Skip to main content

Congresswoman Beatty Marks National Human Trafficking Awareness Day

January 11, 2017
Announcements

Congresswoman Beatty Marks National Human Trafficking Awareness Day

Remains committed to ending the scourge of human trafficking

January 11th is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day. In conjunction with the observance of National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, U.S. Congresswoman Joyce Beatty (OH-03), a longtime advocate for human trafficking victims and individuals at risk of exploitation, issued the following statement:

"Congress has a responsibility to protect victims and those at most risk of human trafficking. Unfortunately, far too many American men, women and children are living in the shadows against their will and—while progress has been made to expose, raise awareness and provide support to victims—we must do more. To that effect, I pledge to continue to work tirelessly to end the scourge of human trafficking and ensure that the federal government leads the way in the ongoing battle against these inhumane and criminal acts."

Throughout Beatty's Congressional tenure, she has worked with Democratic and Republican colleagues to combat human trafficking. In fact, Beatty's bipartisan legislation to combat child sex trafficking passed unanimously the House of Representatives and was later signed into law as part of a larger measure, the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act(JVTA) (P.L. 114-22), by President Obama on May 29, 2015. Last year, on the one year anniversary of JVTA, Beatty again joined a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers in sending a letter to the Department of Justice to implement the entirety of the law. This month, Beatty will similarly unite with a bipartisan group of lawmakers to introduce the Trafficking Survivors Relief Act, a bill to expunge criminal records of victims convicted of non-violent crimes associated with human trafficking.

Issues:Civil RightsDiversity and Inclusion