Earlier this year, commercial motor vehicle law enforcement personnel, industry professionals, and association members from Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. participated in the 2024 Human Trafficking Awareness Initiative (HTAI). Organized by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA), the annual five-day event aimed to raise awareness and provide training on identifying and preventing human trafficking.
Participation and Activities
The initiative saw participation from fifty-one jurisdictions. During the event, law enforcement and industry members engaged in various activities to spread awareness and educate the public. Some key activities included:
- Distributing human trafficking information to drivers during inspections.
- Speaking with truck passengers to check for signs of human trafficking.
- Handing out flyers and wallet cards at truck stops, city halls, bus stations, ports of entry, and DMV offices.
- Displaying the human trafficking hotline on digital billboards.
- Posting awareness messages, videos, and infographics on social media.
- Including human trafficking information in new entrant and compliance review emails.
- Providing human trafficking awareness and prevention training to motor carriers.
- Issuing news releases, holding news conferences, and engaging with print and television reporters.
- Completing online learning modules on human trafficking.
- Participating in Wear Blue Day on January 11 in the U.S.
Collaborations and Outreach
CVSA collaborated with Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT) to offer identification and prevention training to the motor carrier industry and law enforcement. This year’s outreach efforts were extensive, with the distribution of 38,158 wallet cards, 13,510 window decals, and 1,603 posters. Additionally, 334 human trafficking outreach events and 204 presentations were conducted, 692 media contacts were made, and 107 social media posts were reported.
Public Service Announcements
CVSA also partnered with the Paramount/CBS network to produce public service announcement (PSA) videos featuring a human trafficking survivor, a truck driver, and a commercial vehicle enforcement officer. These PSAs, available in both a 30-second and an extended five-minute format, aired on platforms such as Pluto TV, Paramount+, and EYEQ Local, generating 15,652,611 impressions.
Impact and Reach
Since the announcement of this year’s HTAI on November 15, 2023, CVSA’s Human Trafficking Prevention Program webpages garnered 20,552 views by the end of March, coinciding with Mexico’s HTAI month. These efforts highlight the significant reach and impact of the initiative in raising awareness and providing crucial training to combat human trafficking in the commercial vehicle sector.
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