Las Vegas airport, airline workers learn to spot human trafficking

Every single restroom stall at McCarran International Airport bears the image of a woman crouched in a corner, shielding her face as a man pulls some cash from his wallet.

While it might evoke a certain sadness or shock not commonly associated with traveling, the haunting photo is meant to serve as a subtle beacon for women who may be victims of human trafficking.

Airport and airline workers have attended classes over the past year to spot the signs of human trafficking as a way to prevent men, women and children from being shuffled out of Las Vegas against their will.

“Unfortunately, this is rampant everywhere,” said Rosemary Vassiliadis, director of Clark County’s Aviation Department.

“This is a real issue that is impacting just about every major city in the nation,” Vassiliadis said. “We want to give a message of hope, that you can be saved and there are people you can turn to.”

Dozens of airport employees underwent training last year from Airline Ambassadors, a nonprofit group in Arlington, Virginia, that educates the airline industry on how to recognize human trafficking and when to step in.

The group has offered lessons at more than 50 airports nationwide, including San Francisco, Atlanta and Chicago.

“Victims are being transported for sex or labor every day on airlines,” said Nancy Rivard, a former American Airlines flight attendant who founded Airline Ambassadors in 1996.

“Las Vegas is definitely a transit point for trafficked women and girls who were forced into prostitution,” Rivard said. “There are prostitutes and pimps coming down from Canada every weekend to work in Las Vegas.”

Although McCarran does not have any documented arrests for human trafficking, airport employees learned how to observe behaviors associated with victims who clearly don’t belong with their traveling companion.

The Department of Homeland Security reported that it initiated 1,025 human trafficking cases during the last fiscal year, involving 1,943 arrests, 587 convictions and 435 victims.

Rivard’s group developed the idea of placing human trafficking awareness stickers inside every bathroom stall because it is the one place where victims might have a brief moment of solitude, away from their captors. Posters are also displayed near the baggage claim carousels.

“They can’t have a phone or a piece of paper or a pen,” Vassiliadis said. “But they are in that bathroom long enough to memorize a phone number that they can call for help when they get a chance.”

Marcela Loaiza, a human trafficking survivor who taught some of the lessons at McCarran, said it’s important for airport workers to step in and help when they can.

“I think some of the victims would be surprised by all of the programs and resources that are available to them,” said Loaiza, who now lives in Las Vegas. “I think this program will probably save lives.”

Contact Art Marroquin at amarroquin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0336. Find @AMarroquin_LV on Twitter.