Observe Human Trafficking Prevention Month with SDHC

January 4, 2025

Every year since 2010, the President of the United States has declared January as National Human Trafficking Prevention Month. During this time, the U.S. Department of State raises awareness of human trafficking domestically and abroad, and individuals and organizations throughout the country educate the public about how to identify and prevent this crime.

In South Dakota, much of the focus of this month is on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Persons, with SDHC doing its part to bring attention to the crisis.

This week, SDHC’s Humanities Café program featured “Human Trafficking Awareness Month: Addressing the MMIP Crisis” with Tanya Grassel-Krietlow, SDHC Board Member and FAST Coordinator for the South Dakota Network Against Family Violence & Sexual Assault, and Lily Mendoza, 2024 Bush Fellow and Founder of the Red Ribbon Skirt Society. This discussion, which focused on MMIP cases and challenges in South Dakota, is available to view on SDHC’s YouTube channel.

Because two major interstate highways – I-29 and I-90 – intersect in the state, the U.S. Department of Justice lists South Dakota as a major pipeline for sex trafficking, and many of those affected are Indigenous. In fact, 68% of missing women in the state are Native American, and all six of the most recently reported missing persons cases involve Natives.

Supported by funding through “United We Stand: Connecting through Culture,” a special initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities, SDHC has offered a variety of programs to address MMIP issues over the past 16 months, ranging from sessions at the 2023 Festival of Books to grassroots events at libraries across the state. SDHC has also added several MMIP-related titles to its Book Club to Go library.

For more information and resources about MMIP issues in the state and region, visit these sites:

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