Candlelight vigil in Kansas City raises awareness of human trafficking during World Cup
By Alan Shope
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. (KMBC) — With the FIFA World Cup bringing millions of visitors to North America, advocates gathered Sunday evening in Kansas City’s Loose Park to shine a light on human trafficking and support survivors.
About 50 people attended a candlelight vigil organized by Rotary districts in Missouri and Kansas. Organizers said the event honored survivors, remembered families impacted by trafficking and encouraged the public to stay alert to warning signs.
One of the speakers, human trafficking survivor Victoria Pierce, shared how she was lured online at 18 by someone who promised her a better life.
“We have to keep talking about it,” Pierce told the crowd, sharing her story of survival and recovery.
Organizers said the World Cup provides an opportunity to educate the public because of the global attention surrounding the tournament.
“Worldwide there’s over 45 million people that get trafficked every year,” said Usha Reddi, president of the Rotary Club Against Human Trafficking. “In Missouri there’s about 300 annually, and in Kansas there’s about 200 to 300, but that’s only the individuals that we know of.”
Similar awareness events are being held in other World Cup host cities across the United States, Mexico and Canada.
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