CAST Flor Isabel and Steven Hassan August 2013 SD

Since its founding in 1998 following the infamous El Monte sweatshop slavery case, the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking has invested in human resilience by helping clients recover from years of abuse and trauma. CAST’s mission is to assist persons trafficked for the purpose of forced labor and slavery-like practices and to work toward ending all instances of such human rights violations. CAST’s trafficking cases are recognized nationally and internationally and serve as a best-practice model of inter-agency collaboration and empowerment of survivors. The program is known best for its success in assisting survivors in their journey from being victims of trafficking to becoming self-sufficient, thriving members of the communities in which they live. These services include access to food, shelter, job training, intensive case management, legal assistance, mental health and wellness, alternative non-western healing therapies, education, and life skills training. CAST’s emergency response program also includes a 24-hour hotline (888-539-2373) to receive information on potential trafficking cases from all members of the community, including victims themselves. CAST also has a survivor leadership and advocacy program, which includes a Survivor Leadership and Advisory Caucus. Through the caucus, survivors who have graduated from the CAST program become leaders and advocates and strengthen the CAST survivor community. CAST empowers victims of trafficking and modern-day slavery to become survivors and leaders. Their web site is castla.org.