University of Maryland SAFE Center for Human Trafficking

Presenter: Meghan Deyesu, Neurobiology and Physiology, Global Public Health Scholars

My practicum project was completed at the University of Maryland SAFE Center as a volunteer. The UMD SAFE Center is an organization that provides survivors of human trafficking with the resources and support to return to a normal state of living in a safe environment. With the aid of volunteers and professional staff, survivors are able to feel comfortable in entering society again and are provided with the skills needed to do so in the College Park area. Human trafficking is a wildly unreported and unrecognized problem in the United States. My work focuses mainly in the economic empowerment division of the SAFE center which specifically targets providing educational and work opportunities for survivors. Through a series of interviews with professionals, I hope to determine the effect of economic empowerment on these individuals specifically in regard to their mental health and overall wellbeing following the work done by this division of the SAFE Center.

4 Comments

Muhammad Hashmi

May 05, 2021

What do you think should or has to be done so that human trafficking is not as unreported as it is today in the United States?

medy8801

May 07, 2021

Replying to

Hi! Thank you for your question! I believe that the unreported aspect comes from individuals who have been trafficked are reluctant to report the issue or get involved with organizations out of fear of being retrafficked. I also believe policies have not been put in place to prevent the issue and go out and reduce the problem as a whole as trafficking organizations can go unreported sometimes when the government does not see it as a pressing issue.

Neha Mahasreshti

May 05, 2021

Hi Meghan. This was a great practicum project that touched upon an important issue with major public health implications. Hearing about how little we know about human trafficking because it is not widely reported was very shocking. Are survivors sometimes reluctant to report human trafficking and seek help? If so, what factors play a role in this?

medy8801

May 07, 2021

Replying to

Hi! Thank you for your question, yes some survivors are reluctant to report it or get involved with organizations. They are obviously fearful of returning to their previous trafficking situation and want to minimize the risk of this. Trafficking groups work in a lot of different ways and it is important for survivors to be careful therefore they do not always want to participate in organizations that help report this issue. Even at the SAFE center, we are very careful about not disclosing the location and about job opportunities we provide in the area to make sure the survivors do not end up in the same situation. It also is important to note that some might want to just try…