Break the Chain Campaign
Break The Chain Campaign seeks to prevent and address the abuse and exploitation of migrant women workers through holistic direct services, leadership training, community engagement and survivor-driven outreach and training.
Connect with us
The Institute Policy Studies started Break the Chain Campaign (BTCC) in 1997 after an expose in the Washington City Paper by IPS Fellow Martha Honey (entitled "Capital Slaves"), which chronicled the lives of women living in virtual slavery while working as domestic servants for officials of the World Bank and other international agencies.
Upon discovering the extent of exploitation of migrant women workers in the D.C. metropolitan area, the BTCC project expanded beyond reporting to better serve and empower these women. The project has provided legal, moral, economic and other support for hundreds of these migrant domestic workers, from dozens of countries, for over a decade. The project also helped raise awareness of the problem of exploitation of domestic workers in the World Bank and other agencies, and was a key advocate for new policies in these agencies.
Today, the project is a leader in the Freedom Network – a national network of anti-trafficking organizations, which greatly contributed to the creation of current legislation protecting the rights of victims of human trafficking, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act and its reauthorization in 2008. We are also a key partner with the National Domestic Workers Alliance, bringing the domestic worker rights lens to trafficking work, and vice versa.
Currently, we focus on research, writing, policy advocacy, and training, all based on our 14 years of direct service experience and our commitment to a rights-based approach.
Recent Work
Blog
Break The Chain Heads to Georgia
September 6, 2011 - A delegation of women leaders will travel to the Peach state to hear about the negative impacts that immigration enforcement has on immigrant families. By Tiffany Williams
Commentary
Scrapping America's Bootstraps
August 9, 2011 - Entitlements include many of the basic programs that have raised the U.S. standard of living since the FDR administration and before. By Tiffany Williams
Blog
All Those Who Care: Campaign Launch Shows Depth of Interdependence
July 19, 2011 - A recent study shows the complexities of care work in the Unites States, just as the Caring Across Generations campaign shows its ready to work for reform. By Jessica Cutcliffe
Blog
New National Movement to Build Justice Across Generations [VIDEO]
July 14, 2011 - As America's "age wave" begins this year - with one American turning 65 every eight seconds - Caring Across Generations seeks to transform long-term care in the United States. By Matias Ramos
Media Advisory
A New National Movement Forms to Protect and Expand Care
July 12, 2011 - On Tuesday, July 12, over 700 people from across the country, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis, and national human rights leaders will launch the Caring Across Generations campaign, supported in part by the Institute for Policy Studies. By
Blog
Trafficking in Persons Report Takes Concrete Steps Forward but Avoids Controversy
July 6, 2011 - New report acknowledges need for stronger support, investigations and private sector involvement; but it falls short of eliminating diplomatic immunity on the critical issue of human trafficking. By Alison Liu
Tiffany Williams