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HUMAN TRAFFICKING EXPERT TO SPEAK AT TCC JAN. 30
Free program will detail growth of trafficking in women and implications for the region

HAMPTON ROADS, Va. – (Jan. 4, 2006) – The buying and selling of human beings remains a global reality, including in the United States. To help raise awareness of human trafficking in the 21st century, Tidewater Community College’s Women’s Center and the World Affairs Council of Greater Hampton Roads will host a free talk and discussion at 7 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 30, in the Advanced Technology Center on TCC’s Virginia Beach Campus.

International Trafficking in Women: A Contemporary Manifestation of Slavery will be presented by Amy O’Neill Richard, senior adviser in the U.S. State Department’s Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons. Richard was recently honored with the State Department’s 2005 Swanee Hunt Award for Advancing Women’s Role in Policy Formulation. In 2001, her groundbreaking report, “International Trafficking in Women to the United States: A Contemporary Manifestation of Slavery and Organized Crime,” earned Richard the State Department’s Warren Christopher Award for Outstanding Achievement in Global Affairs.

Trafficking in persons is among the world’s fastest growing criminal activities. The Trafficking in Persons Office reports that annually 600,000 to 800,000 people, mostly women and children, are trafficked across borders worldwide, with some 14,500 to 17,500 of those brought into the U.S. In her presentation Richard will detail the growth of trafficking in women and what it means for Hampton Roads.

To reserve a seat, call 226-1202 or e-mail worldaffairs@hrwac.org.

Contacts: Kathleen Lennard, World Affairs Council, 226-1202
Laurie White, Tidewater Community College, 822-1085

About the World Affairs Council of Greater Hampton Roads
Founded in 1969, the World Affairs Council of Greater Hampton Roads is a preeminent source of information on international affairs in southeast Virginia. With vast port and harbor facilities, eight colleges and universities, major military installations and unique, coastal tourist attractions, Hampton Roads, consisting of the cities of Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Hampton, Newport News and Suffolk, is a hub for international trade. The council’s programs attract over 4,000 attendees per year, and the council subsidizes the attendance of over 400 students per year at its events.

About Tidewater Community College
Tidewater Community College is the second largest of the 23 community colleges in the Commonwealth of Virginia, enrolling more than 36,000 students annually. The 37th largest in the nation’s 1,600 community-college network, TCC ranks among the 50 fastest-growing large community colleges. Founded in 1968 as a part of the Virginia Community College System, the college serves the South Hampton Roads region with campuses in Chesapeake, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Virginia Beach as well as the TCC Jeanne and George Roper Performing Arts Center in the theater district in downtown Norfolk, the Visual Arts Center in Olde Towne Portsmouth and a regional Advanced Technology Center in Virginia Beach. Forty-four percent of the region’s residents attending a college or university in Virginia last fall were enrolled at TCC. For more information, visit www.tcc.edu.