Victimology

  To address this issue in California, Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 2034 into law on September 19th 2019 which created new standards for human trafficking investigations by local law enforcement agencies and also allowed for victim compensation under certain conditions. In addition, AB 1227 authorized $20 million dollars from the state's general fund towards providing housing assistance and other supportive services for survivors. There is also a statewide Human Trafficking Task Force which works collaboratively across different sectors such as public safety organizations, health care professionals and non-profit organizations in order to raise awareness about human trafficking and provide training opportunities related to recognizing signs of exploitation. Victims of human trafficking can access resources through various organizations such as BAWAR (Bay Area Women Against Rape), ICAAD (International Center on Advocates Against Discrimination), Polaris Project and My Sister's House or they can call or text the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 888-373-7888 or send an email at [email protected]

Sample Solution

In the state of California, there have been a total of 5,789 human trafficking cases reported to the NHTRC from 2016 to 2020. During this time period, the number of cases reported each year has continued to increase with 1,541 cases in 2016 and 2,087 cases reported in 2020--a 34% increase. This could be because more people are becoming aware of the severity of human trafficking or due to legislative changes that have made it easier for victims to report their experiences.