As the female prison population in the U.S. grows, women’s jails and prisons are becoming the new hunting grounds for human traffickers.

​When a woman is arrested and charged with a crime, her personal information — including mugshots, criminal records, release dates and addresses — is posted online. Traffickers use this information to handpick their next target and the grooming process begins, as they use their knowledge to send letters and money to female prisoners, promising friendship and assistance upon release.

The Trap, a documentary produced by The Guardian, chronicles this phenomenon.

Following a film screening at 6 p.m., a panel of representatives from the St. Louis community will discuss how this is playing out locally and what we can do about it.

Panelists will include:
- AUSA Dianna R. Collins, human trafficking coordinator and environmental crimes coordinator, Eastern District of Missouri
- Jatonya Clayborn-Muldrow, program director, Gateway Alliance Against Human Trafficking
- Jean Evans, former member of MO House of Representatives and anti-trafficking advocate

The panel will be moderated by April Foster, executive director of Keyway Center for Diversion and Reentry.

RSVP here: https://forms.gle/smyVedAc9v4L8xgs7

This event is organized by Keyway Center for Diversion and Reentry, a nonprofit devoted to assisting and advocating for justice-involved women in the St. Louis area, in partnership with the Gateway Alliance against Human Trafficking.

This is not a program sponsored by or affiliated with St. Louis Public Library.