A Houston nonprofit is planning to create a first-of-its-type facility to help child human trafficking survivors, the Houston Chronicle reported.
The Landing, which is faith-based and opened in 2016, already operates a drop-in center for sex trafficking victims.
Natasha Paradeshi, co-founder and board chairwoman of The Landing, told the news agency that the facility is important because it is a place where survivors know they are welcome to come for help without judgment.
Currently, the facility provides counseling, food, transportation, safety plans and connections to other resources for both adults and minors, the newspaper reported.
The newspaper reported there are approximately 313,000 human trafficking victims in Texas – 79,000 of whom are minors, according to a 2017 University of Texas study. A quarter of all U.S. human trafficking victims are in Texas, the study found.
Rebekah Charleston, a human trafficking survivor and the executive director of Valiant Hearts, which advocates against sexual exploitation, shared her story at the event for The Landing. Charleston was raped at 14 and was first trafficked at 17. She spent more than 10 years being trafficked nationwide before getting arrested and spending time in federal prison.
Charleston moved back home at the age of 30 and received support from her community and family. She said people withheld their judgment and were kind, which made a big difference in her life, the newspaper reported.
Several attendees said hearing Charleston's story changed their perspectives on human trafficking, the newspaper wrote, and one resident said she hoped Charleston's story would help end the stigma associated with human trafficking.
The nonprofit raised more than $127,000 to go toward the new project during its annual fundraiser last month. In 2019, The Landing helped 232 survivors and assisted 43 survivors to become free from trafficking, the newspaper reported.
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