Exploitation of Victims During a Disaster

When people talk about exploitation of victims during a disaster, it usually means situations where individuals or groups take advantage of vulnerable survivors in the immediate aftermath. This can happen in several ways:

1. Financial Exploitation

• Price gouging on essentials like water, fuel, or housing.

• Fraudulent contractors promising repairs or cleanup, taking money, and never finishing the work.

• Scam charities that collect donations but never deliver aid to survivors.

  
  

2. Labor & Housing Exploitation

• Survivors may be pressured into unfair labor or 'work-for-shelter' deals.

• Families displaced from their homes can be pushed into unsafe housing conditions or charged unfair rents.

  
  

3. Trafficking & Abuse

• Disasters create chaotic environments where children and adults may go missing.

• Traffickers and abusers sometimes target shelters, evacuation centers, or aid distribution sites, preying on those without protection.

• Lack of law enforcement presence can lead to increased violence or coercion, especially toward women and children.

  
  

4. Institutional Exploitation

• Corruption in relief distribution (supplies withheld, sold, or redirected).

• Aid being used as leverage for political gain, religious conversion, or favoritism toward certain groups.

  
  

Many nonprofits, including ours, focus on acute recovery and victim recovery precisely because these dangers spike in the first weeks after a disaster, when survivors are most exposed and least protected.