In Missouri, a Shared Hope partner provides care for young teen girls who have been sexually trafficked or exploited in a residential setting and counseling, educational and support services for youth and adults in the community. The organization recently brought its prevention and intervention program to youth at a juvenile detention center. Teens at the […]
Children in sex trafficking still unprotected by laws in most states, Shared Hope’s Report Cards on Child and Youth Sex Trafficking show
Nonprofit’s annual evaluation of all 50 states and Washington, D.C., shows progress in certain states’ legal protections and supports for victims, gives 32 states failing grades for laws addressing child and youth sex trafficking WASHINGTON, NOVEMBER 15, 2023—Tennessee is the highest-performing state for laws to protect children and youth from sex trafficking and the first […]
A whole lot more than rescues: Our sound approach to sex trafficking
Shared Hope International’s Founder and President, Linda Smith, speaks about our work as restoration-focused in the U.S., not in overseas rescues. Thanks once again to Hollywood, America added a new character this summer to the pantheon of action superheroes it has created: the swashbuckling man who sweeps into corrupt foreign countries to rescue children from […]
Unjust Criminalization: Zephi Trevino’s Story
Zephaniah “Zephi” Trevino has pleaded guilty and has been sentenced to 12 years for murder and five years for aggravated robbery. The Dallas County District Attorney alleged Zephi —along with two men— had taken part in a robbery that left one man dead from a gunshot wound and another injured. Although Zephi was not responsible […]
Reflections on the Intersection of Mental Health, Human Trafficking and Unjust Criminalization
Dr. Marian Hatcher Shared Hope Policy Consultant Ambassador-at-Large, United Nations Last month was Mental Health Awareness month and as annual attention to this issue prompted introspection about my own personal experiences, I began to think about how the mental health needs of trafficking survivors so often intertwine with the need for federal vacatur and post-conviction […]