Capaha Park to host walk 'to abolish slavery'

Capaha Park in Cape Girardeau is set to host one of more than 400 walks in 50 countries during a worldwide initiative Saturday � set forth by not-for-profit organization A21 � aiming to bring awareness to the prevalence of human trafficking.

The walk begins at 10 a.m., with registration at 9 a.m.

According to its website, A21�s mission is to �abolish slavery everywhere, forever.�

Christine Caine and her husband, Nick, founded A21, said local event organizer Lanley Scroggins.

�They focus a lot on sex trafficking, but their organization is about human trafficking,� she said. �So that can be sex trafficking or that can even be labor trafficking, depending on where that may be and with different countries.�

For developing nations, a lot of the problem is labor trafficking, Scroggins said, but labor trafficking can also turn into sex trafficking.

�My heart is with helping to abolish sex trafficking,� she said, �because I just know that there are a lot of people that are caught in the slave trade and are not able to get out of it.�

Scroggins said this is the first year she organized the event, but this will be the fifth year the event has been going on throughout the world.

Scroggins said she is learning a lot this year and is already planning for next year�s walk to include more sponsors and to be �a little bigger than what it will be this year.�

Scroggins said she is hoping for 300 attendees Saturday.

Even though the event is being held to primarily bring awareness to the issue, donations will also be accepted Saturday, she said.

Registration for the walk is free, but participants will be offered an option to donate during registration, along with donations also being accepted the day of the walk.

Kohl�s in Cape Girardeau will be sending five volunteers to help out for about three hours Saturday, Scroggins said, along with a donation of $1,500.

Proceeds from the event, Scroggins said, will go back into the organization to benefit the global cause.

�Sex trafficking happens in every state,� she said, �whether we really think that it�s going on or not.�

And Interstate 55 is a major route for sex trafficking, she said.

�We are asking that people come in all black,� she said. �It is literally for anybody who knows slavery is wrong.�

A21 operates within 14 locations, including Australia, Bulgaria, Denmark, Greece, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, South Africa, Thailand, Ukraine, United Kingdom and the United States.

More information can be found online at www.a21.org.

jhartwig@semissourian.com

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