Teen Activists Partner with SAFE & SB PAL to Tackle Human Exploitation in Santa Barbara

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - This summer, a group of teen activists is doing more than just volunteering.

They’re learning how to fight human exploitation in their own community.

Through a special internship with SAFE, SB PAL, and the Tzedakah Foundation, these students are getting hands-on experience in advocacy.

“It’s a really great opportunity to just become more aware and spread more awareness of such a prominent issue in our community," said intern Sahithya Saravanan of the Tzedakah SAFE Internship.

“It’s a big topic, especially in Santa Barbara County and my goal is to make sure that youth are aware of this and to spread to schools," said intern Naomi Rowan of the Tzedakah SAFE internship.

After completing leadership training, the interns are launching awareness projects to keep the conversation going.

“Because unfortunately, the age that they are at right now is most prevalent and most common grooming Period for trafficking so I think it’s awesome that they’re making this a conversation," said former detective Valerie Centeno of the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office.

“I’m hoping to spread awareness on social media and clubs at my school and really just target teens and people, my age," said intern Hadley Schmidt of the Tzedakah SAFE Internship.

Teens are taking it a step further by leading a public Q&A with Santa Barbara’s District Attorney and a Sheriff’s detective.

“I think it’s awesome that we’re starting to bring more awareness about it because I don’t think enough people know about it or educated about this topic and this is great that the teens are really wanting to delve into this and educate themselves," said Centeno.

By learning from real cases and working with law enforcement, these teens are helping make Santa Barbara safer, one conversation at a time.