Opening Doors: Louisiana Human Trafficking Survivor Housing Report

Abstract

This housing project had three primary goals: to collect baseline data on housing for trafficking survivors in Louisiana, to create a housing resource guide, and to produce a housing report. To keep the scope manageable, the project focuses on social service organizations and programs that provide housing to vulnerable populations (including but not limited to: human trafficking survivors, people experiencing homelessness, at-risk or system-involved youth, people living with addiction, domestic violence survivors, sexual assault/sexual violence survivors, and immigrants) in Louisiana. The housing report was created by integrating survey data of three primary stakeholders in the housing process: housing providers, housing advocates, and trafficking survivors. The data illuminated three key phases trafficking survivors experience during the housing process: access, process, and service. The report organizes its findings using the three phases to identify barriers and challenges encountered by survivors during each respective point in the housing experience. Housing advocates voiced a need for more general housing beds for survivors, as well as specialized housing options for all trafficking survivors. As of January 2019, specialized housing for trafficking survivors in Louisiana was only available to female sex trafficking survivors. Additionally, advocates identified that certain client demographics such as men,adults with children, and labor trafficking survivors have few general housing options.82% of housing advocates believed that lack of beds was one of them most common barriers to survivors attempting to access housing. When we coded advocate responses about challenges in the housing process "lack of housing or limits in beds available" was the most common long answer response. (Author Text)