Ricky Martin Tackles Trafficking

By David Jenison

September 25, 2009 / tonic.com

Ricky Martin has always been one of the most outspoken stars in combating child trafficking, so it's only natural the Grammy-winning artist participate in a breakout session at the Clinton Global Initiative. Martin served as a presenter for "Human Capital Breakout Sessions: Leadership and Solutions to End Human Trafficking and Forced Labor."

"It's a privilege to celebrate the achievements of other activists that combat modern day slavery," said Martin in a statement. "To participate in such an important forum is a win-win situation for the cause. Wills unite and we promote that action to eradicate this crime is the common goal."

The singer formed the Ricky Martin Foundation for this very purpose, to combat trafficking. He has been very active for the cause, addressing the U.S. Congress' House International Relations Committee in 2006 and the United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking in 2008. He also partnered with the Inter-American Development Bank and the International Organization for Migration to create Call and Live, the first regional campaign to fight trafficking in the Americas. The Foundation is even working with the University of Puerto Rico and John Hopkins on the first comprehensive investigations into child exploitation.

As far as getting involved, Martin told this writer last year, "Oh man, log onto the website and read what is going on and I swear, with all the information that's in there, you will find something to do. Just talking about it and creating awareness is a good start. I can't tell you what to do. It has to be born from within, like it started with me."