❓How much do you know about human trafficking?
❓Did you know it is the fastest growing international crime and the second largest source of illegal income in the world?
❓Did you know that incidents of human trafficking or modern slavery have been recorded in all 32 local authorities in Scotland?

Caritas Award students from St Anthony's and St Mark's Rutherglen have been collaborating on a project with Justice & Peace Scotland in recent months to learn, pray, and act in response to this significant human rights issue which Pope Francis has called "a crime against humanity."

Human trafficking is the the acquisition or illegal movement of a person by means of deception or coercion for the purpose of exploitation. The group have lead an awareness raising campaign in their parish over the past two weekends to engage more people on the topic. This has involved designing posters, preparing presentations, creating social media content, and engaging with fellow parishioners during all Sunday masses. The group's aims are simple:

1️⃣ Motivate their parish community to engage with the issue of human trafficking by linking it to our faith, gospel values, and the principles of Catholic social teaching.
2️⃣Inform people about the work of organisations like Survivors of Human Trafficking in Scotland who identify, recover, and support people in situations of exploitation and modern slavery.
3️⃣Spread the word beyond their own parish through their online social media campaign.

👍You can help them achieve as wide an audience as possible by liking and sharing this post and using the app from the Unseen & the Modern Slavery Helpline to report concerns about human trafficking.

🌟A huge congratulations to the Caritas Award students who have dedicated themselves to working with Justice & Peace Scotland since September. We are incredibly proud of your hard work, and it is truly inspiring to witness young individuals embodying the call of our Catholic faith to address the justice and peace challenges facing our world.