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CENTER FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF HUMAN RIGHTS DIRECTOR TERRY COONAN ANNOUNCES AVAILABILITY OF THE HUMAN TRAFFICKING REPORT AT A PRESS CONFERENCE. (PHOTO: RYALS LEE/FSU PHOTO LAB) |
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PROGRAM DIRECTOR ROBIN THOMPSON AT PRESS CONFERENCE. (PHOTO: RYALS LEE/FSU PHOTO LAB) |
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FSU report focuses on helping victims of human trafficking
BY JILL ELISH
A new Florida State University study could help make freedom a reality for immigrants illegally smuggled into the United States and many others who are forced into the sex industry, domestic servitude or migrant farm work in Florida.
The FSU Center for the Advancement of Human Rights has issued a report outlining ways to identify and help human trafficking victims in Florida. The report is the result of a year-long effort by one of the nation's first statewide working groups to address this problem. Their work was made by possible with $250,000 in federal funds awarded through a contract with the Florida Department of Children and Families Office of Refugee Services.
"There is modern-day slavery taking place right here in Florida," said Terry Coonan, executive director of the Center for the Advancement of Human Rights. "Human trafficking has really become a multibillion-dollar industry. Unlike drugs, humans can be recycled. They can continue to be exploited, so it's a better investment for the traffickers."
International trafficking victims have been identified in more than 20 states, with Florida being one of the top three states, along with New York and California, receiving the majority of the victims. The U.S. government has estimated that between 20,000 and 50,000 people, mostly women and children, are trafficked into the United States each year from Eastern Europe, Asia and Latin America.
Coonan and program director Robin Thompson oversaw the statewide working group and began the development of protocols to help social workers and law enforcement officers recognize human trafficking victims and learn about the benefits victims are eligible for under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act. Although Congress passed the law in 2000, many social workers and law enforcement officers are not aware of the rights the law affords these victims, nor do they have procedures in place to deal with them.
A second contract with DCF will allow the human rights center to offer training to victim advocates, social workers and law enforcement officers in the next two years. The center will target communities where trafficking is suspected but not currently being addressed.
"The greater the awareness, the more likely these cases will be reported and prosecuted," Coonan said. "This is almost an invisible crime because the victims are kept out of the public eye. We need to crack this code of silence."
The working group also explored other ways to help victims. The study concludes with 60 recommendations for future work to be supported by the state. Among them:
- Encourage foreign language media outlets to run entertainment, news and other programs about human trafficking to inform the public — and trafficking victims — of the remedies available to survivors and where to get help.
- Fund a "clearinghouse" at the FSU human rights center that would house information and provide technical assistance for law enforcement, social services, criminal justice system personnel, victim advocates and others in the non-profit sector, health care professionals and others.
- Support the development of local or regional trafficking task forces.
- Help link current state, national and international prosecution, law enforcement and victim assistance efforts.
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Many of the recommendations are a direct result of information gleaned from interviews with 12 Mexican women and girls who were smuggled into the United States between 1996 and 1997. The women — some as young as 13 — were brought to South Florida, where they were forced to work as prostitutes to pay off their smuggling fees. They were freed after a 1997 FBI raid on the brothels.
The FSU interviews revealed that there were a number of ways these sex trafficking victims could have received information despite their extreme isolation. During transits from one brothel to another, the women were allowed to use restrooms at gas stations and fast food restaurants on Florida's highways — an ideal place to post fliers about how to get help. In addition, almost all of them had access to television and some also said they listened to the radio.
"Our recommendations are not based solely on theory," Coonan said. "They are based on the actual experiences of victims, and that's what makes this approach unique."
The interviews also highlighted the victims' need for mental health care, job training and assistance in learning English, Coonan said. The report will be distributed to law enforcement officials, domestic violence advocates, health care providers and legislators.
"My hope is that people will ramp up their understanding of human trafficking," Thompson said. "No one will be able to say 'What can I do?' They can pick up this report and find out exactly how they can help victims."
The report is available at <www.cahr.fsu.edu>.
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