WEBVTT NOTE duration:"00:02:36.0950000" NOTE recognizability:0.930 NOTE language:en-us NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.478 Most people don't know that trafficking NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:02.478 --> 00:00:05.120 is happening in the Seattle area. NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:05.120 --> 00:00:07.370 The reality is that trafficking is NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:07.370 --> 00:00:09.245 happening here, and it's happening NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:09.245 --> 00:00:11.120 at even more alarming rates NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:11.120 --> 00:00:13.442 since the onset of COVID statistics NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:13.442 --> 00:00:16.000 on sex trafficking are hard to track, NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:16.000 --> 00:00:18.142 but Maher Bratman, who runs these NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:18.142 --> 00:00:19.213 Seattle nonprofit businesses NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:19.213 --> 00:00:20.869 ending slavery and trafficking, NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:20.870 --> 00:00:23.252 says research estimates there's 500 to NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:23.252 --> 00:00:25.750 700 people being trafficked in the Seattle NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:25.750 --> 00:00:28.168 area. We've got young people who NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:28.168 --> 00:00:30.989 are being sold in the sex trade. NOTE Confidence: 0.93592066 00:00:30.990 --> 00:00:33.886 Also got adults who are being trafficked for NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:33.890 --> 00:00:36.362 labor. Seattle is known to be one of NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:36.362 --> 00:00:38.948 the top cities for sex trafficking, NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:38.950 --> 00:00:41.194 and experts say there's a clear NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:41.194 --> 00:00:43.103 reason why the typical buyer NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:43.103 --> 00:00:45.469 tends to be an educated mail with NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:45.470 --> 00:00:46.484 money to spend. NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:46.484 --> 00:00:48.512 When you have an increase in NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:48.512 --> 00:00:50.180 demand for commercial sex, NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:50.180 --> 00:00:51.756 an unlimited supply, right? NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:51.756 --> 00:00:53.726 Traffickers will bring in victims NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:53.726 --> 00:00:55.606 in order to meet that man. NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:55.610 --> 00:00:57.420 It's it's hugely profitable. Ben NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:57.420 --> 00:00:59.400 Gowan is a deputy prosecuting attorney NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:00:59.400 --> 00:01:01.889 at the King County prosecutors office. NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:01:01.890 --> 00:01:03.610 Who focuses on trafficking NOTE Confidence: 0.9140852 00:01:03.610 --> 00:01:04.900 cases, the relationship NOTE Confidence: 0.93165356 00:01:04.900 --> 00:01:08.350 between a trafficker and a victim. NOTE Confidence: 0.93165356 00:01:08.350 --> 00:01:09.894 Is oftentimes very familiar. NOTE Confidence: 0.93165356 00:01:09.894 --> 00:01:12.210 We see family members trafficking each NOTE Confidence: 0.93165356 00:01:12.276 --> 00:01:14.466 other romantic partners or boyfriends. NOTE Confidence: 0.93165356 00:01:14.470 --> 00:01:16.098 Sex trafficking is traumatic. NOTE Confidence: 0.93165356 00:01:16.098 --> 00:01:17.726 There's so much trauma NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:17.730 --> 00:01:19.362 that happens to someone NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:19.362 --> 00:01:20.586 who experiences life. NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:20.590 --> 00:01:22.222 It is just unbelievable. NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:22.222 --> 00:01:23.038 Bretman says. NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:23.040 --> 00:01:24.668 Situations often involve violence, NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:24.668 --> 00:01:26.703 and it's usually at the NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:26.710 --> 00:01:28.338 hands of buyers, often NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:28.338 --> 00:01:30.373 at the hands of buyers. NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:30.380 --> 00:01:32.420 So many people think, oh, NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:32.420 --> 00:01:35.292 this is all the the pimp or the NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:35.292 --> 00:01:37.729 trafficker who's creating the violence, NOTE Confidence: 0.9232565 00:01:37.730 --> 00:01:39.690 but it's. Actually, the buyers. NOTE Confidence: 0.93679285 00:01:39.690 --> 00:01:41.838 It's why both experts say the NOTE Confidence: 0.93679285 00:01:41.838 --> 00:01:44.009 solution is stopping the demand and NOTE Confidence: 0.93679285 00:01:44.010 --> 00:01:46.170 say don't do this, it's harmful. NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:48.430 --> 00:01:49.614 So Kelly is here. NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:49.614 --> 00:01:51.390 Both of these experts are working NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:51.451 --> 00:01:53.019 on addressing this problem. NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:53.020 --> 00:01:54.988 What's being done about it, right? NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:54.988 --> 00:01:56.956 So as they just mentioned there, NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:56.960 --> 00:01:58.268 this problem has gotten NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:58.268 --> 00:01:59.576 worse because of COVID. NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:01:59.580 --> 00:02:01.245 Now Bretman's organization is called NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:01.245 --> 00:02:03.863 best and what they do is they help NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:03.863 --> 00:02:05.353 to educate groups like hotels NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:05.353 --> 00:02:07.450 about the signs of sex trafficking. NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:07.450 --> 00:02:09.543 But both tell me there is really NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:09.543 --> 00:02:11.504 an effort to convince people just NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:11.504 --> 00:02:13.828 to stop buying sex as well as NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:13.899 --> 00:02:16.272 an effort to make sure you can NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:16.272 --> 00:02:18.433 enforce those buyers and hold them. NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:18.433 --> 00:02:18.814 Accountable, NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:18.814 --> 00:02:20.338 mainly because it's impossible NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:20.338 --> 00:02:22.439 to know if someone is consensual NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:22.439 --> 00:02:24.347 or if this is sex trafficking. NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:24.350 --> 00:02:27.527 Really, the focus is if there are no buyers, NOTE Confidence: 0.93600595 00:02:27.530 --> 00:02:28.589 there's no business NOTE Confidence: 0.94265574 00:02:28.590 --> 00:02:30.355 wow, so it's happening all NOTE Confidence: 0.94265574 00:02:30.355 --> 00:02:32.120 around us here in Seattle. NOTE Confidence: 0.94265574 00:02:32.120 --> 00:02:34.232 Good to know. People are fighting NOTE Confidence: 0.94265574 00:02:34.232 --> 00:02:36.094 against it. Kelly, thanks.