Sarah Bendtsen, Author at Shared Hope International

November 14, 2018 by Sarah Bendtsen

Nonprofit Partnership in South Dakota Leads to Groundbreaking Law

In 2017, South Dakota passed a groundbreaking law to ensure survivors of sex trafficking, ages 16 and under, are protected from criminalization. This effort began two years ago when Becky Rassmussen, Executive Director of Call to Freedom, an awareness-raising and survivor-serving organization, recognized the important perspective she could bring to the legislative process. Seeking to address South Dakota’s D grade, Becky reached out to Shared Hope for technical assistance, and together with local partners, three critical pieces of legislation were passed strengthening the state’s response to child sex trafficking.

Read our interview of Becky Rassmussen, one of our grassroots heroes! You can become a grassroots hero by taking action to tweet your state’s grade to your elected official. Take action here!

Can you provide a brief background on your role as an anti-sex trafficking advocate?

As Executive Director of Call to Freedom of South Dakota, I have had the privilege of working with some of the most amazing people that are dedicated to helping survivors of Human Sex Trafficking. We strive to cultivate relationships and link arms with others who are dedicated to helping create a cohesive community model of care and support for victims, bringing communities together while educating and legislating to stop human trafficking.

…and what sparked the genesis of Call to Freedom?

Call to Freedom was birthed out of love and deep concern to affect real change starting here at home. Like many of us, I have encountered countless individuals who needed a lot of support if they were going to be successful in transitioning out of this nightmare.

Navigating a healthy path for victims of human trafficking is not just a clever motto on our website, but has become our creed. We take it to heart every single day, knowing this atrocity is very real and happening in our own backyard. We take comfort and remain motivated in knowing we really can do something about it, if we all work together.

As an advocate, I am inspired everyday by working directly with those who have been victimized and with all the individuals who authentically love and serve those in need. I become an advocate because of the inspiring unsung heroes who showed me the overwhelming need to help and empower survivors so they could know and believe they have a voice, a choice and that they really do matter.

What drove you to seek change in this area?

For me, it really hit home at the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in SD, with over a half a million people in attendance over a period of 10 days. I was shocked how many gaps in services there were within the United States for those who were coming out of human trafficking. 3,287 individuals are pulled into human trafficking on a daily basis and there were less than 300 beds designated for women trapped in human trafficking and only a handful for boys at the time. Trafficking victims were falling through the cracks and they weren’t getting the help and support they needed to be successful in transitioning out.

What approach have you taken? On a grassroots level, how have you mobilized fellow stakeholders to develop an agenda that seeks improvements in both policy and practice?

We first focused our efforts on the local level, working with law enforcement, creating open dialogue and building relationship so we could all ask the right and difficult questions. We had to find healthier ways to work together that would accomplish each of our individual missions and at the same time help avoid re-victimizing those in transition in the process.

What does grassroots collaboration look like for you?

Unfortunately, we soon discovered there were lots of different legislation gaps – in services, responses, screening questions, etc. that had not yet been implemented in the State of South Dakota.

Our response was to begin holding weekly luncheons and talk to people about what we were experiencing, first hand, here in South Dakota. We began to ask for input, feedback and ideas, empowering them to stand in the gap with us and become part of the solution.

Over time we earned the trust of most of our community leaders both locally and across the state. We were consistent in education and opportunities that helped build up the community and empowered everyone who wanted to know how to become proactive.

It wasn’t long before more and more community leaders and legislators began responding to the call. Soon individuals like State Representative Tom Holmes and Senator Jack Kolbeck were willing to carry three important pieces of legislation that unanimously went through the House and Senate, and have since been successfully integrated into South Dakota law and are now making a real difference.

Since then, many have stepped up to fill in the void. Legislators have supported our efforts. Law Enforcement, US Attorney’s office, and all those who are involved in prosecuting and supporting victims, have tirelessly worked together for the greater good. It’s amazing what we can accomplish when we don’t care who gets the credit.

We all continue to work together to create and refine laws that protect survivors and will ultimately send a clear message to the traffickers and Johns… “Stay out of South Dakota or suffer the consequences.”

How have the Shared Hope Protected Innocence Challenge tools (report cards and related materials) influenced or empowered your efforts?

Shared Hope is a valuable asset to what we are doing here in South Dakota. We are extremely grateful for their ability to create awareness and help us in our research of what other States have done successfully and how we can make our legislation more effective. They have been an invaluable partner, helping us to get the most out of our collaboration with our States’ Attorney and Attorney General’s office and helping us find the right words for our legislation in South Dakota.

What, in your mind, are the most notable legal and practical achievements that are a result of your advocacy and collaborative efforts?

We are now in the process of developing and strengthening a task force, which brings everyone to the table for the first time with a single focus; to work together and end human trafficking in South Dakota.

The support now from law enforcement on a state and federal level and many other service providers is so encouraging. I am overwhelmed with gratitude and filled with hope to see how many communities have responded. Everyone is eager to learn all they can about human trafficking so we can best incorporate protocols, procedures and responses within our own communities.

We have successfully worked together to change and strengthen legislation in South Dakota, create public awareness, effectively support and protect survivors, change the public view about victims and their unimaginable plight and successfully help survivors find the support they need to start over.

We continue to learn everyday how we can best work together in this process, promoting collaboration and unity so we might become a braided cord and effective advocates. If we stand together, each of us doing what we can, we will accomplish our mission and erase human trafficking… one community at a time.

June 13, 2018 by Sarah Bendtsen

Progress Without Protection: How State Laws Are Punishing Child Sex Trafficking Victims

Over the past 7 years of the Protected Innocence Challenge, states have made substantial progress – 47 states have raised their grade, and while the majority of states were failing in 2011, there are no longer any states with a failing grade and 30 states now have an “A” or “B” grade. By closing gaps in state laws, this progress has also shown a light on where the most substantial gaps remain – unfortunately, those gaps primarily impact protections for child victims, specifically, laws that allow a child sex trafficking victim to be criminalized for their own victimization.

[easy-tweet tweet=”Gaps remaining in our state laws unfortunately primarily impact protections for child victims, specifically, laws that criminalize child sex trafficking victims for their own victimization. ” user=”SharedHope” hashtags=”#stoptheinjustice”]

Since the beginning of 2017, fifteen states have sought to pass laws to prohibit the criminalization of youth survivors of sex trafficking for prostitution and other offenses. Despite a growing consensus that children cannot be “prostitutes,” only four of the fifteen states have been successful in changing their laws. In fact, a majority of states still allow children to be arrested, detained, and prosecuted for prostitution, despite conflicting federal and state law that deems such children victims of child sex trafficking.

[easy-tweet tweet=”Since 2017, 15 states sought to pass laws to end the criminalization of youth survivors of sex trafficking for prostitution, only 4 of 15 were successful. ” user=”SharedHope” hashtags=”#stoptheinjustice”]

During this legislative session alone, twelve states introduced legislation to create new or strengthen existing protections for youth survivors of sex trafficking. By trying to stop the prosecution of minors for prostitution, these states embarked on a multi-state effort to demand protection, not punishment for child victims. Despite strong support among survivors, service providers, and anti-child sex trafficking stakeholders, all 12 bills have been unsuccessful so far.

In order to address the legal conflicts and mobilize states to enact non-criminalization laws that adequately protect and provide comprehensive services for survivors of child sex trafficking, Shared Hope International is launching the Stop the InJuSTice campaign. Complementing the campaign launch, Shared Hope’s Center for Justice and Advocacy will release a video and e-learning training series to promote a better understanding of defining, implementing and developing a JuST (Juvenile Sex Trafficking) Response. These resources bring together the voices of survivors, service providers and advocates from around the country to weigh in on this issue.

Why do states face challenges in making progress?

Developing and providing a specialized, non-punitive response to juvenile sex trafficking victims remains a complex challenge for most states. Because of this, the passage of non-criminalization legislation has plateaued over the last two years. Throughout the course of providing technical assistance to stakeholders and state policymakers, Shared Hope’s Center for Justice and Advocacy has identified three common challenges in adopting and implementing protective responses for youth survivors:

A lingering misconception that some minors can be “prostitutes.” Despite laws in all 50 states and D.C. that recognize the sale and purchase of minors for sex as a form of human trafficking, and thus the minor a victim of child sex trafficking, many people believe that some children can willingly and consensually engage in commercial sex. Because of this, several states have been reluctant to pass non-criminalization laws so that prosecutors and law enforcement can retain discretion in determining which children are deserving of punishment instead of services. This misperception is frequently fueled by a widespread misunderstanding of sex trafficking victimization and the ways in which resulting or underlying trauma can present in youth survivors.
A lack of alternative and appropriate placement options and services. All states, including those that have passed non-criminalization laws, are faced with the challenge of developing and utilizing safe and appropriate placement options for youth survivors. With far more survivors than available therapeutic homes or facilities, states may depend on detention centers to hold victims until alternative placements are identified, if ever. Additionally, some argue that detention facilities remain the safest placement option for survivors, despite evidence that placement in such facilities can be traumatizing and not conducive to healing.
Diverging opinions regarding the best way to engage youth survivors in long-term services. Some stakeholders argue that, without the threat of charges or discipline for non-compliance, many minors are unwilling to engage in their service plan or make decisions that are in their best interests. While some youth survivors present run risks and may not consistently participate in services, this oftentimes reflects underlying trauma that needs to be addressed outside of a punitive system. A non-punitive approach allows minors to engage in the development of their own individualized service plan, free of timelines or coercive delinquency charges, exhibit an increased ability to trust their service team, regain confidence and a sense of control, and heal on their own timeline.

[easy-tweet tweet=”3 Reasons why states face challenges in making progress to end the criminalization of child sex trafficking survivors. Read here about all three. ” user=”SharedHope” hashtags=”stoptheinjustice”]

Additionally, some law enforcement and prosecutors oppose removing criminal liability for youth survivors due to the belief that charging a survivor is an effective strategy in getting the minor to flip and testify against his or her exploiter. This strategy is detrimental and treats the minor as a prosecutorial pawn; it also goes against the evidence that a survivor’s cooperation in an investigation actually improves when the survivor, instead of being criminalized, is able to access services and build rapport with law enforcement and prosecutors.

The consequence of inaction

Arresting, detaining, and prosecuting minors for prostitution is inherently unjust and creates a legal contradiction—state law recognizes the minor as a crime victim yet simultaneously punishes the child for the same conduct that creates their victim status.

[easy-tweet tweet=”Arresting, detaining, and prosecuting minors for prostitution is inherently unjust.” user=”SharedHope” hashtags=”stoptheinjustice”]

The criminal justice and delinquency systems are not designed to appropriately respond to juvenile sex trafficking victims. Treating child victims of sexual exploitation as criminals has serious long-term consequences. The process of being arrested, detained and prosecuted oftentimes creates an entirely new traumatic experience in the child’s life. It can strengthen a child’s attachment to their trafficker, while simultaneously fueling distrust in the systems that are there to serve the child. Delinquency charges can prevent the youth survivor from forming healthy and trusting relationships with persons in positions of authority who can assist and support the minor. Additionally, funneling youth survivors through the juvenile justice system can impair access to vital holistic support and care to address the trauma that accompanies and oftentimes precedes the exploitation. Charging exploited youth with prostitution and other offenses committed as a direct result of being trafficked has a long-term impact on their lives. Minors with juvenile records can be disqualified for employment and higher education opportunities, can be suspended or expelled from school, and can lose access to safe and affordable housing.

[easy-tweet tweet=”Treating child victims of sexual exploitation as criminals has serious long-term consequences.” user=”SharedHope” hashtags=”stoptheinjustice”]

Take action and join the mission!

Shared Hope International is committed to ending the practice of criminalizing juvenile survivors for their trafficking victimization. To mobilize change, the Center for Justice and Advocacy is launching Stop the InJuSTice, a campaign to seek advancements in both policy and practice. Here’s how you can get involved!

Sign up for our Thunderclap! To kick off the Campaign, on June 22^nd we will be releasing our new video, “Stopping the InJuSTice” on our campaign page and via Thunderclap. This new video amplifies both the voices of youth survivors who have experienced criminalization for their trafficking victimization and solutions for change. Sign up for the Thunderclap to automatically share this important message and the new video when it is released on June 22!

Take our training On June 22 we will also release Just Response, a free webinar training program to advance non-punitive, protective responses for youth survivors.

[easy-tweet tweet=”Take action to end the criminalization of child sex trafficking victims. Read this blog to find out how!” user=”SharedHope” hashtags=”stoptheinjustice”]

March 21, 2017 by Sarah Bendtsen

Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking is a Form of Child Abuse

Nine states are working on laws this year to ensure that the definition of child abuse includes the crime of child sex trafficking. You can take action to support these bills! See the list of those 9 states below.

Why does this definition matter?

As a nation, comprised of both federal and autonomously-acting state law, we have collectively acknowledged through legislation that domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) is a horrendous sexual crime in and of itself. Yet, at the heart of child sex trafficking is the recurrent rape and molestation of a child.

Subtracting the monetary exchange, we would label the crime as child sexual abuse, sexual assault, and rape. Yet, only 23 states define child sex trafficking, in all its forms, as child abuse. This fails to fully identify the dynamics of the crime. Most importantly, however, failing to identify DMST as a form of child abuse interferes with a systematic and consistent child protective response.

[easy-tweet tweet=”Only 23 states define child sex trafficking, in all its forms, as child abuse.” user=”SharedHope” hashtags=”StoptheinJuSTice”]

Providing a systematic response to survivors

Following extensive legal research and gathering of field guidance, Shared Hope’s JuST Response Council released the Protective Response Model, a composition of emerging best practices for responding to child sex trafficking. Amongst the numerous practices that have proven successful and victim-centered is equipping child welfare systems with the tools, knowledge, and structure to provide coordinated screenings, protection, and services to child victims of sex trafficking.

However, without amending the definition of child abuse to include all forms of child sex trafficking, child welfare agencies are unable to respond in such cases. The alternative scenario is local and state stakeholders are forced to piecemeal together a service response for victims. At best, this response will vary child-to-child. At worst, and most realistic, most children are not afforded a response at all.

[easy-tweet tweet=”When the definition of child abuse doesn’t include child sex trafficking, child welfare is unable to respond.”]

Further, amending the definition of child abuse to include all forms of child sex trafficking, including trafficking that occurs at the hands of a non-familial perpetrator, aligns state law with the federally-enacted Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act. As a result, the federal Act and state-led responses have served as goalposts for the remaining 27 states that have yet to acknowledge this form of violence as child abuse.

While the secondary, service-oriented responses vary largely state-to-state, amending the definition is a vital first step in opening the door for a coordinated, child welfare response. This statutory foundation is the building block for developing a victim-centered, individualized service plan for any and all children who are victims of sex trafficking. Ensuring that all 50 states and D.C. include DMST as a form of child abuse will close national legal holes and prevent some child victims from falling through the cracks.

Take Action!

This legislative session, Shared Hope is excited to be supporting nine states with pending legislation that would remove barriers to child welfare involvement. Please join us in taking action to ensure child sex trafficking victims in the following states can be identified as victims of child abuse, regardless of the offender’s familial status to the child:

Arizona, House Bill 2238
Arkansas, Senate Bill 271– PASSED!
Hawaii, House Bill 1099/Senate Bill 965
Idaho, Senate Bill 1005– PASSED!
Maryland, SB 308/HB 632
Maryland, SB 912/ HB 1219
Missouri, HB 1112
New Jersey, Assembly Bill 2906
Tennessee, Senate Bill 553/House Bill 615

[easy-tweet tweet=”9 states states are working to amend the definition of child abuse to include child sex trafficking.” user=”SharedHope”]

March 1, 2017 by Sarah Bendtsen

Why does it matter?

Wrestling with the intersectionality of language and response

As lawyers and activists, Shared Hope’s Policy Team is frequently fielding the question, “Why does it matter?” “Why does it matter what language we use?” “Why does it matter who responds to the plight of a trafficked child?” “Why does this specific law matter?” These questions are sound—in fact, we are grappling with the same. These questions are at the heart of every bill we write, every testimony we provide, and every conversation we have. If we fail to uncover and respond appropriately to the “why,” we will fail in our efforts to respond appropriately, through law and policy, to the victimization of our nation’s trafficked children.

Ultimately, language shapes how we view a person or issue. Referring to a commercially sexually exploited child as a prostitute not only conjures up a plethora of stereotypes and assumptions, it lays the foundation for the responses that a child will receive. Whereas a “prostituted” child stirs up the misplaced idea of an incorrigibly wild tween who deserves correction and punishment, a child victimized by a serious and systemic sexual crime properly identifies that child as requiring and deserving of protection, sympathy, and services.

More bluntly, the underlying crime of child sex trafficking is the raping and sexual molestation of a child. Our society and legal systems rightfully identify this type of sexual conduct between an adult and child as sexual abuse and violence; money neither sanitizes this crime, nor reverses the role of offender and victim. Language matters. Our commercially sexually exploited children are not criminals, they are victims of a crime, victims of circumstances, and in too many states, victims of a criminal justice system that punishes, rather than protects.

[easy-tweet tweet=”Language matters. Our commercially sexually exploited children are not criminals, they are victims of a crime. “]

This year, ten states sought legislation that demands protection not punishment for commercially sexual exploited children. If passed, these ten states would join the 19 other states to clarify that a minor cannot be prosecuted for prostitution offenses. These states understand that children, facing unimaginable plights, are victims, not “prostitutes,” “delinquents,” or “rebels.”

Words matter. Our responses matter. Your support matters.

States who introduced Non-Criminalization Legislation in 2017:

Massachusetts
Wisconsin
Rhode Island
South Dakota
Louisianan
Indiana
Maine
Missouri
Pennsylvania
West Virginia

Take action at our Legislative Action Center

February 17, 2017 by Sarah Bendtsen

Buyers of Sex with Children are Trafficking Offenders

On January 27^th, Shared Hope launched the Stop the InJuSTice campaign to advocate for state laws that prioritize victim protection and buyer accountability. Since the Protected Innocence Challenge (PIC) commenced in 2011, state action on domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST) has increased exponentially. Shared Hope has worked with over half of the U.S. states to craft, enact, and strengthen bills that address state-specific recommendations made in the Protected Innocence Challenge (PIC) Analysis and Recommendation Reports. The result has been an unceasing increase in state grades, and most importantly, a national trend towards more comprehensive and protective responses for child victims of sex trafficking.

While many states have committed to tackling some of the more nuanced areas of DMST, nationally, we need to reaffirm our vow to addressing the complexities of this violence. 44 states and D.C. have child sex trafficking laws that differentiate between the sex trafficking of adults and children, and have shifted the evidentiary burden accordingly. However, of those 44 states and D.C., only 11 states have included language within their core sex trafficking law that specifically applies to buyers of sex with children. This gap conflicts with the reality of DMST— buyers play a fundamental role in the crime of sex trafficking—without buyers there would be no victims. Failing to recognize the equal role buyers play in creating a marketplace that survives on the sexual abuse, violence, and commercial exploitation of children, also limits which children can be identified as victims of sex trafficking. This limitation directly impacts which children can receive the protection, services, and access to justice that is specifically provided for victims of sex trafficking.

[easy-tweet tweet=”As a nation we need to reaffirm our vow to addressing the complexities of this violence.” hashtags=”StoptheinJuSTice, PIC” url=”http://bit.ly/2kGNljL”]

We are thrilled to announce that, through the Stop the InJuSTice campaign, Shared Hope is currently supporting five states that have introduced legislation this session that, if enacted, would include buyer conduct in the law as a core human trafficking offense:

Colorado HB 1072 (Sponsor: Representative Lawrence)
Connecticut HB 6632 (Sponsor: Representative Kokoruda)
Georgia HB 341 (Sponsor: Representative Reeves)
Nebraska LB 289 (Sponsor: Senator Pansing Brooks)
Oklahoma HB 1832 (Sponsor: Representative Osborn)

[easy-tweet tweet=”Shared Hope is currently supporting bills in 5 states that would clarify that buyers are trafficking offenders.” url=”http://bit.ly/2kGNljL “]

We need your help to ensure these bills pass! You can support these bills, and many more, at our Stop the InJuSTice campaign site. Simply go to the site, find your state on our interactive action map, and take one of these actions: