SALT LAKE CITY — The Asian Association of Utah has renovated its location on South Major Street in Salt Lake City and turned it into a dedicated Human Trafficking Support Center, expanding services for survivors across the state. “Human trafficking is a very economic crime,” Sarah Chau, outreach education coordinator for the program, said.
The Human Trafficking Support Center offers services such as housing and healthcare assistance, as well as mental health resources.
The organization, which started over 45 years ago, received a grant that allowed for renovations to the building. The renovations include new therapy rooms and a meeting room.
So, what is human trafficking?
“This looks like an individual that’s having to engage in commercial sex in order to have a place to live, or they might be providing labor services, maybe they were promised a job to come to the U.S. or work at a different location, and the job wasn’t what they were expecting,” Chau explained.
Anthony, who asked that his last name not be used, says that when he first moved to the U.S., he was hired through a third-party organization to work for several hotels. "I was forced to do several jobs that I didn't sign up for. I didn't see most of the money that was promised,” he said.
He says that at the time, his employer was threatening him. “If you don’t do certain things or if you don’t comply with what the job requires, then we’re going to call law enforcement or we’re going to call immigration,” he explained.
Now, Anthony is a program coordinator at AAU. He helps others get the resources they need. “People don’t realize that when they go to a hotel that the person that’s serving their food is the person that might experiencing labor trafficking,” he said.
AAU reported serving over 1,400 human trafficking survivors in fiscal year 2025.
“It’s complex, not every situation looks the same,” Anthony said.
