GEMS Brochure

ENGAGING THE COMMUNITY of direct service trafficked and girls and young an unparalleled

GEMS relies on the generous support, participation and encouragement we receive from our community. There are many ways to be a part of GEMS. 5 THINGS YOU CAN DO TODAY

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GEMS has more than 13 years experience with domestically commercially sexually exploited women, which has resulted in knowledge base.

GET INVOLVED

YOUTH PRESENTATIONS & WORKSHOPS Our survivor-led education program raises awareness about the realities of commercial sexual exploitation, provides strategies to identify situations that may lead to exploitation and trafficking and connects victims of CSEC to services.

TRAINING & TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Our professional development program trains service providers, law enforcement, and legal professionals to identify signs of exploitation, intervention techniques for traumatized clients, and assisting girls and young women in escaping commercial sexual exploitation.

MULTI-MEDIA CURRICULA GEMS' nationally acclaimed videos, Making of a Girl, Breaking the Silence, and the Swinging T/Showtime produced documentary Very Young Girls videos are all excellent resources for training and public awareness.

"Like some people know what proper love and care is, and I know because of GEMS, and I get that every single time I come here." - Holly, GEMS Member

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TALK about the issue with friends and family.

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JOIN us on Facebook, Twitter, and The Council of Daughters.

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SUPPORT the girls and young women at GEMS. Donate today.

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INVITE five friends to watch Very Young Girls.

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PLAN a film viewing night or fundraiser to inspire others to end CSEC. OUR FUNDERS

Businesses & Corporations: DFB Sales, Inc. | Dunn Development Corp. | Serenity Salon Spa Nett LLC | Shoe Revolt | Pepsi-Cola Advertising and Marketing, Inc. | Spavana Community Organizations: Circle of Friends: Celebrating Life, Inc. | Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board | Lambda Theta Alpha, Latin Sorority, Inc. | Knickerbocker Chapter: National Society Daughters of the American Revolution

Girls Educational & Mentoring Services

Faith Based Organizations: First Unitarian Congregational Society in Brooklyn | Jewish Child Care Association | New York Church International | Second Presbyterian Church | St. Paul’s Lutheran Church

Gem (jem):

Foundations: Achelis and Bodman Foundations | Carnegie Corporation | The Clark Foundation | Dunn Family Charitable Foundation | Eileen Fisher Foundation | Equality Now! | Frank and Ruth E. Caruso Foundation | Gilliam Foundation | Global Fund for Children | Hedge Funds Care | Jewish Communal Fund | Lilah Hilliard Fisher Foundation | The Marion E. Kenworthy-Sarah H. Swift Foundation | Nathan Cummings Foundation | New York Women’s Foundation | North Star Fund | NoVo Foundation | The Pinkerton Foundation | Playa Foundation | Public Welfare Foundation | The Ruth Turner Fund | The Shippy Foundation | Sponsors for Equal Opportunity | The Tides Foundation | Tiger Foundation | V-Day Foundation | Valentine Perry Snyder | Vranos Foundation

1) a precious stone 2) an object of great beauty and worth

Government Agencies: Federal: Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention | Office for Victims of Crime | Office on Violence Against Women | State: Office of Child and Family Services | City: Department of Youth and Community Development | Office of the Criminal Justice Coordinator

A special thanks to our many individual donors!

201 West 148th Street Ground Floor New York, NY 10039 212.926.8089 Phone 212.491.2696 Fax www.gems-girls.org development@gems-girls.org

MISSION Girls Educational and Mentoring Services' (GEMS) mission is to empower young women, ages 12-24, who have experienced commercial sexual exploitation and domestic trafficking to exit the commercial sex industry and develop to their full potential.

GEMS is committed to ending commercial sexual exploitation and domestic trafficking of children by changing individual lives, transforming public perception, and revolutionizing the systems and policies that impact sexually exploited youth.

FACTS HISTORY

Founded in 1998 by Rachel Lloyd, a survivor of commercial sexual exploitation, GEMS was created in response to the overwhelming need for services targeted at sexually exploited young women.

From a one-woman kitchen table project, GEMS has grown to a nationally recognized and acclaimed organization and now is one of the largest providers of services to commercially sexually exploited and domestically trafficked youth in the US. GEMS advocates at the local, state and national level to promote policies that support young women who have been commercially sexually exploited and domestically trafficked.

Visit us at: www.gems-girls.org Follow us at: www.twitter.com/GEMSGIRLS Like us on: www.facebook.com/girlsarenotforsale Become a Daughter at: councilofdaughters.ning.com Text to Give: Text "GEMS" to 85944 to donate $10.

Once you receive a reply text, reply “YES� to confirm your donation.

FACTS ABOUT CSEC

GEMS' SERVICES

CSEC is sexual activity involving a child in exchange for something of value, or promise thereof, to the child or another person or persons.

The child is treated as a commercial and sexual object. CSEC is a form of violence against children.

In New York City alone there are an estimated 2,200 children victimized by commercial sexual exploitation annually (OCFS 2007 Prevalence Study).

100,000 - 300,000 children are at risk for commercial sexual exploitation each year in the United States (Estes & Wiener, 2001).

The Department of Justice estimates the most frequent age of entry into the commercial sex industry in the United States is 12-14 years old (www.usdoj.gov).

70-90% of commercially sexually exploited children have a history of child sexual abuse (Murphy, 1993).

GEMS is the only organization in New York State specifically designed to serve girls and young women who have experienced commercial sexual exploitation and domestic trafficking.

GEMS supports and empowers young women and girls who have experienced commercial sexual exploitation and domestic trafficking, and provides a continuum of services including: Court Advocacy and Alternatives to Incarceration Program Comprehensive Case Management Individual Counseling Education, Recreational & Therapeutic Groups Youth Employment and Leadership Training Transitional & Crisis Housing Referral Services

"It's basically like we fell, and by us falling we fell into the life, like a different life, a different us, and by us coming to GEMS they are picking us up, slowly but surely, and they're just making us like gems, shiny and stronger than ever."

- Patrice, GEMS Member

We utilize a holistic trauma-informed treatment model in our programs to address girls' and young women's complex needs throughout their transition and development. We believe that all young women have great beauty and worth, and the potential for future success. The voices and experiences of survivors are integral to the development and implementation of all GEMS' programming.

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GEMS' MISSION & HISTORY

To refer a girl or young woman to GEMS please visit www.gems-girls.org. Please make a referral only after a client is aware of the referral and of the services that GEMS provides.