Accountability Through Empowerment
Khalila Riga & Kristin Vaughn | September 18 | 11:15 am-12:15 pm
Topic: Experience, Direct Service | Knowledge Level: Intermediate
Ethical survivor engagement is a necessity in the fight against human trafficking, be it in serving the sector as an advocate or in any other capacity that involves what constitutes “work” within the setting of prevention, intervention, or aftercare. Survivor voices are needed to expand community knowledge and to maintain accountability. In this presentation, attendees will hear from two survivors who will be sharing their experiences working in the anti-trafficking field; where they see strengths and where they see room to grow within the sector. Drawing from their experiences and observations, they will walk through some common pitfalls and ways that organizations can avoid these so that survivors can be strengthened by their time working in this space, instead of feeling re-exploited. This session will specifically highlight the ethics surrounding organizational preparedness, compensation, and the ongoing professional development of survivors. With a combined professional background of over 15 years in the anti-trafficking and domestic violence sphere, their experiences will illustrate progress that has been made and setbacks that have been experienced. Survivors help to create organizational resilience when they are empowered to use their voice in an ethical way. With a focus on shared accountability that educates and empowers organizations, attendees will leave this session better equipped for working and engaging with survivors.
Presentation Objectives:
• Discuss how ethical survivor engagement leads to organizational resilience
• Discuss deficits and where there is opportunity for growth within various areas of the sector
• Inspire survivors that their professional development is essential to the health of this space