Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch and Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell, along with partners at the Mississippi Department of Education, KLLM Transport Services, Mississippi Trucking Association, Mississippi Beer Distributors Association, Mississippi Development Authority, Mississippi Petroleum Marketers & Convenience Stores Association, and others have launched Mississippi’s first statewide human trafficking campaign, BE THE SOLUTION.
“With a problem as big as human trafficking, it takes everyone doing their part,” said Fitch. “The Attorney General’s Office is committed to putting the full force of our resources behind putting traffickers out of business and recovering victims who have been forced to live out their very worst nightmare day after day. We conduct undercover operations statewide, and they start with a tip. Together, we can be the solution.”
“The Mississippi Department of Public Safety is proud to partner with the Attorney General’s Office in the fight to eradicate human trafficking,” said Tindell. “The Human Trafficking Unit of the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation is dedicated to planning and executing operations designed to apprehend sex traffickers and buyers. Together, we can remove these criminals from our communities and protect our most vulnerable.”
Trucker and Bus Driver Training Resources Statewide
Because truckers spend a considerable amount of time on the roads, they have a unique opportunity to see what no one else sees.
The Mississippi Attorney General’s Office (AGO) and the Department of Public Safety (DPS) expanded partnerships to offer training materials to CDL drivers statewide. These nationally recognized training resources offer real stories of drivers who have encountered a victim on the road. They will make drivers better equipped to spot trafficking and report what they’ve seen.
Similarly, school bus drivers are in a unique position to help young victims of trafficking. School can sometimes be the only safe place for students, and their bus drivers are the first to see them in the morning and the last to see them before they return home. In partnership with the Mississippi Department of Education, the AGO and DPS are offering nationally recognized training resources to school bus drivers across the State to help them spot the signs of trafficking and know how to report it.
Public Awareness Campaign
In addition to these training resources, the AGO is also launching a comprehensive, statewide public awareness campaign including billboards, radio public service announcements, truck wraps, posters, and other public education components.
The purpose of these strategically placed resources is to shine a light on a problem that thrives in the darkness and to equip Mississippians with the tools they need to be the solution in their communities.
