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The Covenant House Human Trafficking Initiative

The Covenant House International Headquarters, in conjunction with a grant administered through the SC Ministries Foundation, held an international training of the trainers' conference on human trafficking from October 16-18, 2006. During this conference, key staff from the headquarters and all 21 sites set a direction for Covenant House's international human trafficking initiative that now spans six countries in Central and North America.

In October 2000, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 made human trafficking a Federal crime, and initiated the Rescue & Restore Victims of Human Trafficking Campaign to help identify and assist victims of human trafficking in the United States. The intent of the Rescue & Restore campaign is to increase the number of identified trafficking victims, and to help those victims receive the benefits and services needed to live safely in the U.S.

The Covenant House human trafficking initiative encompasses seven key areas: training, identification and rescue, direct service, outreach and education, networking, coordination and advocacy, analyzing increased trafficking efforts, and the operation of the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (888-3737-888.) While the final key area is exclusive to the international headquarters, the previous six involve each of Covenant House's 21 sites.

The training aspect of human trafficking has been the primary focus of the initiative in the early stages. Identification and rescue, direct service, and outreach and education go hand-in-hand with the provision of services to victims of human trafficking, both international and domestic. The aim of Covenant House is to become a one-stop shop where victims can receive support with basic needs of every kind, including housing, food, medical attention, emotional and mental support.

In addition to efforts in outreach and education to pursue victims and perpetrators hidden from everyday sight, a key focus of staff is to partner with law enforcement to work towards collaborative solutions.

Covenant House spans across six countries in the Americas, providing a distinct advantage when it comes to human trafficking. With sites well-versed in the human trafficking arena actively working in Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala, Mexico, Canada, and the United States, the Covenant House network is able to fight both sides of the international trafficking highway, confronting both supply and demand. Through the early stages of Covenant House's work, trafficking attempts from Latin America to the U.S. and Canada have been thwarted by active and effective outreach efforts combined with quality community training, public awareness efforts and crisis care.