If you were asked to name the biggest social issues facing Philadelphia, human trafficking would probably not come to your mind immediately. Unfortunately, Philadelphia is the third most active human trafficking city in the U.S., and trafficking remains a devastating problem both nationally and worldwide. A lack of awareness among students about trafficking’s prevalence in this city and country is troubling and should be remedied.
That’s why we’re grateful Penn students have brought a new group to campus that will spend the year drawing attention to the issue. We hope that Penn’s chapter of Moral Voices — a national organization devoted to addressing social justice concerns — is successful in drawing attention to this often forgotten, but nonetheless worthwhile, issue.
Based on the variety of initiatives the group intends to plan, there are promising signs that Moral Voices’ message will find a wide student audience. For example, the organization is bringing Nicholas Kristof as a guest speaker in March. Not only has the New York Times columnist proven to be popular with students when he’s come to Penn in the past, but he is also highly knowledgeable about human trafficking and related topics.
Moral Voices is also working to organize a trip to Washington, where students will have the opportunity to lobby for bills relating to trafficking and violence against women. Few campus groups engage this actively and directly in shaping policy, and we appreciate an opportunity for students to campaign on behalf of important pieces of legislation.
