COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost recently hosted the 2023 Human Trafficking Summit, highlighting his belief that the best way to combat human trafficking is by reducing demand for it. In his opening remarks, Yost stated, “Ohio is a leader in the country at focusing on demand reduction. We’re about freeing victims from captivity. We know our collective efforts are working, but we will continue to fight so that those who solicit sex or compel forced labor know that we are coming for them.” The annual summit, which is in its fourth year, brings together survivors, law enforcement, victim advocates, and community stakeholders from around the state to work towards ending human trafficking.
Since taking office in 2019, Yost has made it a top priority to curb human trafficking. He oversees seven regional law enforcement task forces that operate under the Ohio Organized Crime Investigations Commission (OOCIC) to arrest sex buyers and provide services to victims. The Ohio Attorney General’s Office has also lobbied for legislation that requires offenders to take sex buyer education classes and has provided grants to local courts to set up these programs.
This year’s summit had a renewed focus on the fact that human trafficking encompasses not only sex trafficking but also labor trafficking. Keynote speaker Suleman Masood, a survivor of human trafficking and a member of the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking, spoke about the need to provide services tailored to the needs of survivors. He said, “People don’t understand what it means to be forced into labor because not everyone reports it. The highest category of reported cases should alarm you — but the lowest reported number should alarm you more.” The summit featured 17 workshops and 39 live speakers and was sold out with a combined 1,000 registrants joining in person or online.