This document discusses protecting homeless youth from sexual trafficking. It outlines that homeless and runaway youth are vulnerable targets for commercial sexual exploitation. National data estimates that hundreds of thousands of children are sexually exploited each year. Local data from Seattle found over 200 sexually exploited youth were identified in one year. The document describes common risk factors and signs that a youth may be exploited. It then outlines a continuum of services provided by the Bridge program to identify, shelter, and rehabilitate exploited youth through trauma-focused therapy, education, employment assistance, and community reintegration support. Challenges and emerging best practices are also discussed.

1. Protecting Homeless Youth from
Sexual Trafficking
Leslie Briner, MSW
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2. THE MYTH…
Prostitution and the sex industry promote the
myth that male sexuality must be satisfied by a
supply of women and children who can be
bought. This demands the creation of a group of
women who are legitimate targets for rape and
sexual exploitation.
The Links between Prostitution and Sex Trafficking: A Briefing Handbook
Coalition Against Trafficking in Women (CATW)

3. WHO IS THIS
“LEGITIMATE TARGET GROUP”?
Child Sexual Commercial Sexual
Abuse/Neglect/ Runaway/
Exploitation of
Homeless Youth
Domestic Violence Youth

4. NATIONAL PREVALENCE
 326,000 “at-risk for commercial sexual exploitation” (Estes &
Weiner, 2001; University of Pennsylvania)
 100,000 to 293,000 children are sexually exploited per year
National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC)
 1 out of 3 teens will be lured toward prostitution within 48
hours of leaving home (Lois Lee, Children of the Night)

5. LOCAL PREVALENCE: SEATTLE, WA
• 238 non-duplicated CSEC youth were
identified in the Seattle Area in 2007.
• 300-500 per year is the prevalence
estimate for Seattle
Who Pays the Price: Assessment of Youth Involvement in Prostitution in
Seattle (Boyer, 2007)

6. PATHWAYS…
 Correlation between early childhood sexual
abuse and prostitution.
• 90% of youth in prostitution have history of sexual
abuse, rape or trauma
• This increases vulnerability in multiple facets
 The average age for a youth entering
prostitution in the US is 13-14 years

7. WHAT ARE THE “RED FLAGS”
 Chronic runaway/homeless youth
 Excess or unexplained amounts of cash
 Unexplained cell phone(s)
 Hotel room keys
 Signs of branding (tattoo, jewelry)
 Lying about age/false identification
 Inconsistencies in story
 Lack of knowledge of a given community or
whereabouts

8. MORE RED FLAGS…
 Behaviors
• Fear, anxiety, depression, submission, tension, hyper-
vigilance or paranoia
 Controlling or dominating relationships
• Repeated phone calls from a “boyfriend” and/or excessive
concern about displeasing a partner
 Not in control of their own money
• Even if they report they are “making money”
 Has sexually explicit online profile
• Back page, Craigslist, T&A

9. Bridge Continuum
•Paid
Employment/service
Residential Learning
Community •Safety •Mental Health and
planning •Case planning Recovery
Case •Assessment
Shelter •Stabilization Program
substance abuse
•Trauma focused
Management therapy
•Subculture
deprogram
•Specialized School
Community Systems Training
Advisory and Regional Response
Committees

10. Service Model
Stability • Paid Internships and
• Identification
Employment Services
• Case • Residential Recovery • Case Management
Management Program • Aftercare
• Emergency • Counseling • Access to YouthCare
Shelter • Specialized Continuum
Education
• Paid Service Learning
Safety Reintegration

11. Number of Youth Served in Bridge Continuum
Referrals: 185
(total all programs
unduplicated)
*Enrolled:
119
Community
Advocacy:
104
Emergency
Shelter:
27
Residential
Recovery
Program:
18
* Unduplicated Count

12. ENGAGEMENT…IN A NUTSHELL
 Dispel Judgment-
• Youth involved in prostitution are isolated in the way
society perceives them, if they sense judgment they will
shut down
 Build Rapport!
• This is a LONG PROCESS
 Respond to youth as SURVIVORS
• Youth have learned tremendous resiliency and coping
strategies amidst trauma and violence.

13. Best Practices
 Evidenced Based Practice:
• Program Model based on Stages of Change Theory
• Program staff trained on and using Motivational
Interviewing and incentive based programming
 Built relationship with key systems for referrals
 Addressing juvenile justice issues
 Training and public awareness
** There is currently no evidenced based model for intervention with sexually exploited youth.
While the Bridge program aligns with best practices for trauma and substance abuse the goal is
to design, implement and test our model for effectiveness in order to contribute to practice
and literature.

14. Residential Recovery Program
60 55
• 6 bed confidential milieu in a
caring, home environment 50
with 12 staff
• Trauma focused therapy 40
• Substance abuse services 30
• Education
18
• Employment 20
• Legal support 10
• Positive Youth Development
approach 0
Referred Placed
Youth work together and with experienced
staff to resolve issues of trauma and
exposure to prostitution sub-culture.

15. Challenges
Anticipated increased
demand for services
due to visibility and
targeted outreach
Services for young
adults ages 18-24
Serving youth with
acute Mental Health © Tim Matsui / www.timmatsui.com
needs

16. Training for Services Providers and
Community Members
Since April, 2010 the Bridge Program has provided 165 hours of
training and education to over 600 individuals across the State of
Washington including:
• Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS)
• Community Based Youth Service Providers
• Juvenile Probation
• Public Defenders Association
• Law Enforcement
• Sexual Assault Providers
• Seattle Public School Personnel
• Public Health Providers
• Faith-based groups and concerned community members
• Students from schools of Law, Social Work and Public
Administration

17. Emerging Best Practices
 Comprehensive service model
 Transforming “girl competition” to “girl support”
• Creating daily and weekly opportunities for youth to work
together as a community as a way to re-frame the sense of
competition developed in the prostitution sub-culture
 The importance of “earning”
• Paid employment and service learning opportunities allow
youth to re-frame the concept of prostitution as an
economic strategy
 Working across systems
• Sexually exploited youth have connections to diverse
systems many of whom lack awareness of their needs and
sensitivity to their experiences

18. ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
• WARN- Washington Anti-Trafficking Response Network
http://www.warn-trafficking.org/
• ECPAT- End Child Prostitution Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for
Sexual Purposes http://www.ecpat.net/EI/index.asp
• Shared Hope International
http://www.sharedhope.org/
• A Future Not a Past, Angela’s House, Atlanta, GA
http://afuturenotapast.org/
• GEMS- Girls Empowerment and Mentoring Services, New York, NY
http://www.gems-girls.org/ GEMS Documentary: Very Young Girls
• SAGE- Standing Against Global Exploitation, San Francisco, CA
http://www.sagesf.org/
• Coalition Against Trafficking of Women
• http://www.catwinternational.org/
• Children of the Night, Los Angeles, CA
http://www.childrenofthenight.org/
• Polaris Project
http://www.polarisproject.org/