World Day Against Trafficking in Persons

Beyond Rescue: Listening to and Standing With Survivors of Trafficking

Every year on 30th July, the world pauses to observe the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. For many, it’s a day of statistics—of numbers trafficked, numbers rescued, numbers lost. But behind every statistic is a person: a woman who was exploited, displaced, silenced. And more often than not, she is Black, minoritised, and unheard.

At Anah Project, we support women who have been trafficked for sex, for labour, for servitude, for exploitation masked as ‘care.’ And while headlines focus on dramatic rescue operations, we see the truth that follows after rescue: the long, complex, often invisible journey toward rebuilding a life.

Trafficking doesn’t end when someone escapes. Sometimes, that’s when the real fight begins.

It doesn’t always look like what you think

Popular images of trafficking—chained girls, locked rooms, shady criminals in dark alleyways—are misleading. Trafficking is rarely so obvious. It happens in homes, care sectors, nail bars, hotels, and restaurants. It happens through partners, friends, family members, and community figures. And it thrives in plain sight—especially when we’re not trained to see it.

Many of the women supported by Anah Project were trafficked under the pretence of opportunity: promises of education, a good job, a better life. Some were born here, others arrived through student or marriage visas. Many were coerced into sexual exploitation, domestic servitude, or criminal activity. Others were manipulated with debt, blackmail, or threats to their children.

And nearly all of them were met with disbelief when they spoke up.

Systems that silence survivors

The trauma of trafficking doesn’t end with physical escape. Survivors face a labyrinth of systems that often retraumatise them. Immigration procedures that question their credibility. Law enforcement agencies that treat them like criminals. Public services that deny them access due to lack of documents. Mental health services that are not culturally competent. All while navigating the lasting impacts of abuse, isolation, and shame.

Too many women are forced to “prove” they were victims. To disclose intimate, violent details to strangers just to be believed. To wait months or years for decisions that determine whether they can stay in the country, access support, or keep their children.

And still, they persist.

At Anah Project, we know that resilience shouldn’t be the price women pay for being heard. Survivors need support—not suspicion.

Trafficking doesn’t happen in a vacuum

Trafficking is not random. It thrives where vulnerability exists—and vulnerability is rarely innate. It is created. Women become vulnerable when they are denied education, financial independence, stable housing, legal protections, or safe migration pathways. Black and minoritised women are more likely to be over-policed, under-protected, and unsupported—making them prime targets for exploitation.

It is no accident that survivors of trafficking are often survivors of other forms of abuse first. The pathways between domestic violence, homelessness, addiction, and trafficking are well established—but still widely ignored in mainstream services.

Anah Project takes an intersectional approach. We recognise that trafficking is not just about movement across borders—it is about power, coercion, vulnerability, and control. We support women holistically: body, mind, safety, and future.

Our response: safety, trust, and transformation

Anah’s work with trafficking survivors goes beyond shelter. We build relationships. We listen deeply. And we never define women by what happened to them. Our approach includes:

· Emergency accommodation where survivors can rest without fear

· Legal advocacy to secure immigration status and access to justice

· Therapeutic support that honours cultural and linguistic identity

· Peer mentorship led by education to spot signs of trafficking and challenge myths

· Policy advocacy to push for protections that centre survivor voices

We know that one safe room isn’t enough. Survivors need sustainable support—employment opportunities, education, healing, and community.

Listening is an act of justice

One of the most powerful things we can do is believe women the first time they speak. To honour their stories without sensationalising them. To hand back control, not take it away again in the name of “helping.” Too many anti-trafficking responses centre the state, not the survivor. We flip that dynamic. The women we work with are not helpless. They are experts in survival. And they deserve to be the architects of their own recovery.

Your role in this story

The fight against trafficking belongs to all of us. It’s not confined to police raids or international summits. It starts in the everyday: in how we talk about survivors, in how we respond to disclosures, in the services we fund, the language we use, and the assumptions we challenge.

· Learn to recognise signs of trafficking—but do so responsibly.

· Support survivor-led organisations and grassroots work.

· Challenge harmful narratives that centre rescuers instead of those who have been exploited.

· Ask your local MP what they’re doing to support non-criminalisation, safe housing, and indefinite leave for survivors.

Beyond Rescue: Standing With Survivors

On this World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, we remember that ending trafficking is not just about disrupting criminal networks—it’s about building systems where women are protected before they’re harmed, supported after they’re freed, and never forced to walk alone.

At Anah Project, we walk beside them—quietly, respectfully, with care. We do not define them by their trauma. We hold space for their full humanity. And together, we continue the work of transforming survival into freedom.

Because every woman deserves more than rescue. She deserves justice. She deserves choice. She deserves to thrive.