Bill and Jennifer Boylan have made it their life ministry to bring community awareness about the epidemic of human trafficking that is plaguing not just our nation, but our communities in East Tennessee.
This past Saturday, under the banner of “Rise Up, Get Loud,” the Boylans organized a prayer walk originating at the Rogersville City Park and making its way downtown to the Post Office and back.
Over 100 people representing many community churches participated Saturday, accomplishing the organizers’ goal of bringing attention to the terrible scourge.
Just under 50 million people are said to have been sold into modern day slavery either for manual labor or sex. In either case, their captives are taking ownership of their lives for profit.
Parts of the country are at greater risk, including Appalachia because of its higher levels of poverty and drug addiction.
According to the talking points distributed Saturday, human trafficking opponents want to raise awareness that:
• Human trafficking is a $150 billion industry annually, making it the second-largest illegal industry in the United States behind drugs.
• 1 in 4 victims are under 18 years old.
• Human trafficking has been reported in every county of Tennessee, with a 76% increase of reports from 2022 to 2023 per CCAHT’s 2023 report. It’s increasing yearly.
• Upper East Tennessee is at a severe risk due to vulnerable populations, per an Engage Together 2023 report.
• Most victims know their traffickers through family or intimate partners (44% trafficked by family; 39% trafficked by an intimate partner).
• Not just females are trafficked, and there’s been an increase of men/boys trafficked (from 16% to 40%).
The Boylans can be contacted through Bill’s Facebook page, by simply searching for Bill Boylan and sending him a message. Boylan also pointed to several websites that give statistics and ways to identify possible traffic victims and what to do. They include www.ithastostop.com and www.ourrescue.org.
The Boylans said trafficking is taking place in every zip code in Tennessee and sometimes it’s done without the victims leaving home. On the above sites, statistics are given to watch for both people and children who have become enslaved to either labor trafficking or sex trafficking.
To see more photos by Sheldon Livesay from Saturday’s event, visit the online version of this article at www.therogersvillereview.com.
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