The Chicanx Latinx Faculty and Staff Association (CLFSA) teamed up with the Stanislaus Family Justice Center to bring awareness to Stan State’s community regarding human trafficking.
The Human Trafficking Symposium was organized to bring resources and knowledge to students and the community about how human trafficking works and how it is handled in the Central Valley.
“Human trafficking is a huge issue in Stanislaus County… it may not happen directly [to us], but we may know someone who has been [affected],” said Lissett De La Cruz, co-coordinator of the Human Trafficking Symposium and member of CLFSA.
Angela Maldonado, co-coordinator of the Human Trafficking Symposium and navigator for the Stanislaus Family Justice Center, emphasized the importance of the event because becoming aware of the signs of human trafficking “can save a life.”
Multiple organizations, such as the Victim Services Unit of the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office, tabled resources and presented workshops.
“When people hear of the DA’s Office, people ultimately get a little intimidated or want nothing to do with us because they think we’re just prosecuting people, but there is assistance available to people when they are victims of crime and victims do have rights,” said Elizabeth Madrigal, victim advocate at the DA Victim Services Unit, in regards to the DA’s presence at the event.
The symposium was created with the intention to “bring things to light” because sexual assault is “one of the most important social issues” occurring in the country since the #MeToo movement and, most recently, since the release of Surviving R. Kelly, said De La Cruz.
Besides learning about how human trafficking works and the services provided for survivors of such crimes, attendees were also given the opportunity to ask a criminal investigator questions.
Gabriela Hernandez (sophomore, Criminal Justice) said the information presented at the symposium was good and helped her “to know what’s going on” in the local community. 
Maranita Najib (freshman, Psychology) also emphasized the importance of an event like the Human Trafficking Symposium to educate those that do not know about “information and resources they can use and people they can go to.”
A victims advocate is available on campus for anyone who has experienced these crimes and are in need of support.