Telling Their Stories: Contextualizing the Narrative, Legal Atmosphere, and Need for Individualized Care for Human Trafficking Victims

Though known in name, human trafficking is a silent plague that often goes unseen. Its prevalence is rendered invisible by both the circumstances in which trafficking occurs and the correlation it possesses with other criminal matters. Human trafficking is a deeply individual crime that is multi-layered, and thus is one that requires unique legislation. This essay seeks to ignite clarity as to what prevention, rehabilitation, and healing look like for victims of human trafficking via interviews with providers of legal and social services for survivors. Building on the content of these interviews and my own experience as a direct-care volunteer with an organization providing services to women who had experienced trafficking, I argue that the healing journey of victims is incomplete without both legal and social services present. The complex trauma trafficking victims experience is not accounted for in current national legislation, and through this essay, I hope to introduce the context necessary to understanding this legal field through the lens of those who are working at the front lines.