Fight Illicit Networks and Detect Trafficking Act

Floor Speech

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Ms. PRESSLEY. Mr. Speaker, I thank Chairwoman Waters for her lifetime of service and commitment to those who are ignored, left out, and left behind.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 502, the FIND Trafficking Act. Moreover, I rise today on behalf of the survivors of sex trafficking in my district, Massachusetts' Seventh Congressional District, and across our Nation.

The sex and drug trafficking industry is a $150 billion industry across the globe and throughout our communities. This bill would bring us one step closer to combating this pervasive and insidious industry.

I rise today to lift up the lived experience of one of its survivors: Casey, a 13-year old who grew up in the care of the child welfare system after surviving an abusive home. Before being referred to My Life My Choice, a program in my district that is survivor led that works with those impacted by trafficking, Casey had been placed in multiple residential programs.

Just this year, Casey went missing for 1 week. Casey describes an experience that is harrowing and, unfortunately, not unique. Craving friendship, companionship, and safety, she built relationships online that turned into in-person meetings.

Those meetings did not provide the safety or support Casey hoped for; rather, they led to her exploitation. She found herself at parties where men she trusted demanded she have sex with other men. She lived in fear, and endured many indignities. Her safety was compromised and her humanity marginalized.

To Casey and survivors across the Nation watching, I affirm loud and clear: What happened to you is not your fault. We believe you and we are here fighting for you.

We know that trafficking is enabled by many factors. Broken systems destroy the lives of too many. I would like to thank Representative Vargas and Representative Wagner for their bipartisan leadership to tackle these issues, and to shed light on the ways that virtual currencies are being manipulated by traffickers to commit horrific human rights abuses, and contributing to our country's drug crisis.

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Ms. PRESSLEY. Mr. Speaker, the FIND Trafficking Act will require the Federal Government to investigate the ways in which sex and drug trafficking rings are capitalizing on the anonymity, such as bitcoin, to finance the worldwide industry of modern-day slavery and sexual exploitation without fear of detection. This would provide policy and regulatory recommendations on ways to crack down on these horrendous abuses.

It is estimated that more than 45 million men, women, and children are affected by sex and human trafficking across the globe. Since 2011, my home State of Massachusetts has been working to tackle this growing industry. We have been working to end this modern-day slavery and exploitation through coalitions and innovative partnerships between survivor-led, community-based organizations, businesses, and local and State government agencies.

While these coalitions are making progress, they cannot do it alone. The Federal Government has a critical role to play in providing resources and research to guide this work. The FIND Trafficking Act will shed much-needed light in the ways that technology-based currencies have fueled and financed these human rights abuses. We will not rest until every survivor receives justice, and we dismantle these systems of oppression and exploitation that drive trafficking and abuse.

To all survivors: We see you. We believe you, and we are fighting for you.

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