Hundreds raise support for incarcerated child survivors of human trafficking
Press Release: May 22, 2021
Karana Rising and Dressember Joint Statement
Over 500 supporters have raised $30,000 to offer critical support and advocacy to free incarcerated child survivors of human trafficking through the Survivor Justice Inititative.
Inspired by the life of incarcerated child sex trafficking survivor, Tiffany Simpson, Dressember and Karana Rising have joined together to form the Survivor Justice Initative.
Recognizing that whether survivors are currently incarcerated or recently released, they need support to sustain their freedom and fully thrive, supporters took action following the debut release of Lack of Love, a short documentary narrated from jail by Tiffany herself. Funds raised will support direct therapy and legal freedom with contributions going directly toward supporting survivors through wellness supplies, therapy, legal services, access to educational supplies and more. Survivor leaders and allies across the country will continue to raise support and find survivors like Tiffany who need their help. To hear directly from survivors in their own words and to take action visit: www.freetiffany.org
Survivors and allies continue to raise support for incarcerated survivors through 5k runs, local fundraisers and social media. Over 8,000 people have signed survivor petitions for Tiffany Simpson and Jessica and Jordan Hampton.
“When you are trafficked and locked up as a child, you never really get to imagine your life as a free woman. Feeling all this support and healing gives me the space to dream of my life again. I can’t wait to join all of you to advocate for survivors like me and to stop this form of government supported double injustice. We can stop this and now I know I have thousands of allies who believe in survivors like me.” — Tiffany Simpson, Survivor Leader at Karana Rising
The Survivor Justice Initiative, a partnership between Karana Rising, Dressember, survivors, allied agencies and legal experts launched to support survivors who are arrested or incarcerated as a result of their human trafficking experience. The Survivor Justice Initiative supports currently incarcerated survivors by providing direct social and legal support during their unjust incarceration and on their pathway to freedom. On Saturday, May 1, Dressember hosted a #FreeTiffany virtual 5K run to raise support for survivors like Tiffany and Texas siblings Jessica and Jordan Hampton.
“Tiffany not only deserves liberation — she is already fighting for the freedom of others. It’s shameful that her youth has been extinguished through our broken incarceration system. Free Tiffany and let’s move in the direction of justice for her and all others in situations like hers.” says one supporter of Tiffany.
In addition to directly supporting survivors like Tiffany, the Survivor Justice Initiative supports enacting model legislation to clarify that once trafficking survivors establish by probable cause that they were victims of human trafficking at the time the crime occurred, then the state, not the victim, bears the burden of proving intent and willfulness in the commission of the crime. Providing an affirmative defense for trafficking survivors along with legal solutions to vacate convictions and make survivors legally whole are critical to survivor justice. Tiffany, and all survivors like her, deserve their full freedom.
Press Inquiries:
Andrea Powell, Executive Director, Karana Rising, andrea@karanarising.org, (617) 785–9243
Marissa Peden, Director of Strategic Partnerships, Dressember Foundation, marissa@dressember.org, (213) 290–6177
Survivors, advocates and legal allies available upon request for interviews.
To Learn More: www.freetiffany.org
Lack of Love, a short animated documentary by filmmaker Noel Keserwany, illuminates the dark reality that across America there are victims of human trafficking trapped in jail as a result of their own victimization. The script, based on Tiffany’s own words, takes viewers on a voyage of one young girl’s abuse by her trafficker which continued when she was prosecuted and jailed for a crime he forced her to commit: no one around her saw that she was drowning.
