Teen Connection will explore the growing concern over sex trafficking and will look at efforts to eliminate the devastating human rights crime in Wisconsin.

On the live, call-in program, Wisconsin sex trafficking survivors will share stories about how they were forced into the industry and reveal why they couldn’t get out. The show also will uncover how advances in technology and social media have made it easier than ever for exploiters to find potential victims and customers.

Sex trafficking is a form of human trafficking – a crime that involves obtaining or maintaining the labor or services of another through the use of force, fraud or coercion, according to the Wisconsin Department of Justice (DOJ). The estimated number of minors trafficked each year across the country exceeds 100,000, and the average age of victims is 12 years old.

A 2013 DOJ report found that human trafficking in Wisconsin takes the form of both sex trafficking and labor trafficking, and is committed against both adults and minors. The report also found a lack of adequate services, including housing, healthcare and advocacy, for victims of human trafficking.

In an effort to protect adults and children in Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker recently signed Wisconsin Act 362, which strengthens the definition of trafficking and allows survivors to request the court to expunge or vacate convictions related to human trafficking.

Teen Connection will showcase several agencies that provide support for sex trafficking survivors. Featured guests on the program include: DOJ special agent Deb Strauss; Wise Women Gathering Place sexual assault/domestic violence program specialist Sam McKenzie; Reach Counseling Services adolescent/adult therapist Deb Larson; Rethink Resources independent consultant Claudine O’Leary; Mission:Home board president Jay Beyer; and Reach Counseling Services anti-trafficking advocate and sex trafficking survivor Nicole Tynan.