Trafficking of women is subject of presentation

Eglantina Gjermeni, a Grand Valley alumna and an international expert on the trafficking of women, will return to her alma mater on Monday, April 5, to speak to students and the public about the twin evils of kidnapping and prostitution facing women in Eastern Europe and elsewhere in the world.

Gjermeni's presentation, 'Life Sold on Sidewalks: The Trafficking of Women in Eastern Europe,' begins at 6 p.m. April 5 at the DeVos Center's Loosemore Auditorium, 401 W. Fulton St. in Grand Rapids. She will present a documentary and discuss what trafficking is, factors that create it, and what is being done to prevent and combat it. Her presentation is open to the public free of charge.

Gjermeni, a professor in the School of Social Work at the University of Tirana, Albania, and director of the Women's Center in Tirana, has worked and lectured extensively on this issue. She recently appeared on an ABC broadcast of '20/20' discussing the threat to young girls of being captured in Eastern Europe and trafficked throughout Western Europe.

Gjermeni attended Grand Valley in the 1980s as part of a faculty exchange program with the University of Tirana, which was just beginning its own social work department. She received her master's of social work from Grand Valley in 1998. Gjermeni will visit classes at Grand Valley April 5-7 and also speaks about the status of women in Eastern Europe, violence against women in Eastern Europe, Albanian culture, and the role of the media in shaping perceptions of women. Her visit is sponsored by the GVSU School of Social Work.

For more information, contact David Lehker, GVSU School of Social Work, at 331-6550 or [email protected].

Trafficking Facts: According to the U.S. fact sheet 'Trafficking in Persons Annual Report,' government estimates place the number of people trafficked annually across international borders worldwide at 800,000 to 900,000. An estimated 18,000 to 20,000 people are trafficked to the U.S. each year. The U.S. government has invested over $100 million in programs to address prevention, protection and assistance to victims, and prosecution of traffickers for 92 countries around the world.