Understanding the complexity of serving tracking survivors helps us better understand the issue of human trafficking. Sandie interviews Sherri Harris from The Salvation Army to discuss how The Salvation Army works with trafficking victims in Orange County and helps us understand all the resources needed to serve the whole person.

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Transcript

Dave [00:00:00] You’re listening to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. This is episode number 23, airing in March 2012. Welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast. My name is Dave Stachowiak.

Sandie [00:00:28] And I’m Sandie Morgan.

Dave [00:00:30] And this is the show where we empower you to study the issues, be a voice, and make a difference in ending human trafficking. Sandie, it’s great to be back with you on another episode of the Ending Human Trafficking podcast and our continued efforts to study the issues so we can help others to learn how to best join the effort to end human trafficking.

Sandie [00:00:53] Well, I’m really encouraged with the growing audience of listeners and participants, the community engagement that I’m experiencing, just getting emails and phone calls. And last week, Dave, you would have been really encouraged. I got a call from the East Coast.

Dave [00:01:08] Oh, cool.

Sandie [00:01:09] And the words were exactly, “I’ve been devouring the podcasts because I need to present at a university function and we need information.” And so it was very rewarding and we want to have more opportunity to engage with our community. If you have questions, you can email [email protected]. If there’s something you’re looking for and you can’t find it, send us a question and we’ll do our best to research that and find good information for you.

Dave [00:01:40] And we do respond to everything. And if your question or comment is helpful for our audience as well we’ll even include it here on the show. And you can also reach out to us by phone and that number is 714-966-6361. So feel free to reach out to us, whichever way is most convenient for you and you get to tap into Sandie’s expertise and the expertise here of the center to really help you to study the issues more effectively so you can understand how to best support our efforts in ending human trafficking.

Sandie [00:02:13] And that’s a really good lead in to where we’re going today because our center is more about a community of experts and people that we partner and collaborate with. And one of our partners is the Orange County Human Trafficking Task Force, and part of our partnership includes the victim services aspect for international foreign victims of human trafficking right in our community. And that service is provided by the Salvation Army and the director of their NETS program, which I’m going to ask her to explain what that means is Sheri Harris. So welcome to the Ending Human Trafficking podcast, Sherri.

Sherri [00:02:55] Thanks. Fun to be here.

Sandie [00:02:57] So tell us, what is your job description? What do you do?

Sherri [00:03:02] That’s a really good question and it depends on the day. But I work as the director for the Network of Emergency Trafficking Services. And so in Orange County, basically what that means is if we get a call from law enforcement or a social service agency or a local partner, and they say that they have a victim of human trafficking that’s from another country, we come alongside them, we do an assessment, and we will start pretty much taking care of that person until they can take care of themselves. And we really consider this a long term process because it takes a while for the foreign born victim to understand their human rights, to get access to all the resources that they need to kind of trust us, for us to figure out what they really need and to begin the journey together. So that’s kind of what we do, and we do that as part of the task force. So it’s a community response and we’ve been working really hard to get our partners in place and find the different organizations that we need on our team to help our victims become survivors. So that’s kind of in a briefly what I do, but I, you know, I love working at the Salvation Army because if you look at our history, we’ve been doing this since we started. You know, in 1869, our founder, William Booth, started working in the streets of London helping prostituted women get off the streets and rescue homes. And so ever since we started at the Army, we’ve been looking out for women and men who’ve been victimized in trafficking. And so I love that I get to do it in Orange County because it fits our mission so well to serve without discrimination. And I’m considered privileged to actually get to do it at the Army because I would do it anywhere. But it’s a actual real joy to do it with a Christian organization that actually has it as part of their mission.

Sandie [00:04:46] And I appreciate that as well. And one of our other really good friends from the Salvation Army that has spoken at conferences at Vanguard’s Global Center for Women in Justice is Lisa Thompson, who is out there in Washington, DC and really is an advocate for ending human trafficking. So, dave, we’ll have to add an interview with her really soon too. So let’s get into this, Sherri. Let’s assume that you just got a call in. It’s 3:00 in the morning and they’ve got three victims from a country where it’s like maybe they’re from Thailand. Do you speak Thai?

Sherri [00:05:24] No, I don’t.

Sandie [00:05:25] So what do you do? You’re supposed to go help them. And you just tell me you’re going to communicate to them their human rights and the resources available. So what do you do?

Sherri [00:05:33] Well, I get nervous and then I start making phone calls really fast. And I basically would do one of two things. I would head to the police station or wherever the victims were, and I would bring a survivor kit, which has 72 hours worth of things that they might need anywhere from a toothbrush to water to a journal and clothes. I would get that in the back. And it’s a wonderful tool to help them start realizing that I’m there to help them. I bring that and then I bring a phone number for an international hotline that can help me translate. And I start making phone calls and try to find our partners who volunteer to be translators that speak Thai. And I go and I meet them and I start a relationship. I kind of see what’s happening and assess the situation, and I get that interpreter either on the line or sitting next to us, and we start explaining that we’re here to help, that we understand that they’re scared and that there’s a lot going on in their head. But we’re hoping that we can figure out how to help them and we ask them for their what they’re worried about at that particular moment. And we work...