Blog

As people throughout the United States continue to deal with the horrific hardships stemming from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma, it is critical that a response to potential human trafficking is part of long-term recovery efforts.

Thank you to all the Polaris partners, supporters and donors who make our work possible. 

In 2016, reports of human trafficking cases in the United States to the Polaris-operated National Human Trafficking Hotline jumped by 37%. As awareness continues to grow, Polaris expects human trafficking reports to increase in 2017.

The most consequential federal law on human trafficking is the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), originally passed in 2000 and reauthorized four times since. The TVPA provides not just the legal foundation to combat trafficking, but also the comprehensive framework dictating the federal government’s response to the crime. This framework is referred to as the “3 P’s”- protection, prosecution, and prevention. In addition, the TVPA contains the the authorizations for the federal funds used to fight trafficking and assist victims and survivors.

The working group assists the Hotline in ensuring that we are serving victims and survivors of trafficking who identify as LGBTQI+ in a compassionate and competent way.

Understanding the nuances and culture of LGBTQ+ targeted violence is necessary in order to eliminate it.

A history of discrimination, violence and poor relationships with law enforcement are only part of the surface of why LGBTQ individuals do not or cannot report their trafficking situations.

Need more encouragement to run in our 5K next month? We can think of at least 5 reasons to dust off your running shoes.

Polaris recently began a collaboration with the Mexican consular network to exchange information and knowledge that will strengthen our respective efforts to support survivors.