The South Bay Coalition to End Human Trafficking (SBCEHT) is the local effort that responds to human trafficking in the counties of Santa Clara and San Benito in California. Utilizing a victim-centered approach, we are strengthening local capacity to respond to and identify human trafficking survivors. We are able to accept tax-deductible donations through our fiscal agent Community Solutions’ 501(c)(3) status.

Our vision is a world free from slavery.

Our goals are to:

Provide comprehensive services to victims of human trafficking
Raise awareness of human trafficking through community education and outreach
Provide professional training to service providers

South Bay Coalition to End Human Trafficking

Statement of Shared Values

DRAFTED August 18, 2021

The South Bay Coalition to End Human Trafficking (Coalition) upholds the following values and principles as the foundation for fostering a nurturing environment to achieve the Coalition’s mission. 

We Value:

Coalition members are expected to adhere to these common values:

1. Kindness: Treating each person with empathy and dignity, recognizing common humanity in everyone. Being aware of the impact of our actions and statements on others. 
2. Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion: Valuing where each person is and addressing the fact that the playing field is uneven due to systemic challenges, historical racism, and oppression and working to eradicate these inequities. Creating equitable opportunities for diverse populations to lead a healthy and safe life.
3. Service: Care and advocate with the intent to assist and empower survivors, partners, and community members. 
4. Liberty: Work towards ending exploitation so that survivors are able to live safe, free, and have full agency to make decisions.
5. Dedication: Commit strongly to our shared values, partnerships, survivors, and to a better world.
6. Authenticity: Live up to our individual, professional, and agency values by our intentions and actions.  
7. Fairness: Uphold values of equity and openness by practicing a balanced standard of justice without individual bias. 
8. Respect: Treat people with dignity regardless of who they are and what they believe. Address differences without shaming, blaming, or intimidation.
9. Non-Judgmental: Being aware of our internal biases and privileges. Not projecting or imposing our judgments onto survivors or others.
10. Transparency: Pursue direct, open, honest, and solutions-oriented communication among partners and between partners, survivors, and community.  Be clear about what we know, what we do not know, what we can share and what we cannot share and why. Be clear about roles, expectations, and limitations. Only promise what we can deliver.

Our Principles:

The Coalition’s work will be guided and informed by our beliefs and commitments to: 

1. Trauma-informed: Honor survivor’s experiences without judgment by meeting them where they are and assisting them with access to justice as they define it. 
2. Survivor-Centered and Survivor-Informed: Prioritize a survivor’s needs, goals, and desires, as they define them, within the serving organization’s role and ability. 
3. Collaboration: Work proactively with diverse agencies and partners to build effective responses to human trafficking. 
4. Cultural responsiveness: Practice humility, cultivate an awareness of one another’s culture, and have a willingness to learn and accommodate.
5. Commitment to Justice: Equitable access for diverse populations to seek justice as they define it.
6. Intersectional approach: Human trafficking is not an isolated issue, it requires responding to overlapping issues and vulnerabilities. 
7. Non-Judgmental: Being aware of our internal biases and not projecting or imposing our judgments onto survivors or others.
8. Empowerment: Promote self-sufficiency, autonomy, and economic independence for survivors through access to resources, education, and justice.

2005: South Bay Coalition to End Human Trafficking is Formally Established

Throughout 2003 and 2004 the Coalition continued to meet informally and work collaboratively towards strengthening partnerships and enhancing victim services. We held our first official meeting in February 2005. Since then, we continue to meet monthly to ensure the continuity of our collaborative, victim-centered, trauma-informed approach to human trafficking. Over the past 15 years, our Coalition has developed multiple protocols to foster partnership with law enforcement, safely share information between agencies for emergency services, and build capacity across disciplines.

2005 – 2015: A Decade of Collaboration & Expansion

Since our beginning, we have expanded services, collected demographic and service data, documented the scope of local trafficking, and identified survivors’ needs. We produced collaborative manuals and trainings to better identify and serve victims with law enforcement, victim services, and legal services. Our members continue to participate in Santa Clara County’s Human Trafficking Commission workgroups. First held in 2013, our Bi-Annual Conference attracts speakers from across the region and nation while bringing together government representatives, investigators, victim services, and community members.

2016 – Today: Engaging Stakeholders and the Region

We took an active role in efforts leading up to the 2016 Super Bowl in Santa Clara, seeing it as an opportunity to garner public and political support for long-term regional work. The Coalition co-founded and facilitates the regional group, “No Traffick Ahead,” which was formed to focus on collective impact in the region engaging nine counties across the Bay Area.

We continue to be a voice of experience and conscience, urging partners to focus on victim-centered, trauma-informed responses, while reminding our community and first responders of the broad range of trafficking that may appear as everyday activities. We are meeting emerging challenges with creativity and collaborating with a common vision. To request more information about memberships or trainings, please contact us.