PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 22, 2026

Advocates Commend LA City Council For Stepping Up to Ensure Human Rights Protections Are Funded in LA28 Olympics Negotiations While Pushing for Stronger Protections

Los Angeles — Anti‑trafficking and human rights advocates expressed deep concern that last week the Los Angeles City Council Ad Hoc Committee on the Olympics and Paralympics ran out of time to discuss the LA28 Draft Human Rights Strategy at its April 14 meeting, despite the item being agendized. The draft human rights plan for the Olympics—released by LA28 on April 7—outlines broad commitments but provides no funding, timelines, or operational details for preventing human trafficking or addressing other human rights risks associated with the 2028 Games.

Stephanie Richard, Director of the Sunita Jain Anti-Trafficking Initiative (SJI) at Loyola Law School,  six Loyola Law School student advocates, and other coalition advocates from FAIR Games, and Jobs to Move America all provided comments on the human rights plan on April 14th, highlighting the plan's lack of funding to support human rights and anti-trafficking prevention.  The lack of discussion at the Ad Hoc Committee was a missed opportunity, especially given the urgency to implement prevention measures well before the Games begin.

However, the Los Angeles City Council is now demonstrating strong leadership with LA City Councilmember Adrin Nazarian introducing a motion  today directing that human rights commitments—including trafficking prevention—be incorporated into negotiations for the Enhanced Services Agreement (ESA) with LA28.

“This is exactly the kind of leadership Los Angeles needs,” said SJI Director Richard. “The ESA is the City’s primary leverage point. Ensuring that human rights protections and the resources to carry them out are part of those negotiations is essential.”

“While the World Cup and Olympics offer significant cultural and economic benefits to Los Angeles, they also pose a serious risk of increased human trafficking,” stated Councilmember Nazarian. “Rather than waiting for these events to begin, we need to act immediately to safeguard our most vulnerable communities. My motion seeks to prioritize comprehensive prevention strategies and secure the necessary resources to address this threat. I look forward to advancing this critical work in the months ahead.”

The LA28 Draft Human Rights Strategy acknowledges that labor trafficking is the most likely form of trafficking associated with mega‑events and that addressing these risks requires coordination with community organizations, service providers, and informed bystanders. Yet the plan commits zero dollars to prevention, outreach, survivor services, or independent evaluation. It relies heavily on existing federal and state systems—none of which were designed or resourced for a National Special Security Event of this scale.

Advocates emphasized that without funded, time‑bound, enforceable actions, the plan cannot function as an operational human rights strategy. They urged LA28 to adopt corrective actions such as:

• Dedicated funding for prevention, outreach, and survivor services
• Independent audits of contracts and labor supply chains
• A survivor‑protection MOU to prevent immigration‑related harms
• A $1 million prevention fund for community‑based organizations
• Independent evaluation with public reporting
• A public‑health approach to coordination rather than a law‑enforcement‑only model

“With more than two years before the Games, Los Angeles still has time to get this right,” Richard said. “But the window for meaningful action is closing. Prevention, outreach, and service capacity must be in place well before the opening ceremonies. The City’s motion is a critical step toward ensuring that LA28’s human rights commitments are more than words on paper.”

Under the City's contract with LA28, the Olympics are intended to be privately financed, and the Host City Contract requires LA28—not the City of Los Angeles—to cover the additional public service costs associated with the Games. As negotiations on the Enhanced Services Agreement move forward, the City must ensure that human rights protections receive the same level of attention and funding as traffic management, policing, and other operational needs.

“Los Angeles has the expertise, the partners, and the evidence to set a global standard,” Richard said. “What’s needed now is the political will—and the investment—to protect the people most vulnerable to exploitation during the Games.”

“As a matter of law and evidence-based policy, human rights commitments without funding or safeguards cannot protect workers. Legal protections are meaningless if workers cannot safely access them, especially in the context of heightened security and immigration enforcement tied to the 2028 Olympic Games" said SJI, Loyola Law School Student Advocate Sophia Fortier

"The LA28 human rights strategy finally released three months overdue does not meet the moment. The lack of substantial engagement with key issues reflects sponsor interests and a billionaire-backed LA28 board, not the interests of our City, especially the most vulnerable Angelenos. We demand better." - Fair Games coalition The Fair Games Coalition is composed of more than 100 organizations, including unions, community groups, housing advocates, and immigration leaders.

FOLLOW US

Stay connected by following us on social media, where we share updates on our advocacy, highlight survivor-centered initiatives, and post opportunities to get involved.