Help victims of sexual exploitation

Anti Sex Trafficking Department

Out of Darkness

24/7 RESCUE HOTLINE: 404.941.6024

Department Overview

The goal of Frontline Response’s Anti Sex Trafficking Department, Out of Darkness, is to provide holistic, individualized, and trauma-informed care to adult victims of commercial sexual exploitation through a seamless continuum of services, including outreach, jail mentorship, 24-hour hotline services, safe home services, and long-term program placement. The consistent work of the Anti Sex Trafficking Department provides a stable, safe space for victims to seek refuge. Frontline Response is poised to respond to crisis situations, efficiently coordinate the care needed for stabilization, and make connections to long-term care on behalf of victims.

  • Frontline Response uses various outreaches to identify and build relationships with victims of commercial sexual exploitation. A weekly street outreach utilizes roses and handmade cards to communicate to women – primarily those trapped in street prostitution – that they are valuable and cared for, and that there are opportunities for hope and recovery. The cards include messages of kindness and our 24-hour hotline number.

  • The jail mentorship program offers education, resources, and support to incarcerated victims of commercial sexual exploitation. The jail mentorship program is active in Bartow, Bibb, Cobb, DeKalb, Gwinnett, and Muscogee County Jails. If a victim is interested in joining the mentorship program, he or she is paired with a mentor. While awaiting trial, or serving a sentence, participants of the mentorship program have focused time to invest in their recovery and consider the next steps for their future. Victims receive curriculum and meet with their mentor at least twice per month. During these meetings, mentors provide emotional and spiritual support, as well as psychoeducational resources. Mentors also assist victims with community service information they may need to move forward upon release. Mentors and pen-pals support victims through letters or postcards of encouragement. When a victim is released from jail, she may access residential support through Frontline Response’s Anti Sex Trafficking Hotline and Safe Home.

  • Frontline Response’s Anti Sex Trafficking Hotline operates 24-hours, 365 days a year, and acts as the bridge between victimization and safety. Hotline volunteers are women trained to meet the needs of victims. Callers are given a safe space to share their background and current circumstances, receive information about community resources and ask for help. Information from every call is logged with demographic data and discussion notes.

  • If a caller to our 24-Hour Hotline is a victim of commercial sexual exploitation and is interested in entering a long-term recovery program, a rescue team is immediately assembled to bring the victim to the Frontline Response Safe Home.

  • Frontline Response operates a crisis-safe home for female victims of sex trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation who are over the age of 18. Residents stay in the Safe Home for two to four weeks while attending medical and psychiatric appointments, participating in group therapy and skill-building classes, and applying for long-term programs. The Safe Home is located in an undisclosed location and accepts emergency intakes around the clock. Utilizing a team-based approach, professional sta! provide trauma-informed care as they go through an initial intake, establish goals, and build an Individualized Service Plan. With a primary goal of crisis stabilization, all Safe Home programming, home environment, and staff methods focus on establishing safety, improving emotional self-regulation, and post-traumatic stress awareness. Practical goals often include attending court hearings, receiving medical evaluations, and procuring government identification.

  • Frontline Response partners with over 40 long-term programs nationwide to offer each resident multiple program options to address her needs. After acceptance to a long-term program, Frontline Response financially provides for all program fees. In 2019, 118 women came to the Safe Home and 52 entered long-term programming.

Testimonies

  • “I don’t think I’ve ever been shown so much love from anyone ever before now, I’ve never had someone care about what I want out of my life or help me reach my goals.”

    -Sex Trafficking Survivor

  • “You taught me that prayer is powerful and it can shift the atmosphere. Thank God for Frontline Response. I am living a happy and joyous life today. I'm free from bondage.”

    - Sex Trafficking Survivor

  • "Out of Darkness made a way for me to get the services that I desperately needed to live a different life than I ever thought possible. Today, I am living a life free from the things that used to hold me in bondage and I am blessed to have the opportunity to reach back and help others out of the darkness I was once consumed by."

    -Sex Trafficking Survivor

Volunteer Needs

Serve Alongside Us

Out of Darkness programming and services would not be possible without volunteers. The primary focus of volunteers is building relationships and meeting the basic needs of individuals who found themselves trapped in sex trafficking and exploitation. Volunteers participate both as individuals and within teams. Some opportunities require additional training and background checks. Check out our different serving opportunities by clicking the button below.

Downloads

Ready to join the fight against sex trafficking? Read this first.

Every year, millions of vulnerable children and women are trafficked for sex around the world. But it's hard to know how to actually help. That's why we created this helpful pdf—so you can get equipped with simple, practical steps to make a difference in your community.

In this free digital guide, you will:

  • Become better informed about the issue of sex trafficking

  • Learn how to identify the signs of trafficking and report a tip

  • Discover opportunities to volunteer your time, skills, and talents in the fight against sex trafficking

  • See what critical items you can provide to trafficking survivors

  • Learn how to join The Responder Community, our community of monthly givers committed to making a difference in the fight against sex trafficking