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Kate De La O

Instructor McCann

English 1301.127

14 September 2021

The Problem Hidden In The Shadows – Draft 1

“Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness,” are natural rights that every man, woman,

and child are entitled too and guaranteed under our Constitution. Yet in the United States the

deprivation of these rights often goes unnoticed. There are various forms of human trafficking

“forced labor, sex trafficking, and domestic servitude” (DHS). No matter the class, race, or

gender of a person, everyone is at risk of becoming a victim to human trafficking. The

Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Blue Campaign is an organization that uses their

Facebook account to educate, provide recourses, and create a safe space for citizens to take part

in ending human trafficking.

Department of Homeland Security founded the Blue Campaign in 2010, to raise

awareness to an often-overlooked crime (Farris). Working with national government, law

enforcement, global, and Non-Government Organizations, the Blue Campaign is a large

organization dedicated to educating the public and industries about human trafficking and how to

identify key indicators, along with guidance on how to approach the situation (DHS). During the

creation of the Blue Campaigns logo many elements were taken into consideration. The color

blue is the color internationally associated with human trafficking awareness, signifying “unity,

strength, and innovation” (DHS). Symbolic illustrations of the heart, blindfold, and the thin blue

line all hold significant meaning, representing global anti-human trafficking services (DHS).
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Living in a first world country many Americans tend to assume that nothing detrimental

will happen, creating oblivion to the crisis of human trafficking. Numerous amounts of people

assume that because they live in a higher class, or well-developed community, they are not at

risk of encountering human trafficking. This is where Facebook comes in as a crucial tool used

to expand the DHS Blue Campaign’s message of raising awareness and putting an end to human

trafficking. Posts that contain valuable information are now able to reach thousands of people

and millions more thanks to the easy capability of sharing on social media. Human trafficking

can happen in any way, shape, and form, thus being nearly invisible to the untrained eye. As a

counteract DHS Blue Campaign uses all available social media platforms, along with

presentations provided in communities and schools, to educate citizens about human trafficking.

They go into detail explaining what human trafficking is and the difference between human

trafficking and human smuggling. In addition, they describe the different types of human

trafficking: sex trafficking, forced labor, and domestic servitude, all of which can occur

anywhere from private communities to public areas (DHS).

Using all of Facebook’s media features to their advantage, the DHS Blue Campaign takes

into consideration what and how to present their content. Since the Blue Campaign covers a

sensitive topic, rather than a personal Facebook account, they stay away from using bright colors

and funny contexts in their posts. For example, in the post “Child Domestic Servitude Signs”

(DHS) they use monotone colors when showing a child victim to domestic servitude. They also

take their viewers into consideration by exhibiting a nice home, in a nice neighborhood, making

the video relatable to the majority of its viewers, and expressing how human trafficking can

occur anywhere. There are interceptions throughout the video stating facts, guidance, and

recourses. To draw attention to this text, there is a change in sound too music, engaging the
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audience’s attention. There is also an ombre of light blue and dark blue in the background, with

the light blue in the center of the slide and the darker blue encompassing, thus drawing attention

to the center where the text is located.

The DHS Blue Campaign community on Facebook has grown to 140 thousand members.

All of these people are coming together to learn and take part in ending this violation against

humanity. …
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Works Cited

Department of Homeland Security. “Blue Campaign.” U.S Department of Homeland Security,

www.dhs.gov/blue-campaign/about-blue-campaign. Accessed 10 Sept. 2021.

Farris, Lauren. “Invisible, until Now: Blue Campaign.” Dressember Foundation,

www.dressember.org/blog/invisible-until-now-the-blue-campaign. Accessed 10 Sept.

2021.