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David and Julie Brown
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06 June 2008
Couple Aids Trafficking Victims in Morocco, June 6, 2008(Pastor and his wife provide refuge, aid to the needy)
Washington -- Pastor David Brown and his wife, Julie Brown, of the French Protestant Church have worked tirelessly for the past three and a half years, often at great personal risk, to assist sub-Saharan trafficking victims and clandestine migrants in Morocco.
The Browns see 150 to 500 new migrant cases each month in Casablanca and Rabat, 25 percent of whom are women, and most are believed to be trafficking victims who were forced into prostitution. Upon initial contact, the Browns assess the migrants’ cases and develop a plan of assistance that can include money, emergency shelter, food, clothing, counseling, start-up assistance for micro-enterprises and medical help.
Mrs. Brown, a certified nurse, examines each new arrival and offers free medical assistance to anyone who arrives at the church, one of the few places where trafficking victims can turn for help in Morocco because the government does not offer assistance to such victims.
The Browns are being recognized as anti-trafficking heroes in the 2008 Trafficking in Persons Report released on June 4. (See “Reducing Demand Is Key To Curbing Human Trafficking, U.S. Says.”)
The “Heroes” designation began with the Trafficking in Persons Report for 2004 under then-Secretary of State Colin Powell to recognize ordinary people who have done extraordinary work to combat modern-day slavery. Since then, the State Department has identified each year in its Trafficking in Persons Report individuals who have shown great courage in the face of adversity in fighting this worldwide problem.
