Many think slavery is a thing of the past. Sadly, it isn’t. Human trafficking is a thriving business in the 21st century. Sabre is launching an initiative to fight the problem.
The travel and tourism industry as a whole is not directly involved in human trafficking. But criminals dupe travel agents to book flights for their slaves; they rely on airlines to unwittingly move minors who are then deployed in the commercial sex trade; they rely on bus companies and car rental firms to move their ‘cargo’ destined for forced labor; and the hospitality industry unknowingly employs workers who are victims of debt bondage. The list goes on.
This week, Sabre is taking a stand. On Thursday morning, I’ll host travel industry leaders and representatives from non-governmental agencies in a working session. We’ll brainstorm on ways we can work together to stop human trafficking. In the afternoon our CEO, Sam Gilliland, is signing The Code of Conduct for the protection of children from sexual exploitation in travel and tourism.
Actress and advocate Jada Pinkett Smith is joining us on Thursday as we shine a spotlight on human trafficking, and the travel industry’s opportunity to make a difference. Jada’s passion and work on the topic has inspired Sabre to align with efforts helping survivors of human trafficking. You’ll hear more about our Passport to Freedom initiative in the coming months.
At Sabre, we believe protecting and assisting the most vulnerable in our communities is simply the right thing to do.
To learn more about human trafficking (including what to look for and what to do when you see it) please visit Polaris Project. And share with your co-workers the National Human Trafficking Resource Center hotline: 1-888-373-7888.
