![A young sex-trafficking victim sat in her room between classes at the Link's Passageways Shelter and Housing Program, Friday, May 26, 2017 in Prior Lake, MN. ] ELIZABETH FLORES • liz.flores@startribune.com](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/4EH2CCRXUSOXLACCLJQZI6OJX4.jpg?&w=1080)
Three Minnesota nonprofits will get nearly $1.5 million in federal grants for housing for human trafficking survivors.
The Department of Justice announced the grants this week, awarding $500,000 to Minneapolis-based The Link, $472,000 to St. Paul-based Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota and nearly $500,000 to Face to Face Health Counseling Service, Inc., in St. Paul.
The three nonprofits are among 73 organizations in the U.S. to receive a total of $35 million for transitional or short-term housing assistance and support to help survivors find permanent housing, employment, occupational training and counseling.
In 2019, Minnesota organizations received $4.5 million from the department to combat human trafficking.
The state passed its Safe Harbor law in 2011, ensuring that sexually exploited youth are not criminalized. According to Wilder Research, nearly 1,300 children and young adults received housing or other services between 2017 and 2019 under the state's Safe Harbor program, which helps at-risk and sexually exploited victims.
KELLY SMITH
