The Association Of Junior Leagues International Launches ABOLISH Movement To Combat Child Sex Trafficking

NEW YORK,  /PRNewswire/ -- On National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, The Association of Junior Leagues International (AJLI)—which has been at the forefront of social reform, identifying problems and finding solutions since 1901—announces the launch of the ABOLISH Movement.

With half of the cases reported to the National Human Trafficking Hotline involving child victims, the ABOLISH Movement is The Junior League's anti-trafficking initiative, intended to unite communities and mobilize individuals in the fight against child sex trafficking and slavery. Started by the Junior League of Tampa in 2014, the award-winning campaign is now being scaled across the Association.

While ABOLISH represents a global and a national movement, the goal is to leverage the experience and expertise of local Junior Leagues tackling the challenge of child sex trafficking at the community level and to serve community partners, policymakers and individuals interested in taking on this fight.

"Individual Junior Leagues have been tackling the issue of human trafficking for nearly two decades," said Susan Danish, CEO and Executive Director of The Junior League. "Through ABOLISH we look to significantly scale impact and spark important conversations about this heinous crime."

The ABOLISH Movement will operate as a collective organization where Leagues will share their experiences to advance best practices for how to recognize child sex trafficking in communities, how to respond to it and who to reach out to. The Leagues also will collaborate on initiatives involving awareness and education, directing services and resources to survivors, as well as partnership-building and advocacy for public policy solutions.

The individual Leagues that are leading the ABOLISH Movement are: The Junior League of Birmingham, AL; The Junior League of Chicago, IL; The Junior League of Portland, OR; The Junior League of Santa Barbara, CA; and The Junior League of Tampa, FL, which originally launched ABOLISH five years ago this month.

In 2011, The Junior League was recognized by the United Nations Association for its work in the space.

To learn more, go to abolishmovement.org.

For media inquiries, please contact Judy Lee at Judy.Lee@mitchcommgroup.com or Jennifer Haile at Jennifer.Haile@mitchcommgroup.com

About The Junior League
Founded in 1901 by New Yorker and social activism pioneer, Mary Harriman, The Junior League is an organization of transformational female leaders who set bold goals, open their circles, disrupt convention and change the conversation for the betterment of civil society. Today, there are Leagues across the United States, Canada, Mexico and the United Kingdom.   

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SOURCE Association of Junior Leagues International