
at least in these people thatcommented, that you read the
(26:42):
message received.
So that is worth all of the workthat we do all year, because
that is exactly they're speakingto us to keep this up and to
keep going down that path.
I mean, we have some areas thatwe know we can improve upon.
(27:04):
We can always improve intechnology.
We can, you know.
But yeah, I think that they'respeaking loud and clear to tell
us to keep doing what we'redoing.
So anything else we need to add.
Speaker 2 (27:23):
I think, just on the note of keep doing what we're
doing, I'd love to talk aboutsome of the key dates for our
2024 conference.
So looking forward to next year.
So not only you know we wrappedup everything with 2023.
Now we're moving on to nextyear already and planning that.
So I just announced thismorning on our social media
(27:44):
pages the save the dates fornext year.
So we are remaining virtualagain for our next year's
conference.
So it will be on September 18ththrough the 20th.
Again, that is a Wednesdaythrough Friday.
So the three day virtualconference Very excited about
that.
Our registration will open June3rd.
(28:06):
So I know it's like you know,we're getting into the cold
winter months.
June and summer seems so faraway, but believe me, it will
come quickly.
Keep up to date on our website.
If you want to be on our emaillist, email me at
traffickingconferencegmailcom.
But probably the date that iscoming up quickest is our call
(28:28):
for presentations.
So if you are interested inbeing one of the many breakout
presentations at our conferencewhether you are a direct service
provider, run a program, havecompleted research, you work in
healthcare, law enforcement orin the legal side of things,
whether you're a survivor whowould like to share their story
(28:50):
we are accepting presentationsstarting on Monday, january 8th.
So that is just about you know.
A month from now, we will bestarting to accept presentations
and then that will be open fora couple months and the last day
to submit will be March 31st.
So you've got that Januarythrough March to put in your
(29:11):
application for presentations.
So you know we're just hittingthe ground running in the new
year and excited to see what2024 brings.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
Absolutely.
I mean, and you know also, ifyou're a social worker, a nurse,
a teacher, a politician, I meanthere are so many ways, so many
perspectives, so much workbeing done out there.
Like, don't count yourself out.
Maybe you have some greatinformation to share, maybe
you've been doing a few years ofsome really good work.
(29:42):
So you should know that whenyou submit your abstract, people
will review it, will critiqueit and you'll be selected.
So also don't think justbecause you submit an abstract
you will be presenting there is.
It is competitive.
But please, if you haveinformation, if you have a level
(30:03):
of expertise, please submit,because some of the issues with
some of the people doing thebest work is they don't feel
like they're perfect, thatthey're not ready, that they're
not, and so a lot of this greatknowledge from these people
doing great work.
(30:24):
We don't get to learn aboutwhat you do.
So if you're doing somethingyou think it's at the level, you
need to share it.
If there's a level of expertisethere, as people need to know,
please try.
And you know what?
If you don't get selected thisyear, so what?
It doesn't mean that you're notdoing great work.
(30:44):
It just means that it is highlycompetitive.
There are a lot of peoplesubmitting.
But please try it, because ifyou're not selected this year,
maybe next year.
But please don't sit on yourgreat, creative, hard advocacy
work that you've done and thinkthat people don't want to hear
(31:05):
about it.
So, if you so choose, try tosubmit an abstract and be a part
of the family, be a part of thevillage and share what you know
next year.
So anything else, anna.
Speaker 2 (31:21):
No, I think that about wraps it up for this
year's conference.
So thanks again to everyone whowas a part of it, from the
presenters to the attendees,volunteer sponsors, and thanks
to you, celia, again for layingthe groundwork and doing this
fight for, I know, at least twodecades with the conference, but
more before that.
(31:41):
So it's been another great yearin the books.
Looking forward to next year,stay up to date on our website,
traffickingconferencecom.
Email me with any questions attraffickingconferencegmailcom
and we will see you all nextyear.
Speaker 1 (31:56):
Thank you so much, anna.
Thank you for what you do toorganize all of these countries
and states and the platform andthe vending booths and the
t-shirts and the giveaway giftsand all of the things that make
this conference amazing andkeeps people coming back and
brings new people.
So with that we'll say we'llsee you next year at the
(32:19):
conference.
As the fight continues, let'snot just do something, let's do
the best thing.
If you liked this episode ofEmancipation Nation, please
subscribe and I'll send you theweekly podcast.
Until then, the fight continues.
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