Trump words hurt fight against human trafficking
BY KATE IRBY
kirby@mcclatchy.com
February 09, 2018 06:00 AM
Updated February 09, 2018 02:18 PM
The U.S. government’s efforts to fight human trafficking are stronger than ever, according to the Justice Department. But those working with victims on the ground say there’s a new problem: President Donald Trump’s anti-immigrant rhetoric.
“It’s always been difficult, but what has changed is under previous administrations, the enforcement priority has been those who have committed crimes and other bad actors,” said Jean Bruggeman, executive director of Freedom Network USA, an alliance of 32 organizations that work to prevent trafficking. “We used to tell immigrant communities that if you’re a victim of a crime, you should not fear coming forward. We can no longer say that.”
The increased fear of law enforcement became clear in a survey sent out last year by advocacy organizations. Three-fourths of respondents -- 715 advocates and attorneys from across the country -- said they had clients who worried about contacting the police or going to court against their abusers, while 62 percent said immigration-related anxiety expressed by survivors had increased under Trump.
“Survivors are concerned that they will be detained if they make a police report or call 911,” one survey respondent wrote. “A 16-year-old survivor attempted suicide because she was concerned that her offender would report her and her family to ICE.”
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