8:00- 9:00am
Registration and breakfast

9:00- 9:20am
Welcome Speech- Brittany Heenan, Shannon Montanez and Ashley Crimaldi, members of Stop Traffic

9:30-10:15 am
Human Trafficking 101 Presentation given by members of The Central Missouri Stop Human Trafficking Coalition, and Stop Traffic.

10:30-11:15 am
Law Enforcement Panel

11:30- 12:30 pm
Lunch (provided)

12:30- 1:45 pm
“Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC), and the Impact of Trafficking on Human Beings”
Mark Rodgers

2:00-3:00 pm
Fair Trade Products Panel
Jessica Canfield and Mark Haime

3:15-4:45 pm
Documentary Film, TBA

5:00- 5:45 pm
Trauma Therapy: Working with Victims of Human Trafficking
Shelly Evans

6:00-7:30 pm
Dinner (provided)

7:30-8:30 pm
Keynote Speaker
Mimi Chakarova, photojournalist
To view Chakarova’s work, including her photo slideshow, “The Price of Sex” visit www.mclight.com

8:30pm-9:00 pm
Closing Remarks, Thank You (members of Stop Traffic)

Stop Traffic will be hosting the 2010 Stop Traffic Now Conference on Saturday February 27th, 2010.

The full day conference will include speakers, panels and workshops that will increase our understanding of Human Trafficking as a international crime and a local problem worthy of our attention, time and support. We hope to focus on how students, community members, law enforcement officers and social service providers can come together in combating human trafficking in our local community.

We are especially excited to announce our keynote speaker, Mimi Chakarova. Chakarova is a documentary photographer who has worked for several years documenting the sex trafficking of women in Eastern Europe. Chakarova’s work has appeared in National Geographic, The New York Times magazine, The Atlantic Monthly, CBS News 60 minutes and PBS Frontline among others.

If interested in attending, please fill out the following registration form online here: https://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?formkey=dDFwaFlWVUIwVC1FQTYzNEdGR05tckE6MA. Registration is free to students with valid student ID. Cost is $25 for faculty, staff, community members and other professionals. The fee includes three meals, and all activities for the full day. Please mail checks to:

ATTN: Stop Traffic

2500 MU Student Center

Columbia, MO 65211

Please assist us in spreading the word! Tentative schedule to be posted ASAP.

The conference will run from 9am-9pm with registration and breakfast beginning at 8am.

Keynote speaker begins at 7pm.

Hello All,

 Stop Traffic is hosting a dance marathon on Saturday September 19th from 6pm to 2am at the Cherry Street Artisan. A great opportunity to dance the night away, and meet some amazing people too! A donation of $5 dollars will be accepted. Drink and food bar will also be available for purchase.

• Students from Rock Bridge High School will be hosting a screening of “Very Young Girls” to raise money for GEMS. The film will be shown on August 13 from 6-9 in Stotler Lounge, Memorial Union, on the MU Campus. Discussion will follow. Stop Traffic and CMSHTC will be co-hosting.
• GEMS (Girls Educational and Mentoring Services) was founded in 1999 by Rachel Lloyd, who was sexually exploited as a teenager. The organization seeks to empower, protect, and rehabilitate U.S girls age 12-21. GEMS seeks to end commerical exploitation of children at the local, state, and national level  and advocates  policies that support traffick victims.
• “Very Young Girls” depicts the stories of underage girls in New York who are forced into Prostitution. The documentary also reveals the methods used by the pimps to keep the girls physically and emotionally dependent. Many of the girls who are interviewed are involved in GEMS.

CALL+RESPONSE is a first of its kind feature documentary film that reveals the world’s 27 million dirtiest secrets: there are more slaves today than ever before in human history.

Stop Traffic’s Spring Symposium is here! On February 13, come meet professionals working to end human trafficking and collaborate with community members on efforts to end modern slavery. This will be the day to expose the realities of slavery in our world today, and the time to find out what we all can do to stop it!

See our Events page for more details on the Spring Symposium.

Also on our Events page, you will find information on the “Telling Stories, Changing Lives” events with Former Child Soldier and Author Ishmael Beah, and Storyteller and Human Rights Activist Laura Simms, February 18 – 21, 2009.

If you would like to join Stop Traffic, come to one of our meetings. Starting January 28, Stop Traffic’s meetings are every other Wednesday at 8pm in Memorial Union N232.

On December 10, the Central Missouri Stop Human Trafficking Coalition (CMSHTC) is hosting an event on human trafficking and how it affects Central Missouri. Stop Traffic is a member of the Coalition, and we’d love to see you there.

Take a look at the flyer below for more information.

STOP THE TRAFFIK are calling people from all countries around the world to unite during last week of November 2008 to celebrate a mutual love for chocolate while at the same time joining together, sharing the message with friends, family and neighbours, calling for the end of child trafficking in the manufacture of our chocolate. Find out more at http://www.stopthetraffik.org/fondueparty

Stop Traffic Variety Show: A Collective Effort to End Slavery
Friday, November 7 at 7pm
Mark Twain Ballroom, Mem. Union

Members of Stop Traffic are working hard to bring artists, poets, dancers, and designers together for an incredible variety show! West African Dance, Belly Dance, House of VanSickle Clothing, Spoken Word Poetry, and a variety of other talents will be featured. There will also be a silent auction at the event, where local artists and craftspeople’s merchandise will be sold. Admission is $5 for students and $7 for community members. Proceeds go to Stop Traffic and the Central Missouri Stop Human Trafficking Coalition. Join us, and put an end to modern-day slavery.

I have recently moved to LA for work. While here I had the privilege of attending the screening of “Call and Response” at Sony Studios last week. It was rather serendipitous, as the company I now work for edited the film.

I can say from experience that this film is incredibly moving. The musical performances were powerful and inspiring. The information presented was enlightening and aesthetically pleasing.

One of the greatest aspects of the film was the hopeful mood. Obviously human trafficking is a tragic and terrible occurrence, but the film expresses the possibility of salvation for millions of victims around the world if we take action.


I took a couple of friends who were unfamiliar with the concept of human trafficking, and upon the completion of the film they were profoundly impacted. They were shocked and wanted to do something about it.


This film is a must-see. Keep on the look out for showings during the nationwide release in October. We will make sure to list theaters and show times here when they are made available.