MJHTTF recognizes outstanding achievements to end human trafficking, promote survivors’ rights
In a private, pandemic-safe ceremony held Jan. 28, 2021, at the Family Peace Center, the Milwaukee Joint Human Trafficking Task Force (MJHTTF) held its inaugural awards event to recognize individuals and organizations for outstanding work in the field of anti-human trafficking and exploitation. Awards recipients were selected for demonstrating notable efforts to combat human trafficking, promote victims’ rights and hold offenders accountable.
Human trafficking involves using force, fraud or coercion either to obtain a commercial sex act or involuntary servitude, debt bondage or slavery. Trafficking is a major concern in Wisconsin with victims ranging in age, gender and race who live in rural communities, urban areas and suburbs throughout the Midwest and beyond.
The task force bestowed the awards to help raise awareness for the issue of human trafficking and exploitation and to express gratitude to those who have made many sacrifices to help trafficking victims find freedom, justice and healing.
This year’s award recipients include:
Sarah Demerath, Survivor Advocate for Convergence Resource Center - 2021 Woman of Valor Award
LaShawndra Vernon, CEO and Executive Director of Artists Working in Education - 2021 Creator of Change Award
Rachel Monaco-Wilcox, Founder of LOTUS Legal Clinic - 2021 Trailblazer Award
Assistant United States Attorney Karine Moreno-Taxman - 2021 International Justice Award
Milwaukee Police Department Sensitive Crimes Division, Human Trafficking Unit – 2021 Leadership Award
2021 Woman of Valor Award
Sarah Demerath, Survivor Advocate and Artist for Convergence Resource Center
The Woman of Valor Award recognizes outstanding achievement in empowering victims and survivors of trafficking.
Sarah Demerath was named 2021 Woman of Valor because of her outstanding work empowering trafficking victims. As a human trafficking survivor, Sarah has survived a life that many people don’t even know exist. Through her own experiences, Sarah helps and inspires others on their healing journey. Sarah volunteers relentlessly to help victims find hope, healing and resilience.
2021 Creator of Change Award
LaShawndra Vernon, CEO and Executive Director of Artists Working in Education
The Creator of Change Award recognizes outstanding efforts in the area of creating change in the community, mindsets and procedures regarding human trafficking.
LaShawndra Vernon has spent much of her career driving awareness and change for human trafficking in Milwaukee. A co-founder and former chairwoman of the Human Trafficking Task Force of Greater Milwaukee, it was LaShawndra who first identified Milwaukee as a hub for larger cities in the Midwest to traffic children. She has worked tirelessly to develop measurement and reporting standards for human trafficking to identify areas of greatest need and to strategically deploy resources. LaShawndra has sparked much-needed change in procedure, attitude and education about trafficking and routinely brings together community members, bridges gaps and overcomes obstacles for the greater good. Her outstanding efforts have had a tremendous influence on the community, law enforcement and legislation.
2021 Trailblazer Award
Rachel Monaco-Wilcox, Founder of LOTUS
The Trailblazer Award recognizes excellence in establishing a trail regarding legal assistance for trafficking victims and survivors so they may heal and live a life with less judgment and more freedom.
Rachel Monaco-Wilcox is a pioneer in the field of helping trafficked and underserved survivors. At a time when many members of the community and criminal justice system were first learning about human trafficking, Rachel was an active advocate, giving victims a voice and inspiring others to do the same. She founded LOTUS (Legal Options for Trafficked and Underserved Survivors), Wisconsin’s first nonprofit legal clinic exclusively devoted to serving victims of trafficking and exploitation. Through LOTUS, she seeks to empower survivors, provide trauma-informed legal advocacy and drive public policy initiatives, training and prevention. Her Untold Stories series helps survivors express their feelings through creative writing and art. She has created an amazing trail for others to follow and expand on. This trail will help others in the community become who they want to be instead of who they were told they are.
2021 International Justice Award
Assistant United States Attorney Karine Moreno-Taxman
The International Justice Award recognizes outstanding achievement in anti-human trafficking and the efforts to eradicate trafficking in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and throughout the world.
Assistant United States Attorney Moreno-Taxman has a long history of fighting for victims of human trafficking, not only in Milwaukee, but internationally. Her knowledge and dedication advocating for justice on behalf of trafficking survivors has created a ripple effect of change and positivity worldwide. Assistant U.S. Attorney Moreno-Taxman has successfully prosecuted traffickers in federal court for crimes related to sexual exploitation, and in the process, empowers victims to stand up to their abusers.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Moreno-Taxman’s impact on human trafficking is global. In the U.S., she convicted a notorious sex trafficker, ending a decades-long, multi-state operation and secured a conviction and 18-year federal sentence against another prolific criminal, known for his particularly violent tactics trafficking women. Assistant U.S. Attorney Moreno-Taxman also was part of a federal indictment against five defendants who trafficked Mexican immigrants from Georgia to Wisconsin for the purpose of forced labor. Assistant U.S. Attorney Moreno-Taxman was instrumental in establishing Mexico's nationwide "Alerta Amber" system to publicize and locate missing and exploited Mexican children, many of whom are trafficking victims. She also established Victim-Witness Services for trafficking victims in Malaysia.
2021 Leadership Award
Milwaukee Police Department Sensitive Crimes Division, Human Trafficking Unit
The Leadership Award recognizes outstanding achievement in establishing a unit specifically trained to collaboratively identify and assist victims of trafficking with a victim-centered approach, as well has hold offenders accountable so that they can no longer enslave others.
The Milwaukee Police Department recognizes human trafficking is a problem in Milwaukee and has taken steps to combat it with a dedicated team that’s qualified, trained and committed to a victim-centered approach. Few departments have one officer assigned to investigate trafficking, but MPD leads the way with a dedicated team: the Milwaukee Police Department Sensitive Crimes Division, Human Trafficking Unit. The Human Trafficking Unit is a major step forward for law enforcement to ensure safety in our communities and especially the youth within it.
The team exhibits true leadership and collaboration, setting an example other police departments should follow. The Milwaukee Police Department Sensitive Crimes Division, Human Trafficking Unit is staffed by Sergeant Lisa Saffold, Sergeant Theresa Janick, Officer Erin Wozniak, Detective Anna Ojdana, Detective Rodney Gonzales, Analyst Manuel Gutierrez and Advocate Maria Rozek. Their dedication, collaboration and innovation is instrumental in prosecuting offenders and assisting human trafficking victims in Milwaukee.
About the Milwaukee Joint Human Trafficking Task force
The Milwaukee Joint Human Trafficking Task Force (MJHTTF) is an Enhanced Collaborative Model (ECM) task force that uses a multidisciplinary team of experts to combat human trafficking in a victim-centered way. The experts on this task force consist of law enforcement of all levels, non-government organizations and legal services. MJHTTF uses a collaborative approach to combat all forms of human trafficking—sex trafficking and labor trafficking—of foreign nationals and U.S. citizens of all sexes and ages within the United States. The task force uses victim-centered and coordinated approaches to identifying victims of all types of human trafficking, addressing the individualized needs of victims through quality services, and investigating and prosecuting human trafficking cases at the local, state, tribal, and federal levels. Visit http://www.mjhttf.org/ for more information. Sojourner is a member of the MJHTTF.