Nonprofit turns light on human bondage

From the Greensboro News & Record

GREENSBORO — A problem more often associated with refugee camps or third-world brothels is happening in Guilford County, and a local agency is hoping to bring more cases to light.
Since founding Triad Ladder of Hope in 2006, Sandra Johnson has helped three Greensboro women escape slavery.

This week, Triad Ladder of Hope — a High Point-based, nonprofit devoted to helping women and girls involved in human trafficking — is sponsoring training to teach people how to recognize the signs of slavery.

"A lot of those that are brought in from other countries don't know the law, they don't know their rights — sometimes victims don't realize they are victims," Johnson said.

Two of the women Johnson worked with came to Greensboro to work as nannies. Once here, they were forced to do domestic labor, such as cooking and cleaning, for long hours and without compensation, Johnson said.

The third became enslaved by her husband after she traveled to the United States to marry him.

In many cases, the victim's seclusion and unfamiliarity with the law ensures that they never seek help.

In others, their captors may threaten to harm the victim's loved ones or tell victims they will be arrested or deported if they talk to anyone.

So, law enforcement agencies largely rely on social service agencies, churches and social organizations to refer cases to them for investigation, said John Price, a special agent with the FBI in Charlotte who investigates human trafficking.

"It's not a public crime like bank robberies," Price said.

That's why Johnson was thrilled to have about 100 people attend the first two days of training in High Point on Monday and Winston-Salem on Tuesday. The training will be offered in Greensboro today.

Johnson said employees of social service agencies spoke up about situations they had seen in the past without recognizing there were indications of human trafficking.

In the future, Johnson hopes those people will be able to guide victims to the help they need.
One victim she has worked with for two years has complied with all the federal requirements to prosecute her captor and expects to become a citizen soon.

Although the State Department estimates that between 14,500 and 17,500 victims are trafficked into the country every year, counting the number of local victims is as difficult as finding them.

"Usually, you stumble upon it accidentally because mostly it's in the immigrant community, and we don't really know about it until we are investigating something else," said Maj. Tom Sheppard of the Guilford County Sheriff's Office.

Law enforcement officers are sure that the number of cases investigated represent a small minority of the human trafficking that happens.

"Our cases come in ones and twos," Price said. "We don't get bus loads of cases coming up to our office. We have to scratch and dig for our cases."