BYRON CENTER, Mich. — January marks Human Trafficking Awareness Month, highlighting an issue affecting communities across the country, including Michigan.
According to the National Human Trafficking Hotline, a national organization connecting victims and survivors to support services, more than 20,000 victims reached out to them in 2024 alone.
In Michigan, 585 victims were identified. Local organizations like Warning Lights in Byron Center have been working to raise awareness about this critical issue.
Warning Lights has operated for over a decade in Byron Center, led by Jenn Amo and volunteers who visit school districts across West Michigan to teach prevention strategies and warning signs.
Amo attended a conference about human trafficking more than 10 years ago and was shocked by what she learned.
"I couldn't shake the feeling that something was needing to be done," Amo said. "Like human trafficking is the second fastest growing organized crime in America today, and nobody talked about it."
Her research revealed a significant gap in educational resources.
"I went to Google and was like, human trafficking awareness for kids, nothing, teens, nothing. College students, nothing," Amo said.
That discovery prompted her to start Warning Lights, a nonprofit that teaches prevention, protection and awareness regarding human trafficking. Amo emphasizes that trafficking situations are not always obvious.
"Most people think that human trafficking is kidnapping, so if I'm not locked up in some cage in some random basement, that I'm not being victimized, okay, that's not how human trafficking looks in America at all," Amo said.
She explains that predators are often people victims trust.
"Most of my victims that I've worked with sleep in their own beds every night, and their parents are just down the hall. This is not a kidnapping situation. This is not stranger-danger. Human trafficking is actually a relationship based crime," Amo said.
Many of the cases Amo hears about through her work start online.
"These screens, have created this false illusion that there's safety in that," Amo said. "So I can share anything with somebody, even if I don't know them, but what I tell (students) is, if they can find you online, they can find you in real life."
Predators build trust through conversation and gifts until they make their move.
"Then all of a sudden they say, Well, remember when I gave you that code? You need to send me now, whether it's an inappropriate picture or information about where you go to school," Amo said. "Predators are nice until they're not."
For parents, friends and coworkers, there are warning signs to watch for in people they care about.
"Moving into isolation. Because if someone is threatening you, if someone is targeting you, if someone is manipulating you and they're telling you, don't tell anyone. The easiest way for you to do that is to keep everyone else away," Amo said.
Amo stresses that human trafficking can happen anywhere to anyone.
"We as a West Michigan little bubble, we're amazing. We've got a lot to offer people, and I will celebrate that all day long. But also we have to understand that that doesn't block us from crime; that does not protect us from predators online," Amo said.
Amo is asking businesses interested in displaying awareness posters during Human Trafficking Awareness Month to connect with Warning Lights. You can reach out to Warning Lights at their website by clicking here.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
