Professional and Religious Approaches to Care for West African Victims of Human Trafficking in The Netherlands: The Challenge of New Pentecostalism

Abstract

The current study focuses on care for West African Victims of human trafficking (VHTs) in The Netherlands and addresses the question of how (1) social and legal professionals and (2) religious leaders of African-led migrant (Pentecostal) churches perceive their relationship with these VHTs. Thematic analyses of qualitative interviews (N = 21) revealed that both groups share the perception that VHTs are vulnerable, especially in view of so-called voodoo spells. Social and legal professionals noticed that West African VHTs prototypically appear as ‘demanding’ in a rather pro-active manner. Religious leaders on the other hand indicated that the VHTs feel at ease in the church in a more adaptive sense and may find ways of changing their lives after experiencing the Pentecostal “deliverance” ritual.

Keywords:

• Human trafficking
• Pentecostalism
• West-African
• migrant churches
• cultural and intercultural identity
• religious coping

Notes

1 As this has been, and still is, a vast terrain of study in Cultural Anthropology, these authors just represent a limited number of lines of interest and exploration, in no way to be considered fully representative of the many strands of research that this field harbors.

2 The FairWork Foundation, a nonprofit organization that directly supports victims of labor exploitation in the Netherlands, initiated the current study after signaling a knowledge gap with respect to aid to West African victims of human trafficking; a knowledge gap that specifically related to the significance of religious identities, experiences and practices both on the part of the professional care providers and on the level of the religious communities within the West African migrant population.