Integrated Holistic Legal Services for Minor Victims of Human Trafficking in Ohio and Tennessee

Advocating Opportunity (AO) proposes to implement Integrated Holistic Legal Services for Minor Victims of Human Trafficking in Ohio and Tennessee to enhance the quality and quantity of services available to assist minor victims of human trafficking. The proposed project provides trauma-responsive, holistic legal and social support services for minor victims of sex and labor trafficking in Ohio and Tennessee with a focus on Lucas, Franklin, and Davidson Counties and the surrounding areas and with the flexibility to provide services in other areas of each state where none exist and/or where a victim may have relocated. The project places a particular emphasis on collaborating with and training local partners on the co-occurrence of sex and labor trafficking, and the criminalization of minor victims, which also serves to expand resilience-based services and networks throughout Ohio and Tennessee and, thereby, enhance the quality of services for trafficking victims who are minors. This program’s primary goal is to provide services that address the needs of minors who are victims of sex and labor trafficking through a continuum of trauma informed, culturally relevant, and gender responsive services to ensure their safety, security, and healing and to prevent them from being directed to or involved in the justice system. The deliverables of the project include age-appropriate, holistic legal and social support services, outreach, and the collaborative training and the technical assistance described.