National Beer Wholesalers Association said it successfully trained nearly 24,000 beer distributors from 207 companies to recognize and report signs of human trafficking, surpassing its initial goal to train 10,000 distributors by the end of 2021.
In January alone—National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month—NBWA aimed to train 1,000 workers but far surpassed that goal, training 5,164 instead. Renewing its commitment, NBWA said it now aims to train at least 25,000 distributors by the end of the year—greatly expanding the reach and impact of this life-saving campaign.
Throughout 2020, NBWA collaborated with a bipartisan group of attorney generals across the country to spread awareness about human trafficking and the initiative itself. In March of 2021, NBWA hosted a webinar featuring a bipartisan panel of Attorneys General including Chris Carr (GA), Aaron Ford (NV), Eric Schmitt (MO) and Phil Weiser (CO). These leaders shared insights into how they are combating human trafficking in their states and the role beer distributors can play to protect the most vulnerable. Beer distributors have partnered with eleven state attorneys general offices to promote this important program.
NBWA also partnered with independent organizations and member companies to strengthen the initiative. Street Grace, a community-based organization committed to fighting the sexual exploitation of minors, helped produce the awareness training video and has remained a steadfast partner in the growth and success of the campaign.
Additionally, NBWA has supported distributors in building partnerships with local law enforcement and human rights organizations to strengthen the initiative. In January, Markstein Sales Co. of California joined forces with New Day for Children to illuminate the extent of the issue and identify steps that can be taken by beer distributors and others to fight human trafficking in their communities.
The following month, the Montana Beer & Wine Distributors Association and the LifeGuard Group, an organization specializing in survivor support services for victims of human trafficking, collaborated to launch the Sentinel Project, a locally based initiative to combat human trafficking throughout the state.
“We anticipate continued growth throughout the next five months and are confident our industry will hit our increased target of 25,000 employees trained by the end of the year,” added Craig Purser, NBWA president/CEO. “To do so, we plan to engage more industry and government leaders to continue to educate the public and the workforce on what they can do to combat human trafficking. Ultimately, increased awareness and training directly translates to lives saved from the horrendous crime that is human trafficking.”