Aliah Wright:
From the National Association of Social Workers, I'm Aliah Wright, and this is Social Work Talks. Thank you so much for joining us for this episode, which focuses on human trafficking. According to the Department of Homeland Security, human trafficking or modern-day slavery involves the illegal trade of people for exploitation or commercial gain. In 2012, the International Labor Organization estimated that there are 20.9 million human trafficking victims worldwide. Today we're speaking to recent CNN Hero and clinical social worker Susan Munsey about sex trafficking and her San Diego-based nonprofit, GenerateHope, which provides a safe space for survivors of sex trafficking to heal and build new lives. Welcome, Susan. We're very happy to have you join us today.
Susan Munsey:
Thank you. Nice to be here.
Aliah Wright:
Can you tell us a little bit about your background and how you came to found GenerateHope?
Susan Munsey:
I was in private practice about 12 years ago, and I was thinking that that's what I would do until I retired, when I came upon a church that was looking to work with trafficked women. That touched me because I was trafficked when I was 16, and somehow I knew God would always use that time for something, and that seemed to be the thing. So we had a grassroots group, and we started meeting and I started studying the issue, we got some training from some existing organizations, then we opened up what would become GenerateHope 10 years ago this March. We've helped over 100 women in that time and are able to stay in touch with most of them. It's really exciting.
Aliah Wright:
So you've seen this from both sides, both as a survivor and as an advocate for people who have been trafficked. As a social worker, what are the things you wish people had known when you were in this situation?
Susan Munsey:
Well, you know what, I wish that people knew that it's not really a choice. It's not something that a young woman just wakes up one day and decides, "Gee, I think I'll sell my body today and give the money to somebody else." It's more something that one is backed into, tricked into, and held in with psychological chains, like trauma bonding, Stockholm syndrome, shame, and even violence. I also wish people had realized that we were just kids and that we needed protection and support.
Aliah Wright:
Do you think that with everything that's going on today with the Me Too movement and more awareness of these issues, that those thoughts are changing?
Susan Munsey:
I do. I do think that people are becoming more aware, and I think people are more insightful about what is really happening with young people when they're being trafficked. The average age of entry into trafficking is 15, so we're really talking about kids that haven't developed intellectually to a place where they can really figure their way out of this kind of a situation once they get backed into it. I still find, though, that when I go and speak, it's almost always true that at least half of the room has no idea that this is going on in America and that it's going on with American young kids.
Aliah Wright:
It seems, though, sometimes that human trafficking awareness has increased recently, for example, with such grassroots organizations as Truckers Against Trafficking, who are educating and empowering truck drivers, their companies in the travel plaza industry, to be crime fighters against domestic sex trafficking. Social workers are often on the front lines when encountering people who have been traumatized or victimized by others. We wanted to ask you the five things social workers should know when they encounter women who have been trafficked.
Susan Munsey:
Yeah, good question. I just want to back up a little bit and say I love Truckers Against Trafficking. I think that's a wonderful group, grassroots group of people who said we got to do something about this. I think there's so many people that are beginning to do that, and even more that can become aware and do something in their own arena, whatever that is. Just as far as maybe five things that social workers should know, one is to be real. Trafficked women and girls can usually read people very clearly. Just due to the circumstances that they've been in, they have come to read people very well. And so just be real. Be yourself. Also, offer help, but realize that she may not be ready. Remember, there's the trauma bonding that's going on there. Remain available. Many trafficked individuals don't even realize that they're being taken advantage of. Also, I would say that she's likely in need of a place to stay. That's one of the most important things for women or individuals coming out of a trafficking environment is that they need a place to stay. They need housing. So educate yourself on what's available. My go-to resource is globalmodernslavery.org. You just put the state that you're in in the search bar, and you'll get a lot of different resources that are in whatever state. And it is a global resource, so it could be whatever country that you're in as well. I would say learn more about trafficking. Educate yourself and talk about what you learn. Polarisproject.org is a really good place to go to learn more about trafficking, P-O-L-A-R-I-S project.org. I would just clarify one thing. I say she because the majority of the individuals that are trafficked are women, but it's not limited just to women and girls.
Aliah Wright:
When you said be real, you're meaning be authentic and be genuine?
Susan Munsey:
Yes.
Aliah Wright:
Is that what you mean by... Okay. Can you add a little bit more about that?
Susan Munsey:
Just, I think, being yourself. Sometimes we may feel like we need to put on our professional front or appearance, but I think just being yourself is the most important thing. Yeah.
Aliah Wright:
What are some things to look for to recognize that someone is being trafficked?
Susan Munsey:
Oh, good question. As I said, the typical age of entry is around 15 or 16, although it can happen at any time. It can also commonly happen to women that are in college. Some of the indicators are some common indicators of other things that there might be something going on. A change in grades, a change in friends, staying out later, a change in attitude, very typically having more than one cell phone. These guys will give them a cell phone that's just for them to be in contact with their trafficker. More sexualized behavior, language, interactions, running away from home depression, different behavioral changes. Those could all be indicators of sex trafficking, and certainly indicators that something's going on and we want to check and see what's happening here.
Aliah Wright:
What kind of damage does this do to a person, and is there hope to overcome this?
Susan Munsey:
Absolutely, there's hope, but the damage is very real. It's very deep. I just can't imagine many other ways of being assaulted that are more personal than this. The damage is physical, mental, and spiritual. We look at all of those aspects at GenerateHope. Those three areas really need to be addressed if you're working with trafficking survivors. Most women come out of trafficking with post-traumatic stress disorder, major depression, other anxiety disorders, sleep disorders, intrusive thoughts, daytime thoughts, just all kinds of issues that they're trying to deal with at once. Using your trauma background, knowing how to approach trauma and what the best practices are for trauma, we don't really have best practices yet for working with sex trafficking survivors per se, so we have to rely on what are those best practices for working with post-traumatic stress disorder, for trauma in general, for major depressive disorder, for sexual abuse, those kinds of things that maybe run parallel. I do think there's great hope, and I think social workers are poised to be of great assistance using the skills that we've learned to work with trauma, and the basic case management skills as well, so to connect them with other professionals so that they can be assisting alongside, medical, dental, tattoo removal, psychiatry, of course the housing I mentioned, job skills. There's just so many different areas that there are people that can come alongside the client and the social worker.
Aliah Wright:
You mentioned tattoo removal. Why do trafficking survivors need tattoo removal?
Susan Munsey:
Oh, that's an excellent question, and that's another good indicator. A lot of times the traffickers will brand the women with their name. I've seen brands on women's foreheads, necks, chest, tummy, shoulders, thighs, anyplace to remind them that they are the belonging, the property of this guy. They are very controlling. They have quotas that they have to meet each night. They can't come back without meeting that quota or they are looking to get beat. They are controlled as far as when they can eat, when they can sleep, when they can go to the bathroom, how much they're allowed to eat. You can just imagine all the trauma that this imparts on these women and that then they have to try and work through once they get into a program. Yeah, tattoo removal is a real common thing.
Aliah Wright:
Susan, when it comes to GenerateHope, what is the goal for these women?
Susan Munsey:
The goal for the women at GenerateHope is to heal them from the trauma of the sex trade. We want them to be able to make a sustainable living wage, as well, doing something that they enjoy. And we want them to regain their self-esteem so that they can stand strong and really walk into their future feeling good about themselves and what they're doing.
Aliah Wright:
What other advice do you have for social workers working in this arena?
Susan Munsey:
Make sure that you have a heart for these survivors. I think that's true for whatever area that we're working in, but this is very difficult work. And if you don't have a heart for these particular survivors, these women, then it's really easy to get burned out. If you do, though, feel like you have that heart, your heart goes out to these women, it's something you feel drawn to do, use your skills, your knowledge, and partner with your client, and you'll sail and do a good job.
Aliah Wright:
Susan, you mentioned globalmodernslavery.org, thepolarisproject.org. What are some other resources you'd recommend for survivors of sexual assault or human trafficking? And listeners, we're going to have a a list of these resources for you as well.
Susan Munsey:
The other one I would say is the National Human Trafficking Hotline. That's available 7/24 for survivors. It's also available for someone who is working with a survivor and needs help with resources. That's 888-373-7888. There's two books that I would recommend for anybody who wants to work with survivors of sex trafficking. I've read many, many, many books and watch so many different films, but these two books I think really give you a great idea of what it's like to be trafficked and also provide a lot of resources. They're both written by survivors. The first one is called Walking Prey, P-R-E-Y, and that's by Holly Austin Smith. Then the other one is Runaway Girl, and that's by Carissa Phelps, P-H-E-L-P-S. Then if people are doing the work with survivors, I would recommend that one of your keystone go-to resources is called Ending the Game. You can learn more about that at endingthegame.com. That's a curriculum that's written by a couple of different survivors of sex trafficking. It's wonderful. It's got all kinds of different resources. It's an online curriculum and has different exercises each week. I think it's 10 weeks, or it's designed to be 10 weeks if you're doing it in two-hour segments, or it can be one-hour segments and 20 weeks. Those are some really good resources.
Aliah Wright:
It sounds like it. Do you have any other advice for our listeners?
Susan Munsey:
Be aware of what's going on in your community. If you're interested in doing this work, see who's already up and running in your community. There's probably somebody nearby that could use your assistance or help. And talk about sex trafficking. In some ways, it's still kind of taboo, but I think the more we talk about it, the more we can do to end it.
Aliah Wright:
How can people reach GenerateHope?
Susan Munsey:
They can go to our website, which is generatehope.org, and they can research what we're doing. They can also, if they're interested in emailing, my email is susan@generatehope.org.
Aliah Wright:
Susan, thank you so much for taking the time out to speak with us today. We greatly appreciate it.
Susan Munsey:
Oh, it's my pleasure. Thank you.
Aliah Wright:
And listeners, thank you for joining us. Please don't forget to leave us a review on iTunes.
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