Every year the Victim Services Division visits seasonal workers in migrant camps
(Woodland, CA) – May 7, 2018 – Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig announced today that the DA’s Victim Services Division recently attended this year’s Yolo County Housing Spring Fling Egg Hunt in Las Casitas in West Sacramento and in Yolano Village/Donelley Circle in Woodland. This is part of the Victim Services Divisions outreach efforts to the migrant community in the County. Yolo County has a large Spanish Speaking community and the District Attorney’s Office is committed to ensure that community is aware of available services in case they become victims of crime.
During the spring months, migrant camps open throughout Northern California and offer places to live to the many seasonal field workers, most of whom are Latino. Every year, Yolo County DA sends its bilingual staff to the migrant camps during the opening days of the season to provide information and welcome temporary community members. DA Victim Service’s staff provided outreach to members of field working communities, the majority of which are migrant workers.
Victim Services Program Manager Laura Valdes has been coordinating these outreach efforts for the past eight years. Valdes stated, “It is important to reach out to our vulnerable community members and meet them in their comfort zones. Our migrant community are susceptible to human trafficking and may think this is just a consequence of their employment. Providing them with resources and education is the best way to empower this community. All of our advocates assigned to work with this community were once part of this community. They are not only able to connect with migrant workers in their language, but also connect with them on a cultural level, hence expanding their connection and cultivating their trust on these sensitive issues.”
Many members of those communities are unaware of the services that are provided by victim services to victims of crime. Also, many who are here from other United States and Latin American countries have a distrust for law enforcement so this is an opportunity to build and develop that level of trust.
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Pictured in photo (L-R) are victim advocates Hazel Mendoza and Alma Rosas
