Cision PR Newswire

Organization Remains Committed to Funding Collaborators to Combat Sex Trafficking and Child Exploitation in Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS, Feb. 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Our Rescue, a global non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to combating sex trafficking and child exploitation, is withdrawing its no-cost request for proposal (RFP) and commitment to help fund the Minneapolis Community Safety Center. The decision comes after some community groups were critical of the organization's proposed partnership based on misinformation and past actions by the former CEO and founder. Our Rescue would not have received funding from the City of Minneapolis. Rather, as part of the RFP, Our Rescue planned to use its own funds to deliver $1 million in specialized training for law enforcement, community leaders and cross-sector professionals to bolster anti-trafficking efforts in Minneapolis. 

"Misinformation campaigns, attacks on the past, and politicizing this work for political gain is a distraction from the lifesaving work we are doing and will continue to do here with our cross-sector partners in law enforcement and survivor care," said Tammy Lee, CEO of Our Rescue who led anti-human trafficking initiatives at Minneapolis-based Carlson Companies, Delta Airlines and Northwest Airlines, and served on the White House Interagency Task force to Combat Trafficking in Persons. "While we have withdrawn our commitment to fund training and services at the South Minneapolis Community Safety Center, I told Mayor Frey that we remain committed to this community and will provide direct funds to police, firefighters, first responders and other nonprofits who are working together to end human trafficking and child exploitation."  

New Leadership, New Organization
In less than a year under Lee's leadership, Our Rescue has undergone a significant transformation, including the appointment of a new board of directors and leadership team. In April 2024, the organization re-incorporated as Our Rescue with a renewed commitment to support law enforcement with the tools, technology and training they need to remove sex trafficking and child exploitation victims from harm and partner with other nonprofits to provide trauma-informed survivor care. 

While undergoing this transformation, Lee said the organization equally was focused on its mission in 27 countries, including the U.S. The organization had been known for its work internationally and is now focused on expanding its support for law enforcement and survivor care domestically.  

In 2024 alone, Our Rescue's support in the U.S. included: 

• Funding 16 comprehensive, skills-based training sessions for over 1,500 police officers, increasing their capacity to investigate human trafficking cases and support survivors using trauma-informed approaches.
• Supporting police officers in identifying 274 victims of human trafficking.
• Providing 131 grants to fund digital forensics technology in support of law enforcement agencies, aiding in over 3,000 rescue missions.
• Sponsoring and placing 24 ESD K9s—trained to detect devices that store child sexual abuse material. This enables police to find digital evidence that helps them arrest and convict predators. Our Rescue has sponsored and placed 110 police K9s since 2017.
• Supporting 25 survivors through short- and long-term housing, food, transportation, medical care and therapeutic services, as well as educational and vocational training.

Commitment to Minnesota
Our Rescue relocated its headquarters to Minneapolis to work alongside local leaders to enhance current services and fill gaps, including funding to support training, ESD K9s and digital forensics equipment for police; online safety training to protect kids from predators; and more direct services for survivors. 

Recently, Our Rescue awarded a $50,000 grant to the Minnesota Indian Women's Resource Center in Minneapolis and $10,000 to Terebinth Refuge in St. Cloud to support at-risk women and youth and to enhance their survivor services.  

Our Rescue also is raising funds to expand survivor care services in Minneapolis, with plans to invest in additional shelter and support services for Minnesota survivors.    

"Collaboration, not competition, is essential," said Derek Benner, Chief Mission Officer at Our Rescue and former head of Homeland Security Investigations. "We know the most effective way to drive lasting change is by linking arms and being inclusive in our collective efforts to end sex trafficking and child exploitation." 

Sex trafficking remains one of the fastest growing crimes. In 2023, 8,611 CyberTipline reports of suspected child sexual exploitation were made available to law enforcement in Minnesota, according to the most recent data from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. Globally, the International Labour Organization reports that forced commercial sexual exploitation generates $173 billion in illegal profits per year. 

"By working together, we can a force multiplier for good in Minnesota and around the world in the fight to end human trafficking and child exploitation," added Lee. 

About Our Rescue
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Our Rescue is a global non-governmental organization on a mission to end sex trafficking and child exploitation by empowering survivors to reclaim their lives and thrive on their healing journey. Founded in 2013, the organization focuses on education toward prevention, supports law enforcement in rescuing survivors and prosecuting perpetrators, and provides trauma-informed survivor care services. Our Rescue operates in the U.S. and 27 countries. 

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SOURCE Our Rescue