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LOCAL
The Champion, Thursday, June 25 - July 1, 2015
County to spread word about human trafficking hotline
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THE NJATfOfJAl HUMAid
TMFFIC-IC(nJG HoTUiJE
by Andrew Cauthen
andrew@dekalb champ, com
“Are you or someone
you know being sold for sex
or made/forced to work for
little or no pay and cannot
leave?”
That’s what patrons of
adult entertainment estab
lishments, bars and hospitals
will see posted in the public
restrooms.
The signs will urge the
reader to call the National
Human Trafficking Re
source Center at l-(888)
373-7888 for help.
“All victims of slavery
and human trafficking have
rights and are protected by
international, federal, and
state law,” the sign will state.
“The hotline is: (1) Anony
mous and confidential; (2)
Available 24 hours a day,
seven days a week; (3) Able
to provide help, referral to
services, training, and gen
eral information; (4) Acces
sible in 170 languages; (5)
Operated by a nonprofit,
nongovernmental organiza
tion; and (6) Toll free.”
The signs will be posted
throughout DeKalb County
by volunteers on June 27 as
part of campaign to increase
awareness of human traf
ficking.
Human trafficking is a
“crime [that] occurs when a
trafficker uses force, fraud
or coercion to control an
other person for the purpose
of engaging in commercial
sex acts or soliciting labor
or services against his/her
will,” according to the Na
tional Human Trafficking
Resource Center.
Just this year, the center’s
hotline has received more
than 5,200 calls. Nationally
more than 1,300 human
trafficking cases have been
reported. In Georgia there
have been 39 cases reported.
The National Human
Trafficking Resource Center
reports that “Sex traffick
ing has been found in...
residential brothels, escort
services, fake massage busi
nesses, strip clubs, and street
prostitution.
“Labor trafficking has
been found in diverse labor
settings, including, domes
tic work, small businesses,
large farms, and factories,”
according to the center’s
website.
“Every year, human
traffickers generate bil
lions of dollars in profits
by victimizing millions of
people in the United States
and around the world,” ac
cording the center’s website.
“Traffickers are estimated
to exploit 20.9 million vic
tims, with an estimated 1.5
million victims in North
America alone.”
“DeKalb County repre
sentatives have been going
out into our community...
educating citizens on the
modern-day slave trade
called human trafficking,”
said Erica Williams, spe
cial projects coordinator in
DeKalb County’s human
development department.
“A lot of people don’t really
know about it and primar
ily didn’t know that it’s right
here in our backyard.
“What we’ve decided
to do in addition to police
efforts is to come up with
a grassroots, critical mass,
visible campaign that people
can actually see,” Williams
said.
Georgia House Bill 141,
passed in September 2013,
requires certain businesses
to post a sign about the
rights of victims of human
trafficking.
Businesses required by
state law to post the signs
include adult entertainment
establishments, bars, pri
mary airports, truck stops,
passenger rail or light rail
stations, bus stops, emer
gency rooms within general
acute care hospitals, urgent
care centers, farm labor
contractors and day haulers,
privately operated job re
cruitment centers, rest areas
along interstate highways,
hotels and establishments
that offer massage or body
work services by a person
who is not a massage thera
pist.
The signs must be
posted in “each public re
stroom for the business
establishment and either in
a conspicuous place near
the public entrance of the
business or establishment
or in another conspicuous
location in clear view of the
public and employees where
similar notices are custom
arily posted,” the law states.
The law includes penal
ties from $500 to $5,000 for
noncompliance.
In DeKalb County, the
signs also will be posted in
parks and recreation centers.
After June 27, county
representatives will develop
a plan for keeping the man
dated businesses in compli
ance, Williams said.
Brookhaven city manager
alleges former mayor
retaliated against her
by Carla Parker
carla@dekalbchamp.com
Brookhaven City Manager
Marie Garrett said former
Mayor J. Max Davis created
a “hostile work environment”
for her, according to docu
ments obtained by The Cham
pion.
According to an email
sent March 18 to Human Re
sources Director Rick Stone,
Garrett said she began seeing
“retaliatory behavior” by Da
vis toward her after comments
she made to another news
publication regarding Davis
hiring an employee. While in
Washington, D.C. for a may
ors’ conference, Garrett said
she told Davis in a phone call
that she would not he about
the employee and that Davis
did hire the employee.
“He continued to coach
me to say that he did not hire
her, which I told him was
not true,” Garrett said in the
email. “At the time he hired
[said employee], he told me
he had the full support of the
council, of which I learned
later not one council member
knew about the mayor’s hir
ing, which is a direct violation
of the city’s charter.
“He has demeaned me in
public regarding tourism dol
lars in an open council meet
ing on my report as to how
they [touring dollars]should
See Mayor on page 17A
Notice of Property Tax Increase
The City of Stone Mountain has tentatively adopted a millage
rate which will require an increase in property taxes by
9.09% percent. All concerned citizens are invited to a public
hearing on this tax increase to be held at City Hall, 875 Main
Street, Stone Mountain, GA 30083 on Monday, July 7, 2015
at 7:00 p.m.
The tentative increase will result in a millage rate of 20.9
mils, an increase of 1.742 mils. Without this tentative tax
increase, the millage rate will be no more than 19.158 mils.
The proposed tax increase for a home with a fair market
value of $50,000 is approximately $31.84 and the proposed
tax increase for non-homestead property with a fair market
value of $75,000 is approximately $52.26.