Sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of children has been reported in every one of Florida’s 67 counties. Florida ranks third across the United States for prevalence in reported human trafficking cases. Anyone can be a victim regardless of geography, age, gender, race and other identities. Despite the long-term existence and widespread prevalence of this illegal industry, little is actually known about human trafficking, and occurrences are notoriously underreported.
To educate communities and bring public awareness to this heinous crime, renowned photographers The Workmans partnered with Voices for Florida and the Florida Alliance to End Human Trafficking to bring The End It Movement to Florida.
The End It Movement is a collective of everyday individuals and community leaders united by the mission to end human trafficking with the ideology that action starts with awareness. This movement encourages advocates to draw a red X on their hand as a conversation starter to bring attention to human trafficking.
The Workmans led the charge by establishing photography studios in Tallahassee and Tampa to take portraits of participants with a red X on their hand in preparation for a big reveal flooding social media on February 25th. Voices for Florida and the Florida Alliance to End Human Trafficking worked together to circulate this opportunity, and provide participants with information on human trafficking and ways everyone can help.
We have been joined in our efforts by over 200 local citizens, statewide and community leaders, such as Attorney General Ashley Moody, Representative Cord Byrd and Leon County Sheriff Walter McNeil. After learning about this movement, Tallahassee Mayor John E. Daily issued a proclamation to declare February 25th as Shine a Light on Slavery Day.
“We are so encouraged and grateful to partner in this advocacy effort with The Workmans and the Florida Alliance to End Human Trafficking. We are looking forward to continued collaboration with these partners to raise awareness across our state,” said Robyn Metcalf, Statewide Director of the Open Doors Outreach Network.
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About the Author
Tiffany McGlinchey, Open Doors Information & Outreach Specialist
Tiffany works closely with communications, media, research and best practices to cultivate strategic partnerships and support the collective work of the Open Doors Outreach Network. Prior to her current position, Tiffany served as Resident Multimedia Communication Coordinator at Voices’ affiliate organization, The Children’s Campaign.
Tiffany obtained her Masters of Integrated Marketing Communication and certificate in Multicultural Marketing at Florida State University’s esteemed College of Communication. In addition, she also received her Bachelor degree from Florida State University in Media Communication Studies with a Minor in Business. During her time at Florida State, Tiffany accelerated her education in both the Honors Program and the Garnet and Gold Scholar Society.
In her spare time, Tiffany enjoys cooking and spending time with Mandy, her husky.
