Former Arizona Cardinal Michael Bankston joins fight to stop human trafficking

Michael Bankston's work with youth opened his eyes to a major issue in the United States, that of sex trafficking of mostly young girls but also boys.

And then, the matter hit home when someone reached out to his daughter through social media, presumably trying to lure her into an in-person meeting, which could have led to many nightmarish outcomes.

Bankston, a former Arizona Cardinals player and current president of the Phoenix chapter of the Pro Football Retired Players Association, was angry. He wanted to confront the stranger face to face. Instead he told law enforcement, and no stranger reached out to his daughter again.

"I got three girls, one boy. The fact is I teach my kids walk with your head up, walk with a purpose, walk with understanding. You've got to have that mentality," Bankston said. "Because if you don't, you will be vulnerable, right?"

Human trafficking is a worldwide matter, and every year millions of people are exploited within and across borders. According to a U.S. State Department report, they are forced to work in factories for little or no pay, harvest crops, work in terrible conditions in mines, construction sites, and fishing boats or work in private homes. Many victims are exploited for commercial sex, adults and children alike.

It's happening everywhere, including the Phoenix area, and is often unseen. Last Sunday at Grand Canyon University's Global Credit Union Arena, community members, law enforcement officials, city leaders and many in the faith community came together for Night of Hope, an annual event that raises awareness about human trafficking and informs people about the signs to look for in a person who might be in that situation and what to do to help end it.

Bankston was among the guest speakers that night, for a cause the NFL has gotten behind. His message to the public was that if you see something, say something.

"There's a number they can reach out to, 877-429-8477, and report if they see something suspicious, that's why we need people to say, to make that proclamation, 'Not in my city.' And it's not just the community leaders, not just athletes, it's everybody in the community that needs to make that statement," Bankston said. "Therefore, if they were aware of any issues, any situations that's happening, even in their communities, they can report it, and we can probably save a lot more lives than we lose."

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With all of the large-scale events held in the greater Phoenix area year after year, from the Super Bowl to the WM Phoenix Open and more, Arizona is high on the list of states with human trafficking cases. Sherrie Cavalari, founder of Red Rover, an organization that fights trafficking and gives victims access to reliable resources, said with each big event comes busloads of young women who are being victimized.

"And with that comes the demand for trafficking, and so they're filling that demand. Because that's what the need is," Cavalari said. "So if they remove the demand, then they remove the problem that's there."

Having an NFL representative like Bankston as part of the fight against trafficking in Arizona means a lot, Cavalari said.

"To have awareness spread by an NFL player is huge, because they have a microphone, and they have a voice that people are going to listen to," she said.

Mike Gowans, lead pastor of Bethel Church in Chandler, was one of many members of the faith community at GCU Sunday.

"I was unaware, I thought this was an international problem, but it's in our backyard. It's in our cities. And once you see something, you can't unsee it. And so seven years ago, we were like, what do we do? And I said well, I've got a lot of colleagues, I got a lot of friends. And they too, need to know, Gowans said. "And so as we started sharing, we decided to come together for a night to bring awareness and out of that was birthed 'Not In Our City.'"

Bankston is preparing for the annual NFL Players Association Leadership Conference, to be held next month in Phoenix. Presidents from all of the chapters of the retired players association are scheduled to attend.

He urged people to get involved in the fight against human trafficking, and isn't the only one with Cardinals ties who has done so recently. Prior to last year's Super Bowl 57 in Phoenix, current Cardinals player Jesse Luketa and former player Markus Golden also served as team spokesmen for the campaign.

"You can't do anything sitting on the sidelines. I won't make a play, I won't be able to tackle Emmitt Smith by sitting on the sidelines," Bankston told the gathering at GCU. "So I had to get in the game."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Michael Bankston, former Arizona Cardinal, shares anti-trafficking message