Ivanka Trump and the Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs announced Tuesday the Trump administration will award over $35 million in grants to 73 organizations across 33 states to provide housing and support for victims of human trafficking.
On a briefing call, a senior White House official said shelter is the number one requested service on the human trafficking survivors hotline. The grant will help cover costs of short-term housing, security deposits, utilities, and other related expenses, the White House said.
“In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, combating human trafficking in the U.S. and abroad is critical work. DOJ’s grant recipients are on the frontlines of this fight, ensuring that survivors across our country are afforded safe and stable housing and empowered with the support and resources they need to rebuild their lives,” said Ivanka Trump, adviser to the president.
Amid recent government-mandated lockdowns and stay-at-home orders, many victims are living in quarantine with their traffickers, a senior White House official said.
“We’re still in the data-gathering stage with our federal agencies, but the anecdotal stories that we’re hearing are horrific,” they said. “Our NGO providers are doing more than ever before, and we are so grateful that they are answering the call to ensure that victims and survivors not only have housing, but have employment and have tangible resources such as food and transportation.”
Organizations receiving grant money include nonprofits such as Camillus House in Miami, Alternatives for Girls in Detroit, and Jordan Community Resource Center in Shaker Heights, Ohio.
Ivanka Trump has made human trafficking one of her areas of focus, leading to President Donald Trump’s appointment of a special adviser to combat human trafficking and an executive order issued in January expanding the federal government’s investigating and prosecuting of human trafficking.
