According to polarisproject.org, it is estimated that about 40.3 million people are human trafficked all over the world at this current moment.

What comes to your mind when you think of places where people are trafficked?

Personally, I think of New York City, Chicago and other big cities like those. Maybe we should actually be worrying about small-towns, like the city of Monroe.

On Facebook a woman named Chelsea DeCorte shared an incident of a man following her, her friend, and her children while in TJ Maxx.

According to DeCorte, the man made a phone call which she believes was to another man outside waiting for them in a Chevrolet truck who then preceded to follow them down the interstate.

Eventually, the two men lost the the women, but it was still a scary incident for these women.

I have lived in the Monroe area all of my life and have never had any issue like this before.

However, as human trafficking becomes more prevalent in the U.S. being kidnapped and trafficked is something that I worry about for me, my sisters and my friends.

As women, we are the most likely, besides children, to be chosen for human trafficking.

Ladies, we are being targeted not only by men, but other women as well, because men use other women as a coy to gain our trust so they can kidnap us.

It is important for us to watch the people we do not know that are around us even if they are women.

What actions should we take to prevent us and those we love from being taken apart by human trafficking?

Personally, I carry maze on my keychain wherever I go. Any time I feel a bit uncomfortable or uneasy with a person in a public place, I can always carefully turn it on.

You should carry some kind of protection with you at all times. Whether it is a gun, maze, a taser or a knife, you should always have some type of weapon to defend yourself.

I have an app on my phone called Life360 which tells my family members where I am at all times even if I am not logged into the app. It can be vital in helping your family members and the police track where you are, if you are ever kidnapped.

Also, if you are ever in a situation where someone is following you or trying to hurt you, you need to scream. It will alert others around you to look in your direction and see what is happening. This will cause the predator to back from their plan and possibly leave the area immediately.

If you do not have a weapon to defend yourself and the kidnapper has your mouth covered, kick, hit, bite and do whatever you possibly can to cause that person to realize choosing you was a mistake and they will back down.

It is upsetting that our society has come to such a low point that we would traffic other humans just for the pleasure of making money and having sex.

We have to continually be aware of our surroundings and who is near us so that we can protect ourselves and our loved ones from the dangers of others and human trafficking even in the Monroe area.