The Imagine Foundation, a Cleveland-based organization that seeks to raise awareness and present solutions for ending child slavery worldwide and Operation Broken Silence, an organization that works to combat modern day slavery, today released a report entitled, ‘The Cleveland Backpage Report: An Analysis of Human Trafficking and the Online Sex Industry in Northeast Ohio.”  The research examines the connection between commercial sexual exploitation and the online industry and provides recommendations to curb demand and sex trafficking in Ohio.  The report proposed three solutions:  (1) Backpage should immediately close their adult services classified ads, (2) Policy makers are encouraged to continue to pass legislation in Ohio that protects victims and provides harsher penalties for traffickers and johns, and (3) Law enforcement, state services, and NGOs are encouraged to facilitate victim protection through unified rehabilitation efforts, ultimately transforming victims into survivors.

Earlier this year, on August 31, 2011, a group of 46 state attorneys general sent a letter to Backpage.com's lawyers asking that the website either shut down its escort section or disclose the details of its efforts to filter illegal content.

To read the full report, please visit: http://imaginefreedom.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/backpage_report.pdf