Washington — Today, three anti-trafficking organizations, represented by the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under the Law and Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, secured a stay against the Department of Justice (DOJ), temporarily blocking the enforcement of new grant conditions targeting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The court relief safeguards an estimated federal funding for anti-trafficking services.
The three anti-trafficking organizations are Life-Span, Young Women’s Christian Association of Kalamazoo, and Worker Justice Center of New York.
The stay temporarily blocks the DOJ’s Office of Victims of Crime (OVC) from requiring applicants to certify under False Claims Act penalties that they do not operate DEI programs to receive funding authorized under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA).
The court also paused new grant conditions that would have required organizations applying for grants through the Services for Victims of Human Trafficking program and the Housing Assistance for Victims of Trafficking program to agree to cooperate with immigration enforcement. Those funding conditions would make serving and sheltering survivors near impossible.
This is the second ruling issued in Freedom Network USA v. Trump et. al. The court’s first grant of a preliminary injunction in March 2026 continues to protect approximately 9,000 DOJ grantees and contractors from certifying that they do not engage in DEI-related work under criminal and civil penalties. It also temporarily blocks the termination of an estimated $500 million in federal funding for anti-trafficking services pursuant to the anti-DEI Executive Orders.
“Today’s stay is a victory for trafficking survivors across the country and the trusted organizations that serve them,” said Sabrina Talukder, senior counsel with the Economic Justice Project at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “The court’s order helps ensure that organizations can continue their life-saving work without being forced to abandon diversity, equity, and inclusion principles that are central to breaking the cycle of poverty, exploitation, and trafficking.”
YWCA Kalamazoo quote- Susan Rosas: A person’s identity should not determine whether they get to be safe when they flee violence, and safety is near-impossible without housing. Survivors turn to providers like YWCA Kalamazoo because they know no matter their identity we will honor who they are and ensure their unique needs are met – that’s DEI. We need these practices to be effective. We are so grateful to see these harmful funding conditions stayed for Services for Victims of Trafficking Grant and the Housing for Victims of Trafficking Grant- now these critical lines of service in survivor care can operate to the highest quality.
Life-Span- Amy Fox: Life-Span is thrilled that survivors can access vital services as intended under the TVPA following the grant of the stay to both the Services for Victims of Trafficking Grant and the Housing for Victims of Trafficking grant. Service collaboration and diversity are essential for identifying human trafficking survivors, as exploitation frequently happens in isolation or within hidden, marginalized communities. Life-Span’s ability to create effective partnerships without compromising the safety and dignity of survivors relies on collaboration without arbitrary and harmful restrictions. Life-Span’s survivor focused, comprehensive, barrier-free partnerships are inextricably linked to our mission of applying a human rights framework to trafficking. This framework cannot be upheld under restrictive anti-DEI funding conditions. Operating with a human rights focus ensures that survivors are treated with equity and respect while navigating systems, which would be fundamentally undermined by policies that restrict diversity and inclusion efforts.
WJCNY: Alaina Evelyn Varvaloucas- WJCNY is committed to serving low-wage workers and survivors of labor trafficking, including immigrants, who by the nature of the crime committed against them are in a precarious and sometimes dangerous position. As a law firm, we have a duty of confidentiality toward our clients and cannot control the circumstances in which they come to us. We cannot provide quality services with the threat hanging over every interaction that immigration enforcement may want information on our clients or that targeting known high-risk areas for intervention may be considered discriminatory. WJCNY is thrilled that the injunction on these new funding conditions has been extended to potential grantees who provide housing to trafficking survivors and hopes in the future it can be extended for all potential grantees serving victims of crime.”
Aneel Chablani: Chicago Lawyers Committee: “We are proud to be providing legal support for these brave nonprofit organizations,” said Aneel Chablani, Vice President and Legal Director at Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights. “Life-Span, YWCA of Kalamazoo, and Worker Justice Center of New York provide life-changing support services to survivors of trafficking and today’s ruling means they can continue those services safely and with the hope for the greatest impact for those survivors. “
