ACAMS is proud to announce that on January 11, the ACAMS Fight Against Human Trafficking (FAHT) Committee is launching its 2018 activities in support of the U.S.’ National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month.
What began in 2015 as a small committee of volunteers has evolved into a concerted effort with local and global partners designed to support both survivors of this heinous crime and front-line organizations whose mission is to eradicate modern slavery.
This cause is very dear to the heart of ACAMS and the entire anti-money laundering (AML) and financial crime prevention community. To continue our efforts in this space, the ACAMS FAHT Committee will begin first semester activities on January 11 coinciding with the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) #WearBlueDay campaign. The goal of the campaign is to raise awareness for human trafficking by engaging millions via its second annual social media campaign. To ensure another successful event, DHS is inviting all interested individuals and organizations to support by wearing a favorite piece of blue clothing on January 11. In solidarity, participating ACAMS employees will join the national social media campaign on Twitter and Facebook by promoting #WearBlueDay and #WeWearBlueBecause.
In addition, ACAMS will host an all-staff Lunch and Learn session on January 17 featuring DHS’ Facebook Live event where a panel of experts will discuss human trafficking in the U.S. and actions being taken by the private and public sectors to combat this crime. Click here to learn more about how your organization can attend the live event.
In our continuous commitment to the anti-human trafficking community, our efforts do not end in January. As previously mentioned, local and global partnerships are key to building awareness and key to supporting survivors directly. As such, we are working with Kristi House, our local community partner, and Polaris, our global partner, on several initiatives. For example, ACAMS will be participating as a Kristi House Hope member at their 12th Annual Breaking the Silence Luncheon, which will be held on May 22, 2018. Shortly thereafter, on May 30, ACAMS will be hosting a live webinar titled, “Utilizing Data and Analytics Technology to Detect Signs of Human Trafficking,” where Polaris and our panel of professionals will discuss practical strategies for generating data and utilizing analytics to detect human trafficking. The webinar is designed with the following learning objectives in mind:
- Detailing common human trafficking indicators revealed by AML monitoring to ensure data and analytics technology addresses the most relevant institutional risks
- Uncovering trafficking activity using new detection tools, including graphical maps and cross-institutional collaboration tools
- Outlining technology-enabled investigation and data collection practices to effectively support human trafficking-related suspicious activity report filings
We encourage everyone to register for this webinar by visiting http://www.acams.org/webinar-data-analytics-detect-human-trafficking-training/. It is important to note that ACAMS is also a Polaris Freedom Circle member.
To conclude, in my capacity as co-chair of the ACAMS FAHT Committee, I learned that what might appear as just a small local activity, can actually have a tremendous impact in the lives of human trafficking survivors. To name a few successful projects, our committee has hosted a career day for local teen survivors, conducted staff Lunch and Learn sessions by law enforcement and other prominent subject-matter experts helping to bring awareness to the field, and launched several fundraising activities for our local community partner.
I encourage everyone to join us in this global fight. No matter how small a contribution may seem, forge ahead and move the pendulum toward the eradication of this crime. Create an employee committee, start at your local branch and expand outward, or contact your institution’s corporate responsibility office with ideas on incorporating human trafficking prevention activities into their programs. This is a win-win effort, so pick up the phone, send an email or conduct a training session for your employees, and help combat human trafficking!
For more information on the ACAMS FAHT Committee, feel free to email me directly at tmontoya@acams.org.
I look forward to hearing from you.
