With President Trump striking fear into the hearts of immigrant communities across our city, Staff Attorney Sabrina Talukder of The Exploitation Intervention Project is taking a stand for refugees and survivors of human trafficking.

As a Staff Attorney in The Exploitation Intervention Project, Sabrina’s work focuses on providing assistance in immigration cases for survivors of human trafficking and domestic violence. Her clients come from some of the most devastating backgrounds imaginable, suffering physical and sexual violence and often forced to commit crimes by their traffickers and abusers. And now under President Trump, things have gotten even worse for her clients.

“Everything is exacerbated by this administration,” she explains. “I think that survivors are more terrified than ever before.” Thankfully, Sabrina continues to empower these survivors, offering them the legal safety and security they need to restart their lives. Sabrina is protecting their most basic rights and giving them the tools they need to thrive.

Everything is exacerbated by how the administration treats sexual abuse survivors.

Sabrina’s work has always been a personal fight for her. “I come from a family where there have been refugees,” she says. Even now, she knows that “there’s no reason that they are on one side of the table and I’m on the other.” After working in international development for a few years, Sabrina decided to pursue her law degree. Her experience in the field showed her that “through the law, you can make a more sustainable impact.” After graduating, she was selected to be an Equal Justice Works Fellow at The Legal Aid Society, where she was tasked with implementing a project to help underserved New Yorkers.

Through the law, you can make a longer, more sustainable impact.

Sabrina dove into her work, starting by addressing the needs of non-citizen survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking who had criminal convictions. After her fellowship, she stayed on with The Legal Aid Society, growing her work to reach even more New Yorkers in need. Today, even in the face of institutional challenges, Sabrina is making a difference for her clients. With her help, more survivors can live fulfilling lives.