Campaign to Stop Human Trafficking in Delaware starts with helping the people who may never ask for help

An inaugural Oct. 2 Summit in Dewey Beach will bring caregivers, clinicians, advocates and other professionals together to recognize exploitation and improve support for survivors.

DEWEY BEACH, Del. — A person being trafficked may still go to work, attend school or see a doctor. What those around them may not see is the person controlling their pay, housing, access to drugs or ability to leave.

That is the challenge at the center of Delaware’s inaugural Human Trafficking Awareness, Prevention and Action Summit on Friday, Oct. 2, at Hyatt Place Dewey Beach. The Delaware Coalition for Human Trafficking Survivors is bringing survivors, national experts and Delaware professionals together to improve how the state recognizes exploitation and responds to people affected by it.

Two ways exploitation can stay hidden

Imagine Elena, an adult who cleans homes. She depends on the person who hired her for a place to sleep and a ride to work. Her promised pay never arrives, but she fears losing her housing if she leaves. Someone meeting Elena might see a hard-working employee, without knowing how little control she has over her work or money. Elena is fictional, but her situation illustrates a recognized pattern of forced labor.

Now imagine Jay, a 16-year-old who accepts a place to stay from someone he trusts. That person then expects commercial sex in exchange. Jay may be frightened to tell a teacher or caregiver, or may not describe what happened as trafficking. Jay is also fictional. Jennifer Cooper, a registered nurse and forensic coordinator at Nemours Children’s Health, told Delaware LIVE that young people may not recognize food, housing or other things of value as part of commercial sexual exploitation. Under federal law, a minor induced into commercial sex is a trafficking victim even without proof of force, fraud or coercion.

Victims do not fit one age, gender or background. Trafficking also does not require kidnapping or crossing a border. The common issue is exploitation: force, fraud or coercion used to compel an adult to provide labor or commercial sex, or the commercial sexual exploitation of a minor.

What Delaware’s numbers show

The National Human Trafficking Hotline identified 29 Delaware cases involving 32 victims in 2025. In 2024, it identified 32 cases involving 61 victims. The hotline cautions that reports made to it do not measure how often trafficking actually occurs; people who never contact the hotline are outside its count.

Another measure comes from Delaware’s Office of the Child Advocate. Its contribution to the Delaware Anti-Trafficking Action Council’s 2025 report says the office screened 65 juvenile trafficking referrals, including 40 classified as suspected trafficking and 25 involving young people assessed as at risk. Those are referrals, not 65 confirmed crimes, and they cannot simply be added to the hotline total.

Together, the figures show why professionals who encounter vulnerable people need to know what questions to ask, how to respond safely and where to turn for help.

Bringing the people who respond into one room

Cooper said she helped pursue a Delaware summit after traveling out of state for advanced training. The Oct. 2 program includes tracks for mental health professionals, medical providers, direct-service workers, law enforcement and survivors. Sessions are expected to address family-related trafficking, trauma, survivor care and coordinated responses.

“I want to bring together the people who are doing the work,” Cooper told Delaware LIVE. She said organizations serving vulnerable people can benefit from knowing what others nearby are doing and where services are missing.

The summit is an opportunity for psychologists and other mental health clinicians, advocates, health care workers, educators, caregivers and community leaders to learn from survivors and from one another. It is also open to residents who want a better understanding of trafficking in Delaware. A private, invitation-only executive roundtable will take place Oct. 1; the public summit follows Oct. 2.

To Go Box

What: Human Trafficking Awareness, Prevention and Action Summit
When: Friday, Oct. 2, 2026
Where: Hyatt Place Dewey Beach, 1301 Coastal Highway
Who: Professionals, advocates, caregivers, organizational leaders and interested residents
Admission: $75 regular admission, listed as available through Sept. 30
Register: Summit registration
Learn more: Delaware Coalition for Human Trafficking Survivors