Caption: Shunu Shrestha, Trafficking and Prostitution Task Force Coordinator will work closely with Program for Aid to Victims of Sexual Assault (PAVSA) and American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO) to get a task force up and running and to use that task force to identify what resources are needed in Duluth. By Naomi Yaeger-Bischoff
Asked to think about human trafficking, the average person would think of a person forced to work against her or his will. Most would feel sorry for the victim and probably think that it should be stopped. If asked to think about prostitution, the average person would probably think about sex and a criminal element.
That average person would probably be shocked to think that human trafficking exists in Duluth. But he or she wouldn’t be too surprised to hear that prostitution exists. Human trafficking conjures up mental pictures of people unduly detained and forced to work against their will. Prostitution conjures up mental pictures of illicit sex. In one example, the person detained and forced to work is considered a victim; in the other she is considered a criminal.
Over the years, counselors and advocates for battered women have heard stories in which women are trafficked in Duluth, especially American Indian women. Counselors at Dabinoo’igan, a Duluth shelter for battered women and victims of sexual assault, report that 47 percent of the women receiving their services have been victims of trafficking, even if the women themselves don’t initially see it that way. A woman may say that her boyfriend threatened to hurt her or her family unless she would sleep with friends for money. Sometimes it is a family member who pressures her.
Most people would feel sympathy for the victim of human trafficking and wonder why society doesn’t put a stop to it. The Women’s Foundation of Minnesota is doing just that, by funding a task force to study the issue of human trafficking and prostitution in Duluth.
Trafficking and Prostitution Task Force Coordinator hired
Shunu Shrestha was hired in May. She will work closely with Program for Aid to Victims of Sexual Assault (PAVSA) and American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO) to get the task force up and running and to use that task force to identify what resources are needed in Duluth. Once these needs are identified, then resources can be designed that will help women and girls break free from the cycle in which they’ve become enmeshed.
Shrestha is a December 2009 master’s graduate in human rights at Columbia University, New York, and a 2007 graduate of the College of St. Catherine in St. Paul with majors in Women’s Studies and English.
Shrestha grew up in Nepal, where she went to school with her brothers. At the age of 12 or 13, though, she realized that many girls were not treated equally to boys. Most girls did not attend school, but stayed home to look after the home and other children. This situation “didn’t feel right,” she said, “but whenever I asked about discrimination against women, people just said that it was natural.” Shrestha worked for non-governmental organizations in Nepal to try to further equal rights of women. Attending a conference of an international organization working for women’s rights further inspired her.
Over 30 people in Duluth have expressed an interest in joining the work of the taskforce. The next taskforce meeting is set for Oct. 13 from 11 a.m. until 1 p.m. at the Building for Women, 32 E. First Street. Lunch will be provided, but please RSVP. Contact Shrestha at shretha@pavsa.org or (218) 726-1442.
