“We Are the Ones We’ve Been Waiting For”:  A Health & Social Justice Program for Young Women of Color in Oakland
Bernadette Lim
UC Berkeley-UCSF Joint Medical Program

INTRODUCTION
• Oakland is a major hub for commercial exploitation due to the concentration of many foster care and group homes in the city that are prime areas for recruitment of young girls. Most recent estimates have identified over 200 minors being prostituted by 155 pimps.
• More than half of exploited minors are Alameda County residents, identify as a racial minority, once lived in a group home, and report a history of physical or sexual assault.
• Asian Health Services Youth Program (AHSYP) and Banteay Srei are community-based, culturally sensitive organizations that grew out of the need to serve young Southeast Asian women who are engaged in or at-risk of sexual exploitation.
• We Are the Ones is a health and social justice art initiative that will provide support, counseling, healing arts, and leadership opportunities for the young women that AHSYP and Banteay Srei serve.