November 28, 2023 • 18 mins
Ever wonder why some victims of human trafficking struggle to escape their situation, even when help is available? Tune into our Emancipation Nation episode 201 and allow us to shed light on two fundamental barriers that often impede victims from receiving the assistance they desperately need: transportation and housing. In this episode we unravel the significance of these basic needs and how their inadequacy can hinder victims' journey towards healing and freedom.
In this enlightening discussion, we navigate the different types of housing solutions for victims, ranging from temporary shelters to transitional housing, and how each serves a unique purpose in the survivor's journey. Dr. Williamson, drawing from Maslow's hierarchy of needs, underscores the impossibility of focusing on higher-level needs without first catering to the basic physiological ones. Join us as we delve into these pressing issues, and gain invaluable insights into how we, as advocates, can more effectively address these barriers and equip survivors with the resources they need to begin their journey towards healing and independence.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
You know the why human trafficking work is needed
To fight for the freedom ofmodern day slaves.
But love, passion, commitmentisn't all you need to be an
effective and successfulanti-trafficking advocate.
Learn the how.
I'm Dr Celia Williamson,director of the Human
Trafficking and Social JusticeInstitute at the University of
(00:23):
Toledo.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation podcast, where I'll
provide you with the latest andbest methods, policy and
practice discussed byexperienced experts in the field
, so that you can cut throughthe noise, save time and be
about the work of saving lives.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation episode 201.
(00:45):
I'm Dr Celia Williamson andtoday I want to talk about two
of the most prominent barriersto victims receiving assistance.
Last week, I talked about the10 area of needs that are common
for victims.
This week, I really want tocome back and emphasize two very
(01:10):
basic needs that I neglected totalk about last week.
But these are critical needsand in fact, you can't really
heal or move forward withoutaddressing these barriers, these
consistent, pervasive barriers.
This is an important episode.
If we can get these twostruggles addressed, we would
(01:36):
have moved our issue forward ina major way.
What are those barriers?
One, transportation.
Two, housing.
So let's talk about housingfirst, because I think that's
the one that most people dounderstand is a major barrier to
(01:57):
helping survivors heal.
So a lot of us are familiar withMaslow's hierarchy of needs.
He says that we must all people, no matter who you are we have
physiological needs food,clothing, water, shelter those
(02:18):
things we can't really focusourselves on love needs or our
self-esteem, or our need tobelong or any goals or dreams
that we have if we haven't takencare of our physiological needs
.
So if we don't have a safeplace, a place let's not even a
(02:43):
place to lay our head, we reallycan't focus on the second level
of need that Maslow talks about, which is safety needs, safety
and security.
If we achieve our physiologicalneeds on a regular basis and we
feel safe and secure, we canmove on to concern ourselves
(03:06):
with love and belonging andmeeting those needs.
If those are met, we can focuson our self-esteem needs and if
those are met we can focus onself-actualizing ourselves.
But if we don't have thephysiological needs met, we
can't even concern ourselveswith safety and security.
(03:27):
And that explains a lot.
It explains why some victims,some survivors, are living in
conditions where they don't feelsafe because they can't at this
time afford to be concerned asmuch about safety.
They have to attend to theirphysiological needs, which is at
(03:50):
least a place.
So we, as advocates, have toconcern ourselves with ensuring
that our clients, our survivors,as we walk alongside them, that
they have somewhere, some typeof housing, where they also feel
(04:13):
safe and secure.
Housing, of course, is a majorbarrier around the world and, of
course, in the US.
So now let's talk about thedifferent types of housing,
because we think that, you know,any kind of housing will fit
(04:33):
any kind of situation, not true?
So typically, if there's acrisis, if there's absolutely no
housing, we can at least try toconnect our survivors with
shelters, and shelters are verytemporary.
It's something that you mightstay in for three days to three
weeks, something like that.
(04:55):
It's not meant to be along-term solution.
Shelter is meant to provide youa roof over your head, bed,
meals, safety, and so it's atemporary fix while you're
working on a more permanent plan.
So those are shelters.
(05:17):
Next is transitional housing.
Transitional housing, again,it's not a permanent solution.
It's not meant to be apermanent solution.
People in temporary housing I'msorry, people in transitional
housing might stay six months,up to two years.
There's programming, typicallythat goes on with transitional
(05:39):
housing.
There's a lot of transitionalhousing, for instance, in sober
living and stuff like that.
So if we were to equate it tosubstance abuse, we'd say like a
shelter is sort of equivalentto somebody who's going into
detox, a detox program.
It's just really brief, reallytemporary Transitional housing
(06:01):
six months, up to two yearsmight be equated to somebody
who's in a sober living program.
It's there's some programminggoing on.
If you're a victim, a survivor,in a transitional housing
program, they're likelypreparing you for employment,
for independence, empowering youwith the plan that you move on
(06:27):
to permanent housing.
So permanent housing what isthat that's?
Those are things that are liketenant based, where you are
working and you're paying rentor you're receiving some type of
rental assistance.
Or there's some governmentfunded section 8 housing where
(06:51):
you're paying a percentage ofyour income in rent so that you
have some investment there, somesort of skin in the game, but
the government is paying themajority of your rent.
These are the housing programscurrently in the US and those
(07:11):
type of permanent housingsituations.
People stay in those for years.
Sometimes there are lots ofrules to follow and those types
of things and provided you don'tviolate the rules, you can stay
in that type of permanenthousing forever if you want to.
So it kind of goes along.
(07:31):
When we talk about victimsurvivor, thriver, you know it
might be shelter for emergency,shelter for a victim.
Maybe you know transitionalhousing for a survivor and maybe
permanent housing for a thriver.
Different types of housingsituations may be called for,
different types of situations,right.
(07:53):
So if you want to know moreabout how to, how do I connect
to this housing that you knowmaybe you have a client that
needs housing or you just wantto be prepared in case you do
have a client that needs housing, you can always look back at
episode 129, I think, that Iposted on January 11th.
(08:16):
It talks all about the NationalTrafficking Sheltered Alliance
and you can Google them, you canlook them up, you can talk to
them and and find out from themwho are the experts on providing
housing for victims of humantrafficking, where housing might
be in your area.
You can also call the PlaylistProject, right, the hotline
(08:40):
number, 888-37-37-888, and theycan give you information on
housing.
But really, when you're talkingabout trauma work and coming to
groups and going to counseling,it's a there's, there's a rank
in order to these things.
(09:00):
I mean, those aren't going tobe very helpful if there's no
foundation built, if there's nohousing, if there's no safe
place to return to after you'vedone all the case management and
all the services that someonemight provide.
So housing, that's thefoundation upon which we build
all the other services.
(09:20):
The second biggest barrierbasic services that are needed
transportation.
This is a little more difficultone.
People have varying feelingsabout transportation, but I can
(09:41):
tell you, statistically, thereare excellent programs out there
that are just out of reach ofthe neediest people.
So let me say that again greatprograms out of reach and not
accessible to people who needthem the most.
(10:04):
If we could solve thetransportation issue, we can
help a lot of people.
Some of us believe that we justhave to give you bus tokens or
a bus card, excuse me and youcan get to where you need to get
to.
Easily said, not so easily done, Because if someone has kids,
(10:32):
they have to arrange for asitter, or they have to take the
bus and take the kid to thedaycare and then get over to the
appointment that they have tomake, and they have often a
15-minute window if you have anappointment.
If you're over 15 minutes late.
Well, we ought to rescheduleyou.
It might take somebody a fewhours to take the bus system.
(10:53):
If you're in a community likemine, we have a public
transportation system.
It's not very convenient.
It doesn't show up to everyspot every 15 minutes so
somebody can get you know.
In big cities, sure, you'restanding out there 15 minutes
before the subway comes or therailway comes or the bus comes.
(11:13):
But in rural areas there maynot even be a bus system that
comes to where you live andtakes you to the places you need
to be.
And in moderate-sized citiesthere is a bus system, but it
may take 30 minutes, it may take40 minutes for you to stand
outside waiting for the bus, andthen the bus is going to go all
(11:34):
the way downtown first and thenyou're going to have to get on
a second bus.
It's going to take you way outto wherever you are going to be.
This will take may take hours,and there's a lot of stress and
there can't be one mistake madeIf you miss a bus and you got to
wait another 30, 40 minutes.
Transportation is a majorbarrier to people who need to
(11:59):
get the services so they canheal.
So and then sometimes ourperspective is well, if you
really wanted it, you would getthere While we leave and go.
Get in our nice warm car, turnit on, turn the heat on and
drive ourselves in our nice warmcoat by the way across town to
(12:21):
our appointments.
So we have no real conceptabout what it is to stand
outside in the cold and even inthe warmth and waste half a day
trying to do one thing.
So we have to have some empathyright.
(12:43):
We have to be able to putourselves in someone else's
shoes so that we can feel whatit might be like and still will
never actually know.
Some of us we think that givingbus cards or bus tokens or bus
fare is a treat, is a benefit.
Somebody has to work in someprograms toward that goal.
(13:06):
Giving bus fare and tokens,that's not a treat, that's not a
reward.
Oftentimes that's a basicrequirement If you want the
people to get the services youhave to enable.
You can't pretendtransportation is not an issue,
and providing bus tokens and busfare, that's really the basic
(13:29):
minimum level.
I wouldn't recommend thatbecause that causes stress and
barriers in and of itself.
If we had programs in somecities too where we can help
repair people's cars, where wecan provide gas cars for people
to be able to travel to theappointments that they need to
(13:50):
travel to and don't worry aboutif so-and-so is going across
town to see their friend orwhatever.
Not using it for healthcareappointments or what have you
Seeing your friend is probably agood way to build those
informal support systems thatyou need so that you don't need
(14:12):
peer advocates and socialworkers and helpers in your life
in the long run.
So those programs that offertransportation because they have
a van, those are more of thegold standard.
Those programs that allowworkers to transport in their
(14:34):
own cars and, by the way, payfor the added commercial car
insurance so that that worker iscovered and protected, those
programs understand that notonly are you providing
transportation to ensure thatthose survivors get to your
(14:57):
group, get to your services andother services, but they also
understand something else that'scritically important that when
you're in the car, when you'rein the van, those are
therapeutic moments as well.
You're having a conversation,this person is disarming, it's
(15:19):
disarming, you're disarming, andso relationships can build,
conversations can be meaningful.
Therapy doesn't just happen inan office where somebody's
sitting behind a desk orwhatever.
You're laying on a couch orwhatever, the old, traditional
way that we saw therapy.
Therapy happens while you'resitting on the front porch
talking to a survivor.
It happens while you'retransporting them to their court
(15:41):
appointment or wherever it is,to buy groceries so that they
can go home and cook for theweek for themselves.
Whatever it is, transportation,again, is not a reward, it's a
requirement, it's not aprivilege, it's an almost a
right If you want this person toindeed partake of your services
(16:06):
, partake of other services.
But a lot of times we attachpeople's character to
transportation.
Well, if I wanted it, I wouldget it.
Okay, but from what vantagepoint are you looking at?
You mean, when you go home toyour warm house that has heat
all year round and lights thatcome on and you have the
(16:28):
internet, and when you leave thehouse you put your warm boots
on and your warm coat on andwarm up your nice car driver.
I mean, you have to see yourvantage point.
Are you biased in some way?
Get the people to the serviceand don't wait for them to thank
(16:49):
you, thank you, thank you, asif it is a reward.
This is something that theyneed to do in order to heal and
remember.
I think 32% of rural areas don'teven have public transportation
, so that becomes a significantbarrier.
(17:12):
So that's all I wanted to talkabout today was housing and
transportation.
Make sure that you areattending to both of those
things, along with last week'sepisode, if you didn't listen to
(17:34):
it.
Listen to that because we talkabout the 10 common areas of
need for survivors that youcould be working on with them,
and these two are not rewards.
Again, they are veryfundamentally basic needs.
So until next time the fightcontinues, let's not just do
(17:59):
something, let's do the bestthing.
If you like this episode ofEmancipation Nation, please
subscribe and I'll send you theweekly podcast.
Until then, the fight continues.
You know the why human trafficking work is needed
To fight for the freedom ofmodern day slaves.
But love, passion, commitmentisn't all you need to be an
effective and successfulanti-trafficking advocate.
Learn the how.
I'm Dr Celia Williamson,director of the Human
Trafficking and Social JusticeInstitute at the University of
(00:23):
Toledo.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation podcast, where I'll
provide you with the latest andbest methods, policy and
practice discussed byexperienced experts in the field
, so that you can cut throughthe noise, save time and be
about the work of saving lives.
Welcome to the EmancipationNation episode 201.
(00:45):
I'm Dr Celia Williamson andtoday I want to talk about two
of the most prominent barriersto victims receiving assistance.
Last week, I talked about the10 area of needs that are common
for victims.
This week, I really want tocome back and emphasize two very
(01:10):
basic needs that I neglected totalk about last week.
But these are critical needsand in fact, you can't really
heal or move forward withoutaddressing these barriers, these
consistent, pervasive barriers.
This is an important episode.
If we can get these twostruggles addressed, we would
(01:36):
have moved our issue forward ina major way.
What are those barriers?
One, transportation.
Two, housing.
So let's talk about housingfirst, because I think that's
the one that most people dounderstand is a major barrier to
(01:57):
helping survivors heal.
So a lot of us are familiar withMaslow's hierarchy of needs.
He says that we must all people, no matter who you are we have
physiological needs food,clothing, water, shelter those
(02:18):
things we can't really focusourselves on love needs or our
self-esteem, or our need tobelong or any goals or dreams
that we have if we haven't takencare of our physiological needs
.
So if we don't have a safeplace, a place let's not even a
(02:43):
place to lay our head, we reallycan't focus on the second level
of need that Maslow talks about, which is safety needs, safety
and security.
If we achieve our physiologicalneeds on a regular basis and we
feel safe and secure, we canmove on to concern ourselves
(03:06):
with love and belonging andmeeting those needs.
If those are met, we can focuson our self-esteem needs and if
those are met we can focus onself-actualizing ourselves.
But if we don't have thephysiological needs met, we
can't even concern ourselveswith safety and security.
(03:27):
And that explains a lot.
It explains why some victims,some survivors, are living in
conditions where they don't feelsafe because they can't at this
time afford to be concerned asmuch about safety.
They have to attend to theirphysiological needs, which is at
(03:50):
least a place.
So we, as advocates, have toconcern ourselves with ensuring
that our clients, our survivors,as we walk alongside them, that
they have somewhere, some typeof housing, where they also feel
(04:13):
safe and secure.
Housing, of course, is a majorbarrier around the world and, of
course, in the US.
So now let's talk about thedifferent types of housing,
because we think that, you know,any kind of housing will fit
(04:33):
any kind of situation, not true?
So typically, if there's acrisis, if there's absolutely no
housing, we can at least try toconnect our survivors with
shelters, and shelters are verytemporary.
It's something that you mightstay in for three days to three
weeks, something like that.
(04:55):
It's not meant to be along-term solution.
Shelter is meant to provide youa roof over your head, bed,
meals, safety, and so it's atemporary fix while you're
working on a more permanent plan.
So those are shelters.
(05:17):
Next is transitional housing.
Transitional housing, again,it's not a permanent solution.
It's not meant to be apermanent solution.
People in temporary housing I'msorry, people in transitional
housing might stay six months,up to two years.
There's programming, typicallythat goes on with transitional
(05:39):
housing.
There's a lot of transitionalhousing, for instance, in sober
living and stuff like that.
So if we were to equate it tosubstance abuse, we'd say like a
shelter is sort of equivalentto somebody who's going into
detox, a detox program.
It's just really brief, reallytemporary Transitional housing
(06:01):
six months, up to two yearsmight be equated to somebody
who's in a sober living program.
It's there's some programminggoing on.
If you're a victim, a survivor,in a transitional housing
program, they're likelypreparing you for employment,
for independence, empowering youwith the plan that you move on
(06:27):
to permanent housing.
So permanent housing what isthat that's?
Those are things that are liketenant based, where you are
working and you're paying rentor you're receiving some type of
rental assistance.
Or there's some governmentfunded section 8 housing where
(06:51):
you're paying a percentage ofyour income in rent so that you
have some investment there, somesort of skin in the game, but
the government is paying themajority of your rent.
These are the housing programscurrently in the US and those
(07:11):
type of permanent housingsituations.
People stay in those for years.
Sometimes there are lots ofrules to follow and those types
of things and provided you don'tviolate the rules, you can stay
in that type of permanenthousing forever if you want to.
So it kind of goes along.
(07:31):
When we talk about victimsurvivor, thriver, you know it
might be shelter for emergency,shelter for a victim.
Maybe you know transitionalhousing for a survivor and maybe
permanent housing for a thriver.
Different types of housingsituations may be called for,
different types of situations,right.
(07:53):
So if you want to know moreabout how to, how do I connect
to this housing that you knowmaybe you have a client that
needs housing or you just wantto be prepared in case you do
have a client that needs housing, you can always look back at
episode 129, I think, that Iposted on January 11th.
(08:16):
It talks all about the NationalTrafficking Sheltered Alliance
and you can Google them, you canlook them up, you can talk to
them and and find out from themwho are the experts on providing
housing for victims of humantrafficking, where housing might
be in your area.
You can also call the PlaylistProject, right, the hotline
(08:40):
number, 888-37-37-888, and theycan give you information on
housing.
But really, when you're talkingabout trauma work and coming to
groups and going to counseling,it's a there's, there's a rank
in order to these things.
(09:00):
I mean, those aren't going tobe very helpful if there's no
foundation built, if there's nohousing, if there's no safe
place to return to after you'vedone all the case management and
all the services that someonemight provide.
So housing, that's thefoundation upon which we build
all the other services.
(09:20):
The second biggest barrierbasic services that are needed
transportation.
This is a little more difficultone.
People have varying feelingsabout transportation, but I can
(09:41):
tell you, statistically, thereare excellent programs out there
that are just out of reach ofthe neediest people.
So let me say that again greatprograms out of reach and not
accessible to people who needthem the most.
(10:04):
If we could solve thetransportation issue, we can
help a lot of people.
Some of us believe that we justhave to give you bus tokens or
a bus card, excuse me and youcan get to where you need to get
to.
Easily said, not so easily done, Because if someone has kids,
(10:32):
they have to arrange for asitter, or they have to take the
bus and take the kid to thedaycare and then get over to the
appointment that they have tomake, and they have often a
15-minute window if you have anappointment.
If you're over 15 minutes late.
Well, we ought to rescheduleyou.
It might take somebody a fewhours to take the bus system.
(10:53):
If you're in a community likemine, we have a public
transportation system.
It's not very convenient.
It doesn't show up to everyspot every 15 minutes so
somebody can get you know.
In big cities, sure, you'restanding out there 15 minutes
before the subway comes or therailway comes or the bus comes.
(11:13):
But in rural areas there maynot even be a bus system that
comes to where you live andtakes you to the places you need
to be.
And in moderate-sized citiesthere is a bus system, but it
may take 30 minutes, it may take40 minutes for you to stand
outside waiting for the bus, andthen the bus is going to go all
(11:34):
the way downtown first and thenyou're going to have to get on
a second bus.
It's going to take you way outto wherever you are going to be.
This will take may take hours,and there's a lot of stress and
there can't be one mistake madeIf you miss a bus and you got to
wait another 30, 40 minutes.
Transportation is a majorbarrier to people who need to
(11:59):
get the services so they canheal.
So and then sometimes ourperspective is well, if you
really wanted it, you would getthere While we leave and go.
Get in our nice warm car, turnit on, turn the heat on and
drive ourselves in our nice warmcoat by the way across town to
(12:21):
our appointments.
So we have no real conceptabout what it is to stand
outside in the cold and even inthe warmth and waste half a day
trying to do one thing.
So we have to have some empathyright.
(12:43):
We have to be able to putourselves in someone else's
shoes so that we can feel whatit might be like and still will
never actually know.
Some of us we think that givingbus cards or bus tokens or bus
fare is a treat, is a benefit.
Somebody has to work in someprograms toward that goal.
(13:06):
Giving bus fare and tokens,that's not a treat, that's not a
reward.
Oftentimes that's a basicrequirement If you want the
people to get the services youhave to enable.
You can't pretendtransportation is not an issue,
and providing bus tokens and busfare, that's really the basic
(13:29):
minimum level.
I wouldn't recommend thatbecause that causes stress and
barriers in and of itself.
If we had programs in somecities too where we can help
repair people's cars, where wecan provide gas cars for people
to be able to travel to theappointments that they need to
(13:50):
travel to and don't worry aboutif so-and-so is going across
town to see their friend orwhatever.
Not using it for healthcareappointments or what have you
Seeing your friend is probably agood way to build those
informal support systems thatyou need so that you don't need
(14:12):
peer advocates and socialworkers and helpers in your life
in the long run.
So those programs that offertransportation because they have
a van, those are more of thegold standard.
Those programs that allowworkers to transport in their
(14:34):
own cars and, by the way, payfor the added commercial car
insurance so that that worker iscovered and protected, those
programs understand that notonly are you providing
transportation to ensure thatthose survivors get to your
(14:57):
group, get to your services andother services, but they also
understand something else that'scritically important that when
you're in the car, when you'rein the van, those are
therapeutic moments as well.
You're having a conversation,this person is disarming, it's
(15:19):
disarming, you're disarming, andso relationships can build,
conversations can be meaningful.
Therapy doesn't just happen inan office where somebody's
sitting behind a desk orwhatever.
You're laying on a couch orwhatever, the old, traditional
way that we saw therapy.
Therapy happens while you'resitting on the front porch
talking to a survivor.
It happens while you'retransporting them to their court
(15:41):
appointment or wherever it is,to buy groceries so that they
can go home and cook for theweek for themselves.
Whatever it is, transportation,again, is not a reward, it's a
requirement, it's not aprivilege, it's an almost a
right If you want this person toindeed partake of your services
(16:06):
, partake of other services.
But a lot of times we attachpeople's character to
transportation.
Well, if I wanted it, I wouldget it.
Okay, but from what vantagepoint are you looking at?
You mean, when you go home toyour warm house that has heat
all year round and lights thatcome on and you have the
(16:28):
internet, and when you leave thehouse you put your warm boots
on and your warm coat on andwarm up your nice car driver.
I mean, you have to see yourvantage point.
Are you biased in some way?
Get the people to the serviceand don't wait for them to thank
(16:49):
you, thank you, thank you, asif it is a reward.
This is something that theyneed to do in order to heal and
remember.
I think 32% of rural areas don'teven have public transportation
, so that becomes a significantbarrier.
(17:12):
So that's all I wanted to talkabout today was housing and
transportation.
Make sure that you areattending to both of those
things, along with last week'sepisode, if you didn't listen to
(17:34):
it.
Listen to that because we talkabout the 10 common areas of
need for survivors that youcould be working on with them,
and these two are not rewards.
Again, they are veryfundamentally basic needs.
So until next time the fightcontinues, let's not just do
(17:59):
something, let's do the bestthing.
If you like this episode ofEmancipation Nation, please
subscribe and I'll send you theweekly podcast.
Until then, the fight continues.
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