Use this toolkit to reach out to victims of human trafficking who may pass through the criminal justice system. Included in this toolkit is a multi-lingual poster designed to be posted over jail phone banks if individuals wish to call the National Human Trafficking hotline number to report a tip or to self-identify. PDF and the original InDesign versions are included.

About

The City of Houston’s municipal jails did not initially allow for calls to be made to the National Human Trafficking tip hotline. To help those victims who are part of the criminal justice system, the municipal jails reprogrammed its phones, allowing victims to connect with the National Human Trafficking Resource Center. Harris County has also taken the initiative to reprogram its phones located in jails and in its Intake Center.

To motivate victims to place a call, placed above jail phone banks are signs that list the same intake-style questions used for the Palm-Sized Cards for Direct Outreach Toolkit. Each sign features panels in English, Spanish, Korean, Chinese Mandarin (Simplified), Vietnamese, and Thai. Signs give victims step-by-step instructions on how to dial out and reach Polaris’ hotline.

Download the Toolkit

What’s Included

  • Municipal Jail Sign (PDF and InDesign) – in English, Spanish, Korean, Chinese Mandarin (simplified), Vietnamese, and Thai.

Guidelines for Responsible Use

Use the Municipal Jail Sign Toolkit in a responsible fashion by following the below guidelines:

  1. We respectfully ask that you do not represent yourself as a City of Houston employee or member of the Houston Area Council on Human Trafficking when using the Toolkit’s information and resources.
  2. Ensure that your local jails allow for calls to be placed to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center’s hotline.
  3. Change the dialing instructions provided to reflect how individuals are to call out from within your city’s jails.
  4. Work with stakeholders to develop procedures for separating callers to the hotline from alleged perpetrators.
  5. Make sure that calls can be as long as needed and that they are not recorded.
  6. Confirm that service providers may access the person placing the call.
  7. Track the impact of your efforts by coordinating with the National Human Trafficking Resource Center so that it can track any increase in calls from jails that display your posters.