City plans to combat increased trafficking post-Harvey Harvey recovery thought to bring increase in crime

A suspected increase in labor and sex trafficking on the heels of Hurricane Harvey has prompted city officials and advocates to launch an awareness campaign to attempt to protect vulnerable Houstonians.

The city's campaign for trafficking prevention will include billboards, social media outreach and an executive order, according to the mayor's office. Signs that read, "As the water recedes, labor trafficking may rise," have been installed in taxi cabs, and billboards with similar slogans are expected to go up Monday.

"As long as you're displaced, anyone who can offer to take care of your basic needs can potentially take advantage of you," said Minal Patel Davis, the special adviser to the mayor on human trafficking. "As long as we're rebuilding, there is potential for labor trafficking."

Research shows that both sex and labor trafficking rise after natural disasters, according to Mayor Sylvester Turner's office. Traffickers try to lure their victims with offers of food and housing and then make them pay by stripping, prostitution or manual labor.

Immediately following the storm, a team provided "cot notes" with details of what potential traffickers might say to residents sheltered at the George R. Brown Convention Center and the NRG Center.

Labor trafficking can be more difficult to identify following a natural disaster, Davis said. Residents should watch for signs of force, fraud and coercion, which define all forms of trafficking.

Typical red flags include job offers that provide housing and transportation, but those also have an accepted place in post-Harvey Houston, she said.

"A job offer right now may come with housing and transportation because you're bringing in people from outside of our city to help rebuild," Davis said. "That's what complicates it."

The mayor's office has been working on an executive order to ensure safe labor practices in Houston for the past year, Davis said, but they sped up the process to finalize it in response to Harvey. Turner is expected to sign the order in a few days.

Davis said the order should help ensure that companies contracted by the city follow proper recruitment and labor practices. "A lot of times, it's just about awareness," Davis said. "What we are using is our opportunity to educate the contractors."

The mayor's office also has plans to give money and support so that anti-trafficking organizations can hire people to enhance outreach.

The city will distribute "Harvey cards," with trafficking information and the hotline tip number in 11 languages with the help of groups like Fe y Justicia, The Landing, Children at Risk and United Against Human Trafficking.

Advocates pointed to a spike in online sex ads on backpage.com immediately after Harvey as an indication that sex trafficking is on the rise. The number of sex ads more than doubled from its average of about 150 - reaching 350 in its highest day post-Harvey.

"We responded by using decoy deterrent ads on backpage.com to increase awareness of the consequences of purchasing sex to potential buyers on the website," Children at Risk Staff Attorney Emily Freeborn said.

The nonprofit plans to continue monitoring the site but said ads numbers started decreasing in mid-September.