Human Trafficking Vulnerability Assessment in Central Illinois

The Human Trafficking Research Lab (HTRL) at Millikin University conducted a Community Assessment of the Central Illinois Human Trafficking Task Force (CIHTTF) in November 2021 in accordance with the guidelines of the Enhanced Collaborative Model Task Force to Combat Human Trafficking grant from the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs at the United States (US) Department of Justice. Then at the site visit in December 2021 we were asked by the grant monitors to update our assessment with more data on vulnerabilities in our region. Therefore, the goal for this Vulnerability Assessment is to identify areas within Central Illinois where vulnerabilities for trafficking and exploitation can occur.  

The CIHTTF will use this assessment to continue to develop outreach strategies and priorities for the task force. The HTRL used a mix of quantitative data and qualitative interviews/correspondence with victim and survivor services organizations, law enforcement, and the states attorneys office to track human trafficking cases in our 46 counties. We also hosted a brainstorming session with CIHTTF members to identify factors that create vulnerabilities to trafficking. Then working backward to identify information related to those factors. 

As outlined the in the grant application, the previous Community Assessment and this Vulnerability Assessment were conducted in collaboration with the Center for Prevention of Abuse and Illinois State Police. The aforementioned Community Assessment focused on the local needs, emphasizing the gaps between what services exist in Central Illinois and goals for what should exist. We identified areas within the community where vulnerabilities for trafficking exploitation may be occurring using qualitative data with surveys and quantitative data with statistical analyses. 

The final version of the report is available here.

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