Human Trafficking is a global human rights issue.

“Human trafficking”  is defined as transporting, soliciting, recruiting, harboring, providing, enticing, maintaining, or obtaining another person for the purpose of exploiting that person for either commercial sex activity or labor or services. In the case of adult victims, there must be some form of coercion.  This requirement does not apply to child sex trafficking victims, as coercion is not a required element.  For example, a child can seemingly, willingly participate in prostitution, but is still a victim of human trafficking.

Palm Beach County consistently ranks as 3rd in the state of Florida for reported cases of human trafficking. This includes both sex and labor trafficking. Rescue Upstream’s work is primarily focused on sex trafficking. Our experience indicates that much of sex trafficking is rooted in economic inequality, homelessness and behavioral health issues. Childhood trauma, mental health disorders and substance abuse all play a critical role.  These factors are exploited for profit by traffickers right here in PBC.  Street sex trafficking is often incorrectly viewed as prostitution, but many are operating under a trafficker. Neighborhoods with concentrated sex trafficking activity also see increased drug trafficking. The majority of traffickers use drugs and family threats as their means of coercion.  

This is both a community health crisis as well as an individual crisis. To solve it, we must cast a realistic vision of a pathway out, as the victims’s fear of doing something unknown can be greater than the fear of living under the control of  a trafficker.

Our Solution

Rescue Upstream (RU) works directly with the PBC Human Trafficking Task Force and local law enforcement; however, most victims will never come forward to law enforcement as they are told by their traffickers that they are criminals and will be arrested. Our foreign victims live under fear of deportation even though Florida offers protection under the T-Visa law. RU's targeted outreach programs locate and recover individuals 18 years of age and older addressing urgent needs and connecting them to a network of local partner resources coordinated through our Sharing One Love PBC initiative. In addition, RU is an approved partner agency with several national residential housing networks serving this specific population across the U.S. Some clients remain in PBC for reintegration back into the community while others require long term inpatient residential programs which do not exist in PBC.

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We can't bridge hope to freedom without you! Your giving powers us to rescue women in danger and change lives right here in Palm Beach County. Please consider getting involved with our work by volunteering or donating today!