Just like DREAMers and anyone else that is in need of starting over to make a better life, survivors of human trafficking deserve that chance too. I doubt that when Democrats and Republicans restart talks on immigration, human trafficking will not be on the table. Most likely it will be looked at as a violent crime with all those involved facing some sort of prosecution and deportation without thought to the victims and their circumstances. With the recent ant-immigrant rhetoric spoken in the January 30, 2018 State of the Union address it’s not hard to see that President Trump and his followers are anti everything that isn’t White American. It’s very easy for humanitarian issues to fall through the cracks in favor of the “America First” policy.  The U.S. Advisory Council for Human trafficking should and must be included when talks of immigration and immigration reform take place because they are the experts and they have lived through it.
When you talk about gangs you also need to talk about human trafficking, whether they are outside crime organizations or local groups. Human trafficking is a lucrative business for all types of organized crime all over the world. The people they are selling are innocent victims, some trying to get work to support their family, others caught up in the sex trade through no fault of their own. This is a real concern. Survivors are just as fearful and stressed as all immigrants in this country are at this time. We need a clear, concise and fair immigration reform that helps, DREAMers, immigrants and survivors of human trafficking to help them on the road to citizenship if they choose to do so. They are just as hard working and entrepreneurial as anyone seeking to start over and create a new chapter of success in their lives. If they are given this opportunity they will not only have the chance to start over but to do it in a way where they can be self sustainable with no governmental help.
This is what our government should strive for, the self sustainability for all those that are here trying to have a future, not digging into their past to try and find a way to detain and deport them. Also, a twelve year pathway to citizenship is a bit excessive and time consuming. Forcing people to wait with uncertainty longer than they have to is just cruel. If they have already proven themselves they should not have to wait for a lengthy period to be granted citizenship. Torturing people because of childhood immigration or force, fraud and coercion is re-victimization and trauma induced. It will do nothing to help their mental state and put them in a place of desperation and total fear. This government has to do better, this not just about immigration, this is about human rights for all.
 
BeaSister2aSister helps survivors of human trafficking, domestic violence, abuse and exploitation on the path to self sustainability. Please consider being a monthly donor so that we can continue this much needed work. Your monthly donation of $20, $50 or $100 will help our survivors find independence and true freedom without have to rely on others. Every survivor that is self sustainable is a blow to the $150 billion business of human trafficking.
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Samantha Inesta
Founder/Executive Director
BeaSister2asister