Saint Michael and All Angels Episcopal Church will present Fighting for Freedom: A Symposium on Human Trafficking to educate and broaden the base of support to eradicate human trafficking or modern day slavery in our community. This crime occurs when a person is controlled through violence, deception or coercion for commercial sex, forced labor or domestic servitude. Mark and Terry Demler will chair the event. 

The symposium will provide insight into the human trafficking environment, elements within the community fighting this spreading crime and what is needed to extinguish these offences.  On the agenda, experts will share how to recognize the signs of human trafficking and how to rescue and treat these at risk brothers and sisters; most challenging is creating a safe and trusting environment for those in recovery. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton will present Texas' aggressive legislative and criminal justice support and report on the special unit dedicated to combating human trafficking, the Human Trafficking and Transitional Organized Crime (HTTOC) section.  Also headlining the agenda is Becca Stevens, founder of Thistle Farms, a CNN Hero in 2016 and a White House "Champion of Change". 

Lunch will be provided by In-N-Out Burger. Artifacts representing human trafficking will be on display. Agencies working on the human trafficking issue will be on location to share their  expertise.