Human trafficking outcry lacking
In 2015, Alaska Dispatch News published five articles relating to domestic sex trafficking, yet public outcry is minimal. In 2013, the Alaska Task Force on Human Trafficking found there are very limited services for sex trafficking victims and noted they are often mislabeled as domestic violence, rape or sexual assault victims. Furthermore, the Anchorage Police Department and FBI reported that, in Alaska, the average age a girl enters the trafficking trade is 15 to 17. With limited resources or support from the public the reality for these women and girls is a life of manipulation, coercion, forced sex, sexually transmitted diseases, poverty, mental health and addiction issues (to name a few). Hillary Clinton highlighted in a State Department report, "These victims of modern slavery … their stories remind us of what kind of inhumane treatment we are still capable of as human beings."
We the people can still create change and provide hope to these individuals, these children. Community members, I encourage you to become more informed about what is happening in our backyards. In addition, find it in your hearts to support organizations, such as Grace Alaska, that are forming as stewards of hope on the front lines.
Remember the words of Albert Einstein: "The world is not dangerous because of those who do harm but because of those who look at it without doing anything."
-- Katelyn McClelland
Anchorage
Climate action starts with individuals
In the past, climate change has been hotly debated and outright ignored. Today, Alaska communities are witnessing the effects of climate change firsthand. Warming temperatures, increased forest fires, melting permafrost, rising sea levels and rapid erosion are just some of the impacts we are dealing with in our backyard. Climate change is threatening not only our protected places, but the places where we work, play, live and thrive.
Oil developers, and the government they have bankrolled, continue to pit environmentalists against development. This portrayal of the climate movement is too simplistic, it disregards the most vital voices, those of individuals. The climate movement is for all community members who want to change the development dependent rhetoric; to strive towards an open discussion that showcases economic diversity, cultural integrity and environmental stability. As Alaskans, it is important to join as a community and tell our climate stories, finding a new path forward. The time to act is now!
-- Jessica Girard
Fairbanks
The views expressed here are the writers' own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a letter for consideration, email letters@alaskadispatch.com, or click here to submit via any web browser. Submitting a letter to the editor constitutes granting permission for it to be edited for clarity, accuracy and brevity. Send longer works of opinion to commentary@alaskadispatch.com.