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Ms. Batten is intimately familiar with the dynamics of power that create multiple levels of trauma for survivors of sex trafficking, having served for 15 years as a violent crimes prosecutor in the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, primarily prosecuting domestic violence and sexual assaults felonies. She remains a zealous advocate for empowering survivors instead of prosecuting them. A graduate of Duke University (1992), majoring in Public Policy and Political Science and the University of Virginia, School of Law (1995), Ms. Batten has been a committed public interest attorney. In law school, she was awarded public interest fellowships to clerk with the ACLU’s Office of Legislative Affairs and the Youth Law Center, focusing on impact litigation to improve the criminal justice system. After her tenure with LADA, Ms. Batten relocated to Washington, DC to serve as a senior attorney for the Office of International Affairs in the U.S. Department of Justice. She currently serves as the Program Director for the Community Resilience Initiatives program at the University of Maryland’s non-profit Center for Health and Homeland Security, engaging with communities to create violence prevention networks.

On both the east and west coasts, Ms. Batten consistently has been committed to community empowerment and is a passionate advocate for youth and survivors of violence. On the west coast, she worked with Peace Over Violence and Stand Up for Kids and was a board member on Wells Bring Hope, Inc. and Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles. Since relocating to the east coast, she has served as a community educator and crisis intervention advocate for the DC Rape Crisis Center and as a volunteer for several organizations including Extra Ordinary Birthdays, Dress for Success, and Girl Scouts of America. She is a firm believer in empowering through education and establishing “power with” relationships through thoughtful collaboration.

Melba Robinson is a tireless advocate for girls and young women who face insurmountable challenges. Melba’s innovative works in the areas of social work, mental health, and human sex trafficking of domestic children have made her a go-to person for Juvenile Justice Judges, Law Enforcement, Community Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO) and Parents.

Melba has a strong interest in the next generation of girls and young women. She has served for years as a case manager, mentor and court advocate for troubled and exploited girls and has served as a hands-on resource to their families. Robinson founded STRIVE (Surviving Together regardless of Ignorance, Violence and Exploitation). STRIVE engages survivors of human sex trafficking through an aftercare group which assist girls with transitioning back into their families and communities while equipping and empowering them with the ability to set and achieve their life goals.

Her commitment to help women, girls, communities and NGOs extends far beyond Atlanta. Robinson has worked with Girls Educational & Mentoring Services (GEMS), the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, Share Hope International, the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security, ICE. She has also served as a volunteer for DeKalb County’s Task Force for Homeless and Sexually Exploited Youth. Melba is often called upon as an expert witness for law enforcement to build case against sex traffickers, and she is a sought-after trainer and curriculum developer for Juvenile Courts, NGOs, professional associations and religious organization. Melba has served as a Director for a state licensed safe refuge, education and therapeutic home for American girls who have survived violence, street life and human sex trafficking and exploitation. In this position she led committed staff and team of volunteers in providing restorative care and services to girls and their families. In addition, Melba serves as a subject matter expert on task forces, panels and at conferences. Melba currently is the Program Director for an Anti-Human Trafficking program with the Salvation Army.

Melba holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice from St. John’s University and a Masters in Social Work from Clark Atlanta University. Melba Robinson is a Georgia resident and one of Georgia’s leaders to eradicate Human Sex Trafficking of Domestic Children.

Going undercover to meet slaves and slaveholders, Kevin Bales exposed how modern slavery penetrates the global economy and flows into the things we buy. Named by the Association of British Universities as the originator of one of “100 World-Changing Discoveries” and by Utne Reader as a “visionary who is changing your world.” In 2001 he co-founded Free the Slaves, the American sister-organization of the UK’s Anti-Slavery International, the world’s oldest human rights group. In twelve years it has helped to liberate thousands of slaves in India, Nepal, Haiti, Ghana, Brazil, Ivory Coast, and Bangladesh, and work with them to build new lives of dignity. After reading Bales’ book Ending Slavery, President Clinton told the plenary of the CGI: “It tells you that it is a problem we can solve and here’s how to do it.” With Ron Soodalter, he published The Slave Next Door: Modern Slavery in the United States, an exposé and plan to make America slave-free for the first time in its history. Check out his TED talk.