The Department of Justice just announced that it has awarded more than $100 million to help in the fight against human trafficking and to help victims of human traffickers. The funding has come through the Office of Justice Programs (OJP) and is slated for use for projects throughout the United States.
According to the DOJ website:
Approximately $80 million of the funds were awarded under five Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) grant programs. The remaining $20 million were awarded by OJP’s Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to jurisdictions, service providers and task forces all over the country.
Grants awarded under FY 2019 OVC programs aim to enhance the quality and quantity of services available to survivors of human trafficking. Specific programs being funded include:
The Direct Services to Support Victims of Human Trafficking program gives nearly $53 million to 77 organizations to enhance the quality and quantity of services available to victims of all forms of trafficking.
The Integrated Services for Minor Victims of Human Trafficking program awards over $15 million total to 32 programs to provide minor victims of trafficking with high-quality services that are developmentally appropriate and tailored for their individual needs.
The Improving Outcomes for Child and Youth Victims of Human Trafficking program gives over $6 million total to four organizations to integrate human trafficking policy and programming at the state level and to enhance coordinated, multidisciplinary and statewide approaches to serving trafficked youth.
The Field-Generated Innovations in Assistance to Victims of Human Trafficking program awards $4 million total to five programs to fill gaps and improve the victim services field’s response to human trafficking.
The Specialized Human Trafficking Training and Technical Assistance and Resource Development program awarded $1 million to provide efficient and streamlined technical assistance and training to improve services offered to labor trafficking victims nationwide.
Grants awarded under FY 2019 OJJDP programs will support organizations in developing their capacity to respond to the needs of children and youth who are victims of domestic sex trafficking and labor trafficking. The Specialized Services and Mentoring for Child and Youth Victims of Sex Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation and the Preventing Sex Trafficking of Girls and Involvement in the Juvenile Justice System grant programs provide more than $4 million to nine organizations to support child and youth victims of sexual exploitation and domestic sex trafficking and girls involved in the juvenile justice system.
