KINGSTON – Ulster County is continuing its Safe Harbour program
to protect children with a second year grant from the state.
The county received $100,000 from Albany last year and $120.000 this year.
New York’s “Safe Harbour for Exploited Children Act”
was the first law in the country that recognized that youth below the
age of 18 who have been subjected to commercial sexual exploitation are
victims of trafficking, not perpetrators of crime.
“This program protects some of the most vulnerable members of society:
victims of abuse, children, and runaways,” said County Executive
Michael Hein. “We cannot afford to let victims of trafficking slip
between the cracks. This program is about providing help and bringing
justice to the victims.”
Services available to youth under Safe Harbour include safe, long-term
housing, medical and psychological care, transportation, legal advocacy,
educational and vocational counseling, and life skills.
The county department of social services has contracted with Family of
Woodstock to provide outreach and case management services to at-risk
and trafficking youth and the Crime Victims Assistance Program continues
to be a resource with its 24-hour hotline, crisis counseling, referral,
and advocacy services, county officials noted.
