Polaris Project | Human Trafficking Report

Organization Profile: This profile documents an anti-trafficking organization, not a perpetrator. Polaris Project is one of the largest and most influential anti-trafficking NGOs in the United States, operating the National Human Trafficking Hotline and conducting groundbreaking research that has shaped federal and state anti-trafficking policy.

Quick Summary

Polaris Project is a nonprofit organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., that has become one of the most important institutions in the American anti-trafficking movement. Founded in 2002 by Katherine Chon and Derek Ellerman while they were students at Brown University, Polaris has grown into a major national organization that operates the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline (1-888-373-7888), conducts data-driven research into trafficking patterns, and advocates for stronger anti-trafficking legislation at the federal and state levels.

Since 2007, when Polaris began operating the National Human Trafficking Hotline under a federal grant, the organization has identified over 75,000 trafficking situations, connected tens of thousands of survivors to services, and provided data to law enforcement that has aided thousands of investigations. Polaris’s typology research has identified 25 distinct types of human trafficking in the United States, fundamentally reshaping how policymakers, law enforcement, and the public understand the scope and nature of trafficking.

The organization is named after the North Star (Polaris), which guided enslaved people on the Underground Railroad; a reference to its mission of providing guidance and support to those seeking freedom from modern slavery.

Timeline of Events

2002

Katherine Chon and Derek Ellerman found Polaris Project while students at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Inspired by a trafficking case in their community, they establish the organization to combat modern slavery through direct services and systemic advocacy.

2002–2006

Polaris expands from a student-led initiative to a professional nonprofit. Begins providing direct services to trafficking survivors in the Washington, D.C., area and advocating for stronger state anti-trafficking laws.

2007

Polaris receives a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to operate the National Human Trafficking Hotline (1-888-373-7888). The hotline becomes the primary point of contact for reporting trafficking situations and connecting survivors to services across the United States.

2007–2012

The hotline identifies thousands of trafficking situations annually. Polaris builds one of the largest datasets on human trafficking in the United States, enabling data-driven research and policy advocacy.

2012

Publishes its first comprehensive typology of human trafficking in the United States, identifying distinct types of trafficking across sex trafficking and labor trafficking. The typology becomes a standard reference for researchers, policymakers, and law enforcement.

2017

Launches BeFree Textline (text 233733), expanding access to the hotline for people who cannot safely make phone calls. Publishes landmark report The Typology of Modern Slavery, identifying 25 distinct types of human trafficking in the U.S.

2018

Plays a key role in advocacy for the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act and FOSTA-SESTA legislation. Continues to expand data collection and survivor services.

2020–2022

Adapts operations during the COVID-19 pandemic, which saw shifts in trafficking patterns. Reports increased vulnerability among workers in certain industries and a rise in online recruitment of victims.

2023–present

Continues operating the national hotline and text line, publishing annual data reports, and advocating for policy reform. Expands focus on labor trafficking, financial networks underlying trafficking, and technology-facilitated exploitation.

The Details

Founding and Mission

Polaris Project was born from a specific act of witness. In 2002, Katherine Chon and Derek Ellerman, then students at Brown University, learned about a trafficking case in their community; a situation in which women had been coerced into commercial sex work under conditions of force and fraud. The case galvanized them to action, and they founded Polaris with a mission to disrupt trafficking through direct services, data analysis, and policy advocacy.

The organization’s name reflects its aspiration: just as the North Star guided people seeking freedom on the Underground Railroad, Polaris aims to be a guiding light for modern survivors of slavery and trafficking. From its founding, the organization adopted a comprehensive approach that combined frontline service provision with systemic change efforts.

The National Human Trafficking Hotline

Polaris’s operation of the National Human Trafficking Hotline is its most widely recognized function and one of the most important tools in the American anti-trafficking infrastructure. The hotline, reached at 1-888-373-7888, operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, with multilingual capabilities.

The hotline serves multiple functions:

Survivor connection: Connects trafficking victims and survivors to local services, including shelter, legal aid, and medical care.
Reporting: Receives tips about potential trafficking situations and transmits information to law enforcement agencies.
Data collection: Aggregates anonymized data from every call and text, building the most comprehensive dataset on trafficking patterns in the United States.
Crisis response: Provides immediate support and safety planning for individuals in trafficking situations.

In 2017, Polaris expanded access by launching the BeFree Textline (text 233733), recognizing that many trafficking victims cannot safely make phone calls. The text line has become an increasingly important channel, particularly for younger victims and those in situations of close surveillance.

Impact by the Numbers

Since 2007, the National Human Trafficking Hotline has compiled a record of impact that demonstrates both the scale of trafficking in the United States and the critical role the hotline plays in response:

Over 75,000 trafficking situations identified through hotline contacts
Over 51,000 survivors connected to services
Over 15,000 cases reported to law enforcement
Contacts received from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories
Hotline materials available in 200+ languages through translation services

The Typology of Modern Slavery

One of Polaris’s most significant contributions to the field is its data-driven research into the types and patterns of trafficking in the United States. In 2017, Polaris published The Typology of Modern Slavery, a groundbreaking report that analyzed over 32,000 cases reported to the hotline and identified 25 distinct types of human trafficking operating in the U.S.

The typology includes categories spanning both sex trafficking and labor trafficking:

Escort services and illicit massage businesses
Outdoor solicitation and residential-based commercial sex
Domestic work, restaurant and food service labor trafficking
Agriculture, construction, and manufacturing trafficking
Carnivals and traveling sales crews
Health and beauty services

This research challenged simplistic narratives about trafficking and demonstrated that it is not a single crime but a complex ecosystem of exploitation that permeates numerous industries and takes many forms. The typology has been adopted by law enforcement agencies, policymakers, and researchers as a standard framework for understanding trafficking.

Policy Advocacy

Polaris has been a leading voice in shaping anti-trafficking legislation at both the state and federal levels. The organization has advocated for:

Comprehensive state anti-trafficking laws in all 50 states (achieved through sustained advocacy over more than a decade)
Reauthorization and strengthening of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA)
Safe harbor laws that treat trafficked minors as victims rather than criminal offenders
Vacatur laws that allow trafficking survivors to clear criminal records resulting from their exploitation
Supply chain transparency requirements for businesses

Polaris’s state-by-state rating system for anti-trafficking laws has created a competitive dynamic among states, incentivizing legislative action to improve protections and close gaps.

Legacy

From its origins as a student-led initiative to its current role as a cornerstone of the national anti-trafficking infrastructure, Polaris Project represents one of the most successful examples of citizen-initiated institutional development in the human rights field. The organization’s combination of direct services, data-driven research, and policy advocacy has set a model that anti-trafficking organizations worldwide have sought to replicate.

The National Human Trafficking Hotline number, 1-888-373-7888, is now one of the most widely disseminated crisis numbers in the United States, printed on posters in airports, bus stations, hospitals, and schools across the country. Its existence represents a fundamental shift in how the U.S. approaches trafficking: from a crime that was largely invisible and unaddressed to one for which a national response infrastructure exists.

Key Relationships

Katherine Chon & Derek Ellerman

Co-Founders (2002)

Founded Polaris Project as Brown University students after learning about a trafficking case in their community. Built the organization from a campus initiative into a national institution.

National Human Trafficking Hotline

1-888-373-7888 / Text 233733

Operated by Polaris since 2007 under a federal grant. The primary national resource for reporting trafficking and connecting survivors to services. Available 24/7/365.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

Federal Funding Agency

Provides the federal grant under which Polaris operates the National Human Trafficking Hotline. HHS’s Office on Trafficking in Persons oversees the grant.

U.S. Department of Justice

Federal Law Enforcement Partner

Polaris transmits trafficking reports to DOJ and coordinates with federal law enforcement. Polaris data has aided thousands of federal and local investigations.

State Legislatures (50 States)

Policy Advocacy Targets

Polaris has advocated for comprehensive anti-trafficking legislation in all 50 states, including safe harbor laws, vacatur provisions, and supply chain transparency requirements.

Sources

[1] NGO REPORT Polaris Project, The Typology of Modern Slavery: Defining Sex and Labor Trafficking in the United States, 2017.
[2] NGO REPORT Polaris Project, National Human Trafficking Hotline Annual Reports, 2007–2025.
[3] GOV REPORT U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Trafficking in Persons, grant documentation for National Human Trafficking Hotline.
[4] GOV REPORT U.S. Department of State, Trafficking in Persons Report, annual. References Polaris data and hotline operations.
[5] ACADEMIC Chon, Katherine, “The Power of Data: How the National Hotline Informs Anti-Trafficking Policy,” Congressional testimony, various years.
[6] JOURNALISM The Washington Post, “How two college students built the nation’s most important anti-trafficking hotline,” 2015.
[7] GOV REPORT Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA), 22 U.S.C. §§ 7101–7113. Federal anti-trafficking framework that Polaris has advocated to strengthen and reauthorize.