As Drea d’Nur approached the grounds of the former Lumpkin’s Jail, one of the largest slave holding areas in United States history in Shockoe Bottom known as the “Devil’s Half-Acre,” she was moved to sing a song of freedom to a group of activists gathered there.

Ms. d’Nur, a musical artist, is a part of The FreeTHEM Walk, a group of about a dozen human rights activists walking nearly 1,000 miles from Lynchburg to Buffalo, N.Y., to raise awareness about human trafficking, a crime the United Nations characterizes as modern-day slavery.

The group left Lynchburg on May 3 and made one of its first stops on May 7 in Richmond at the White House of the Confederacy in Downtown and the Lumpkin’s Jail site, where thousands of enslaved people were held before being bought and sold from the 1830s through the Civil War.

The visit was both powerful and emotional, with group members tying the freedom quest of their ancestors with their current effort to help end human trafficking and the misery that has ensnared more than 40 million people in forced labor and sexual exploitation, according to the U.N.’s International Labour Organization.

Since December 2007, more than 63,380 cases of human trafficking have been reported in the United States, according to the National Human Trafficking Hotline. In Virginia, 189 cases have been reported so far this year.

Kelly Diane Galloway, organizer of The FreeTHEM Walk, is founder and president of RAMP Global Missions, a Christian-based organization focused on helping exploited people. She said in addition to raising awareness about human trafficking, the walk also aims to raise money for Project Mona’s House in Lynchburg to support survivors of human trafficking and sexual abuse with housing, counseling and other services.

“I believe one of the personal responsibilities of our legislators and public officials is to educate themselves about what human trafficking looks like and, from there, we can start to address the systematic issues that happen in Black and brown communities,” Ms. Galloway said.

The walkers have met with local activists along the route that will take them to NewYork with planned stops at historic sites along the Underground Railroad.

In Richmond, civil rights advocate Tavorise K. Marks joined Ms. Galloway and the walkers to talk about the journey and the goals of the walk.

Mr. Marks talked about how modern-day slavery affects communities like Richmond with large Black and brown populations.

“Data and statistics across this country suggest the areas that are heavily targeted by human traffickers are Black and brown communities,” Mr. Marks said. “I think what makes this movement different from any other is that it’s really shining a light on an issue that has been overlooked for years.”

As The FreeTHEM Walk continues, Ms. Galloway said she hopes people are moved by their efforts. The group aims to reach Buffalo, N.Y., and the nearby home of abolitionist Harriet Tubman, who led groups of enslaved people to freedom, by Juneteenth, the June 19 holiday celebrating the end of slavery in the United States.

Although Juneteenth is a celebration of freedom, Ms. Galloway said there are still people around the world who are not free because of human trafficking. She said The FreeTHEM Walk will continue to advocate on their behalf because “none of us are free until we’re all free.”