David and Julie Brown

During their time in Morocco with the French Protestant Church, David and Julie Brown worked to help migrants and trafficking victims from all over Africa.

David and Julie Brown first moved to Morocco to work with the French Protestant Church. While there, they became aware that there was, and still is, a large population of migrants in Morocco. They have little to no legal status, and no one can do anything for them. In fact, during the time the Browns were in Morocco, their church was one of the only places in Morocco that migrants could come. At least a quarter of these migrants were women, and many of those were victims of trafficking for sexual purposes. But the massive populations of migrants, many seeking to enter Europe, left a population that was and is incredibly vulnerable to trafficking and enslavement. Large camps still exist in Morocco of migrants, and these are not recognized by the government, nor does the government provide services.

The Browns acted as first responders, providing whatever help they could upon a victim contacting them. They provided, within church walls, assistance in a myriad of ways, including financial assistance, shelter, clothing, food, and basic medical care. Julie Brown, a nurse, helped in whatever ways she could to see that they had basic medical treatment. In 2008, the Browns were honored as a "TIP Report Hero Acting to End Modern Slavery" in recognition of their efforts to combat modern slavery among the migrants they helped. They had to return to the US for a brief period due to health issues, but are now back overseas in Marseilles, working with Doctors of the World to provide first-response services to migrants from Africa who are in France. They have had tearful re-unions with migrants they helped in Europe, and will be moving to Paris to continue doing some of the same work they are doing now in 2015.

In the 2014 TIP Report, Morocco was listed as on the Tier 2 Watch List. It is a source, transit, and destination country for both forced labor and sex trafficking. Many migrant women are at-risk for trafficking, especially in some of the Northern border towns. The government did pass several reforms in 2013 that improved the situation with regards to undocumented migrants, but more needs to be done to combat human trafficking in Morocco.