The Salvation Army Restoration Now Expansion - The Salvation Army Delaware’s Anti-Human Trafficking Program, Restoration Now, has been able to shelter trafficking victims since 2019 in our Emergency Housing Residence (Shelter). However, space has become limited in the Shelter and the need for short-term housing for these victims has dramatically increased. To meet the increased demand, The Salvation Army Delaware (TSA) plans on switching its existing Shelter from an emergency facility for single women and families to a trafficking survivors-only facility. (Accommodations will be available through The Housing Alliance DE for the single women and families who will no longer be eligible to shelter at this location.) To emphasize the urgency for this conversion, Restoration Now has had to place over two dozen victims in hotels due to lack of space in the Shelter; unfortunately, once a victim leaves the safety and security of the Shelter, they are more vulnerable to having communication with their trafficker, increasing their risk of returning to victimization. TSA’s Shelter is Delaware’s only facility dedicated to the housing of victims of human trafficking. Federal funding would support the transformation from a limited availability emergency shelter to a fully dedicated short-term residence to serve this growing cohort of trafficking victims. Once in the Shelter, these victims will be able to readily access services that enable them to achieve self-sufficiency, and to advance from victim to survivor. The needs of trafficking victims are complex, demanding consideration of numerous factors affecting trauma from the degree and nature of abuse to culturally induced impacts. The expanded victim servicing facility will allow women, and those that identify as women, currently on the periphery of society and in unsafe situations, to receive lifesaving assistance to address their immediate needs, while also connecting them to other vital services to begin their recovery. Restoration Now provides critical wrap-around services for victims of sex and labor trafficking by offering food, clothing, trauma-informed case management, support groups, and employment readiness. As part of case management, access to legal services, interpretation services, counseling, health care, and mental health and substance abuse recovery is made available. Restoration Now is now partnering with the non-profit Survivor Ventures, Inc., which provides long-term housing for survivors. Without these services, victims would otherwise be unable to sustain employment, and would potentially cycle through stages of homelessness, victimization, addiction and jail, and potentially other tragic consequences. SECTION A.2 Human trafficking is a profound problem in Delaware. The Interstate-95 corridor is a primary route for illicit transport, making cross-border trafficking a frequent occurrence that disproportionately impacts this small state. Since its creation in 2019, Restoration Now has increased awareness, provided training to effectively identify trafficking victims and offered emergency housing. It has also provided trauma-informed case management for survivors, including connecting them to numerous services so they can begin the journey on the road to recovery. One of the greatest challenges in accommodating victims of human trafficking is identifying residential services that adequately meet the needs of this special population, as sheltering is one of the most requested services for all crisis calls into the National Human Trafficking Hotline. Cynically, the threat of homelessness is often amplified by traffickers to coerce victims to stay under their control. TSA’s 2022 USA National AHT Impact Report states that 54,740 nights of housing were provided to trafficking victims across the country. (2022 National Annual Impact Report Identifying & Service Survivors of human trafficking across the United States; SA Justice)
