[1] Burke has been working with trafficked persons since 1997, when she designed and implemented specialized social services to sixty deaf Mexicans who were held in slavery in a peddling ring in New York City.

She helped start the Anti-Trafficking Program at Safe Horizon in 2001 and also designed and implemented a model for Community Trauma Response following the attacks on September 11th.

[2] She has done extensive training, speaking and consultation on Human Trafficking issues, trauma and torture in the United States, and internationally.

[4] Secretary of State John Kerry presented Burke with the inaugural Presidential Award for Extraordinary Efforts to Combat Trafficking in Persons in May 2013.

The Award was granted in recognition of “her sustained dedication and unparalleled leadership in combating modern slavery through the development and delivery of comprehensive services, the empowerment of survivors to move from slavery to independence, and the transformation of policy to eradicate all forms of human trafficking".