Follow us here to stay up to date on human trafficking policy, hear about training opportunities and events, and learn more about what’s happening in the anti-trafficking field.
Melinda Smith |
Human Trafficking and the Super Bowl
It’s that time of year again…..Super Bowl weekend. Every year as the big game approaches, people turn their attention to sex trafficking. Local and national media outlets suggest that large sporting events are linked to spikes in human trafficking. On…
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Melinda Smith |
Response to the Insurrection at the Capitol
A note from our Executive Director: This week has laid bare, again and in ways that more people are forced to recognize, the deep and abiding racism of America. The reaction to a white riot attempting to take control of…
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Freedom Network Community |
Interview with Kate Mogulescu About Landmark Decision
The following is an interview with one of our members Kate Mogulescu who was involved in a landmark decision to free a human trafficking survivor under a new New York State Law. *Thank you to Patrice Smith for giving us…
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Melinda Smith |
FNUSA Welcomes First Cohort of Speaker’s Bureau
We are thrilled to announce the first cohort of the Freedom Network USA (FNUSA) Speakers Bureau. The bureau includes a vetted group of trainers that are available to provide comprehensive live and web-based trainings on the topic of human trafficking.…
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Freedom Network Community |
FNUSA Starts Emergency Survivor Relief Fund
In May 2020, Freedom Network USA (FNUSA) established a fund to help human trafficking survivors in the time of COVID. The FNUSA Human Trafficking Survivor Relief Fund provides emergency financial assistance to survivors who have been negatively impacted by…
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Melinda Smith |
Response to the 2020 Trafficking in Persons Report
The US is no longer an international leader in responding to human trafficking. Today, Freedom Network USA (FNUSA) releases an official response to the 2020 Trafficking in Persons Report. Every year the Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons…
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Jean Bruggeman |
Freedom Network USA Stands in Solidarity
Freedom Network USA stands in solidarity with human rights activists around the world. Black Lives Matter. We are outraged and angered by the killing of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and so many others. Systemic racism, oppression, and discrimination…
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Melinda Smith |
Freedom Network USA (FNUSA) Responds to COVID-19: Recommendations for Funders and Congress
Human trafficking is in part, a financial crime. Survivors often exit the trafficking situation with debt, not financial resources, interrupted education, little documented employment history, little or negative credit history, and criminal records as a result of their victimization. Survivors…
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Melinda Smith |
Lynette M. Parker and Ruth Silver Taube Awarded 2020 Paul and Sheila Wellstone Award
We are thrilled to announce the recipients for the 2020 Paul and Sheila Wellstone Award, Lynette M. Parker and Ruth Silver Taube of Santa Clara University School of Law. The Paul and Sheila Wellstone Award seeks to recognize individuals who have…
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Melinda Smith |
OVC Drops Restriction on Criminal Record Relief Representation in FY2020 Grants
Earlier this month, the US Department of Justice Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) released their human trafficking program grant solicitations with a notable change. The office has dropped the funding restriction on criminal record relief representation for FY2020 grants.…
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Jean Bruggeman |
COVID-19 Response and Resources for Survivors and Providers
Freedom Network USA is committed to assisting direct service providers, advocacy organizations, and allies to respond as effectively and safely as possible to the shifting landscape as the US responds to the coronavirus. Like many of you, FNUSA is continuing…
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Melinda Smith |
Serving Survivors: A brief chat during Domestic Violence Awareness Month
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Freedom Network USA staff sat down to talk with Sulan Chang from Mosaic Family Services earlier this month about her work with survivors. What is the one thing people should know during Domestic Violence…
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Melinda Smith |
FNUSA Applauds Call on the Department of Justice to Restore Vacatur Funding for Survivors
Freedom Network USA applauds the House Judiciary Committee’s letter to Attorney General Barr demanding justification for the cruel and unreasonable restriction on legal services for survivors of human trafficking. When the Department of Justice first introduced a bar on using…
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Melinda Smith |
FNUSA Welcomes New Board Member, Wendy Rhein
FNUSA is pleased to welcome new board member, Wendy Rhein. She is currently the Regional Managing Director for UNICEF USA in Washington DC. With more than twenty years of development, communications, strategic planning and organizational management experience, Wendy has extensive…
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amanda |
Freedom Network USA Opposes HUD’s Proposed “Mixed- Status” Rule
On June 21, 2019 Freedom Network USA (FNUSA) submitted comments to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) strongly opposing the proposed rule that would prohibit “mixed-status” families from living in public and other subsidized housing. This proposed rule…
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Melinda Smith |
FNUSA Releases White Paper on Standards of Care for the Anti-Trafficking Field
Today, Freedom Network USA is proud to share its latest white paper entitled, Standards of Care for the US Anti-Trafficking Field. Standards of Care establish basic guidelines to ensure consistent service provision regardless of the geographic area in which services are…
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Melinda Smith |
Womankind: Impacts of Criminalization and Advocacy at Work
A conversation with Aya Tasaki from Womankind, Freedom Network USA member. Tell us about the anti-trafficking work that Womankind does? Womankind supports survivors of human trafficking through our anti-trafficking program, Project Free, in addition to supporting survivors of domestic…
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amanda |
Rolling Back HUD’s Equal Access Rule Is Detrimental to Transgender Survivors and the Anti-Trafficking Field
According to the National Center for Transgender Equality, nearly one-third of transgender and gender non-binary people experience homelessness at some point in their lives. Even worse, nearly half of transgender and non-binary people who identify as Black, Middle Eastern, Multiracial,…
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Melinda Smith |
A Quick Look at the Public Health Approach to Human Trafficking
A human trafficking conversation with Hanni Stoklosa from HEAL Trafficking, Freedom Network USA Individual member. As an emergency department doctor, how did you find yourself working in the anti-trafficking field? The majority of human trafficking survivors in the US…
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Melinda Smith |
Housing As a Human Right
A conversation with Daniella Cameron from Preble Street, Freedom Network USA member. You say that housing shouldn’t be conditional. How can organizations ensure that the housing they provide or refer survivors to maintains that value? Organizations can ensure the…