Araminta reduces the threat of child sex trafficking—the buying and selling of minors for the purpose of sexual exploitation—and provides clinical and support services to individuals who have survived what the U.S. Department of Justice and United Nations define as modern slavery.Children in Maryland are exceptionally vulnerable to trafficking. Individual vulnerabilities include housing instability and homelessness, domestic violence, sexual abuse, low self-esteem, social isolation, and untreated mental health or substance abuse in the family. Children in the child welfare system, including foster care, are disproportionately at risk.
In Maryland, these factors are compounded by the state’s disparity of extreme poverty and extreme wealth, along with the increased presence of gambling facilities.