WASHINGTON, February 1, 2012—Are you ready for 2012 Super Bowl Sunday? Along with your grocery shopping and planning for this year’s Super Bowl party, advocates in the U.S. want you to remember one more very important thing: hold a traffick-free Super Bowl party.
This year, Indianans are hosting Super Bowl XLVI in their hometown, and the Indiana State Authorities are stepping up to fight sex trafficking in the state and around the game. In the past, many states have seen a spike of child trafficking around the Super Bowl game.
Advocates around the U.S. provide the following tips on how to support official efforts and have a traffic-free Super Bowl:
Jade Lesyeux, a British survivor of sex trafficking residing in the U.S., gives a very valuable piece of advice on how to stop sex trafficking during the Super Bowl game:
“I think there are two major things that can be done to reduce the trafficking at Super Bowl. First we need to educate the players, staff and coaches and those associated with the sport itself so at the Super Bowl parties they will be able to spot girls who shouldn’t be there and secondly it would be very useful to take survivors to the game as they are the best ones at spotting girls that have been through the same.”
Mark Fisher, an IJM advocate in CA says romote the ‘slogan “Enjoy the game - Avoid the shame” by:
1. Mayor or Chief of Police commits to at least one undercover female cop posing as a prostitute during Super Bowl long weekend (Thurs. p.m.-Monday a.m.).
2. Publicize picture of left/right image of “prostitute”/cop in uniform (same woman—a model or even female cop who doesn’t work vice and wouldn’t be on the street) with the slogan
3. Decoy “call-in escort” cards and Indy area backpage ads could also be part of the strategy publicizing the slogan “Enjoy the game - Avoid the shame.”
Suzzanne Turcotte, a content specialist at Shop to Stop Slavery, advises using traffick free products for the Super Bowl Sunday party.
“Pay attention to the food they serve and the sporting equipment they use. Both areas are rife with slave labor. Party hosts also create opportunities to discuss the issues that surround the Super Bowl.
Serve ethically sourced chocolate, tea, coffee and wine. Check out the source of fruits and vegetables to be sure that they have been grown and harvested without the use of slave labor. The best way to do so is to purchase from farmer’s markets after engaging the producer in conversation.
Many Super Bowl parties include a scrimmage before the big game or sometimes at half-time. Investing in a fair trade football for this game creates conversation about how even every day items like sporting equipment are created by slave labor.”
You can also donate money to the shelters that assist trafficking victims. Many trafficking victims are at risk of re-victimization without aftercare assistance. Some of the shelters you can donate are Courtney’s House, Beauty From Ashes, The Well House, Veronica’s Voice, and Break Free. Shoe shopping at Shoe Revolt can help you support these organizations, too.
Hold a good old bake-sale in your backyard when your neighbors, kids, husbands, and boyfriends are munching those goodies away on Super Bowl Sunday. With the money you raise on bake sale, you can support the anti-trafficking organizations that will be actively involved in the Super Bowl next year.
Holding a traffic-free Super Bowl is not difficult. You just need to do it. As Mark Fisher says, Happy Super Bowl Sunday: “Enjoy the game-Avoid the shame.”
Read more:
Pedophiles and pimps score at large sporting events like Super Bowl XLVI
The Giants will win the Super Bowl, by two beers
PREVIEW: Super Bowl XLVI 2012 TV commercials build super buzz online
Super Bowl XLVI commercials: A sneak peak and a look back to the past
Don’t bet against the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI
The 2012 NFL Hall of Fame Induction Debate
Super Bowl History from I (1) to XLVI (46)
Super Bowl XLVI: Watch it on TV or in a home theater?
Ferris Bueller: grown up, selling cars, and going to the Super Bowl (Video)
Super Bowl XLVI: Giants vs. Patriots rematch
Youngbee Dale is a freelance writer, researcher, and policy analyist. You can reach her at ybdale@gmail.com or follow her on facebook and Twitter
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