This month, we’re celebrating the power each of us have to help make the end of human trafficking in Colorado possible. (Be sure to check out our Make it Possible campaign!). Dec. 5th is also International Volunteer Day, which recognizes the individuals who are giving back and responding to needs in our communities. There’s no better time to announce the recipient of our 2024 Spirit of Service Award: LCHT Board Member, Arnold Hanuman!
The 2024 Spirit of Service Award
At the end of each year, the Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking recognizes an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to anti-trafficking efforts that year with a Spirit of Service Award. Winners are nominated and selected by our staff and Board. Spirit of Service Award recipients have gone above and beyond as volunteers to support LCHT’s mission and end exploitation in our state. Arnold’s leadership, action, and commitment to human rights really captures “the spirit of service.”
Meet Arnold Hanuman
Arnold Hanuman is the Deputy Executive Director of the Colorado District Attorneys’ Council. An attorney by training, he has been a prosecutor for nearly 20 years. While in private practice for a short period between serving as a prosecutor in MD and CO, he successfully appealed a criminal matter to the U.S. Supreme Court. During his law school days, Arnold had an academic interest in the subject of human trafficking… but hadn’t yet found an outlet to put this interest into action.
“I’m a South Asian and of West Indian descent, and my parents were immigrants and came to the U.S. in the late 60s,” Arnold says. He grew up in Colorado before moving to D.C. to start his professional career, which was in international development and finance. During his more than 10 years of service at the World Bank, Arnold had the opportunity to travel to post-conflict countries to work on development projects. At the same time, he studied international human rights law at the University of Oxford (where he was first exposed to the issue of human trafficking). Arnold eventually moved back to Colorado and pursued criminal prosecution.
Several years ago, Arnold had the opportunity to co-teach a session on human trafficking laws in Colorado with a former LCHT Board Member for Julie Laser’s Masters in Social Work program class at the University of Denver (Julie is our current Board President). As that former Board Member completed her term, Arnold was asked to step in. Coincidently, he had already met our Co-founder and Executive Director Amanda Finger a few years before at a coffee talk on human trafficking. Arnold accepted the offer!
Arnold reflects, “It was fate to be able to come full circle to bring my legal and prosecutorial perspective to LCHT’s mission, and to do so by volunteering with a credible nonprofit organization right here in Colorado.” We are thrilled to recognize Arnold’s contributions as this year’s Spirit of Service awardee. Keep reading to hear directly from Arnold about what service means to him.
What aspect of anti-trafficking work matters most to you?
“Public policy and advocacy at the Colorado General Assembly is a major component of my daily work on behalf of Colorado’s state prosecutors, which has included weighing in on legislation regarding the state’s human trafficking criminal laws. This dates back to 2014, when the state overhauled its human trafficking statutes. The deterrence aspect of investigation and prosecution will not be effective without the enforcement of the laws to hold accountable those who engage in trafficking, and frankly, we can do better to serve victims.
For those familiar with the 4Ps (prevention, protection, prosecution, and partnership), the pillar of “prosecution” is an area where I can be most effective in bridging the divide between nonprofits and system entities, contributing my professional knowledge and experience to the anti-trafficking movement—making it possible to move from conversation to action. In my professional capacity, I have the opportunity to work with all the elected state prosecutors and the 800 line prosecutors throughout the state. One of the aspects of combating human trafficking is the prosecution of criminals who are committing these crimes.”
What does giving back and the “Spirit of Service” mean to you?
“Giving of ourselves helps us individually to think about the difficulties that others face every day and what we can do to have a lasting impact on improving their lives, making each of us a better person in the process. Serving on the LCHT Board provides a platform to empower the staff of the organization to focus on the day-to-day challenges of educating, training, and developing leaders around the trafficking issue—unfortunately, an issue not well understood throughout the community—and connecting victims to needed support and services to make a positive change in their circumstances.
The ‘Spirit of Service’ is recognizing that there is a calling to be engaged with one’s community. Each of us can rise to that challenge by devoting a dedicated amount of our personal time or financial resources to ‘serve’ those around us. I’ve been honored to be able to contribute to that through LCHT.”
What have you learned through your volunteer service with LCHT?
“LCHT’s work is critical to eradicating human trafficking in Colorado, and it takes a sustained effort—of both compensated and volunteering individuals—to make it happen. There are not enough resources committed to the cause. Through volunteering, I have learned we can leverage the different backgrounds and expertise from many walks of life to tackle the challenge.
Fellow board members and research supporters with backgrounds in education, business, advocacy, social work, grassroots organizing—and importantly, survivors with lived experience—have all taught me the value of continuing to listen to others’ perspectives in confronting these difficult issues. My exposure to the value of research-based approaches and LCHT’s method of addressing the root causes of trafficking through data collection and analysis, for example, has been a key learning for me personally.”
What is your hope for Colorado’s anti-trafficking movement?
“My hope for Colorado’s anti-trafficking movement is that we continue to improve our effectiveness in reducing trafficking in the state, and to further expand our breadth and reputation as a source of effective knowledge, research, and solutions for addressing human trafficking more broadly. Policymakers have the ability to make long-lasting change, while others working in the fight day-to-day have the capacity to make immediate change on the ground.
As Colorado strengthens its response, I hope that we continue to advance as a state and are further sought out for our approach and solutions to eradicating trafficking by other states across the country. Human trafficking is not a local issue, but one that thrives across borders. To be effective in the anti-trafficking movement, we need to continue to export LCHT’s success as an organization.”
Why should others get involved with this cause?
“It is important for people to get involved in the anti-trafficking cause because trafficking is a reflection of a significant step backwards in how we treat others as human beings—tantamount to the expansion of modern-day slavery. It is a relevant and pressing matter. Labor and sex exploitation are not only thriving in the shadows, but oftentimes right in front of us, and we must be able to understand and recognize the markers in order to do something about it.
Eradicating human trafficking and serving the anti-trafficking movement takes resources—time, people, and money. While people may not have deep reservoirs of any or all of these to contribute, giving to the cause in some way and where one is able is indeed vital. Our country has experienced a significant change in our migration environment, and regardless of where one stands politically, the circumstances are ripe for people to be taken advantage of by traffickers on a large scale. We should all help prevent that from happening, and support to LCHT is a credible, legitimate way to make that possible.”
3 Ways to Give Back in 2024
Are you ready to join Arnold in making the end of human trafficking in Colorado possible? You can stand up for human rights and support survivors in your community. Here are the top three ways to get involved:
- GIVE MONEY. Donate to our Make it Possible campaign to provide a lifeline for survivors of human trafficking. You’ll also advance anti-trafficking training and community-based research. Every dollar you’re able to give will make a difference.
- GIVE TIME. Volunteer as a Hotline Advocate to answer calls and texts to Colorado’s 24/7 Human Trafficking Hotline. Provide a listening ear and connect callers with the help they need.
- GET TRAINED. Get yourself or your organization trained to identify the signs of human trafficking. You’ll learn how to intervene in potential cases of human trafficking—and be there for survivors.