Loyola’s Institute for Ministry partners with Eden House director to talk human trafficking

February 1, 2017

The executive director of Eden House New Orleans will discuss human trafficking, victimhood and gender-based violence live online.

Director Susanne Dietzel, an expert on the subjects, said she will specifically be discussing the different types and definitions of human trafficking, as well as detail how trafficking is a form of gender-based violence in which victims often become trapped.

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Susanne Dietzel is the executive director of Eden House, a non-profit organization in New Orleans that serves to end sex-trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation. Eden House provides long-term housing and recovery services to survivors of human trafficking. (Via Facebook)

Dietzel, who was the founding director of Loyola’s Women’s Resource Center and taught the first Intro to Women Studies course at the University, said she is excited to be returning to campus to conduct the webinar, which is one of a four part series this semester hosted by Loyola’s Institute for Ministry.

According to Barbara Fleischer, a professor at the institute and organizer of the series, each webinar covers a “respect life issue.”

“A lot of times when people think about pro-life issues they think only of abortion issues, but it’s much larger than that,” Fleischer said.

The Archdiocese of New Orleans held a senate in September of last year to determine what its priorities for the next several years should be. Fleischer said Loyola’s webinar series is practical outreach based on priority number five, which states the Archdiocese will be “a voice and witness in upholding the dignity of human life through education and advocacy regarding all pro-life issues,” including immigration, human trafficking and the death penalty.

Fleischer organized the webinars at Loyola after helping put together similar broadcasts for her parish community at St. Mary’s Assumption Church in New Orleans. She said the parish tries to support Eden House in any way it can, as it is the first residential recovery center in the Greater New Orleans area for female victims of human trafficking.

Fleischer said the Institute for Ministry has hosted webinars in the past and expects 10 to 40 people to tune in to listen to Dietzel next month.

The live stream, which can be found here on Feb. 6 from. 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., is free and open to the public but will be limited to the first 100 participants.