More trafficking victims turn to hotline with pleas for help

AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin

Many Americans know little about the National Human Trafficking Hotline beyond public service ads providing its phone number. Yet anti-trafficking experts say it performs well at two vital roles: as a conduit for people to report suspected trafficking and as an immediate resource for trafficking victims who need help.

The anti-trafficking nonprofit that runs the hotline attributes the rise in calls to increased awareness of the hotline and its confidentiality policy. Polaris says they want explore expanding to social media.

The hotline operates 24 hours a day, 365 a year. Callers can speak with hotline staffers in English or Spanish, or in more than 200 additional languages using an interpreting service.

As of December, the hotline will have been operating in its current form for 10 years.