Our team at Alabaster Jar Project has been emotionally overwhelmed by the events from the past few weeks in Minnesota and all over the country. As many of us on staff are survivors of human trafficking, we are no strangers to violence, and George Floyds’ murder hit close to home. But another reason it hit close to home is because all of us have family members, friends, and fellow survivors who are People of Color. While Grace House accepts survivors from all over this diverse country, and in a few cases, from different parts of the world, a large portion of the survivors whom we serve are women of color.
Systemic Racism
The fact that there is a high percentage of survivors who are women of color is not a coincidence. The systems in our country that have been in place for many, many years set up a portion of citizens for success while others are left to struggle, depending on their race, gender, class, orientation, where they live, and a number of other factors. These factors can determine what kind of education they receive, whom they will be influenced by, and if they have access to proper social services. When you combine these setbacks experienced by many young women of color with early childhood abuse that most survivors report, this creates an environment where they are vulnerable to trafficking. To put it bluntly, African American girls are more likely to experience poverty, multiple forms of abuse, and violence than their white peers, and therefore are at higher risk of becoming trafficked.
Abuser Targets
Traffickers and abusers often target the most vulnerable population they can find and exploit it. Part of this is because vulnerable people are easier to coerce. In their eyes, women of color may be perfect targets, for they are already vulnerable to biased systems and may have less access to support. If these young women of color have no other role models to look up to, an abuser may attempt to fill that role for them. Furthermore, many former pimps have admitted that they believed that trafficking women of color ran less of a risk of being ultimately prosecuted than if they exploited white women. When the justice system is already set against them, this makes women of color more vulnerable to potential abusers.
Fearful of Police
This toxic lifestyle creates a vicious cycle for women of color, for even as they leave the life of exploitation, survivors of color may be less likely to seek help from the police because of their fear of police brutality. Think about it: If police are known to unfairly target people who look like you, how can you be sure that seeking help from law enforcement won’t end in harm or even death? While other survivors are able to get help from police, women of color are much more fearful. Unfortunately, this fear often leads to re-exploitation, or re-entry into an unhealthy lifestyle of trafficking.
Even to the experienced Human Trafficking Task Force here in San Diego, who are thoroughly trained on survivor-centered practices, survivors may fear police brutality so much that they may not work with officers who are there to help them. If that connection is never made, they may never be able to receive the services we offer. A portion of our staff are survivors who advocate for other new survivors alongside law enforcement as well as train law enforcement on survivor-conscious practices. We believe in partnering with law enforcement rather than working against it. We pray for a world where survivors do not have to weigh their need to get out of exploitation against their fear of getting hurt by police, and as we work with law enforcement on a regular basis, we take steps towards closing that gap between survivors and law enforcement all the time.
People of Color are disproportionately affected by human trafficking, and our organization stands in support of those fighting against racism and violence all across the country. By fighting social injustices caused by racism, our community can continue to fight for many of those affected by human trafficking. Perhaps together we can put an end to it all. To support survivors in your community of San Diego County, please visit our website.
Alabaster Jar Project 