Combating Human Trafficking

Floor Speech

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Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. I thank Mrs. Noem for yielding and for the leadership that she has demonstrated, along with Congresswoman Wagner. As Judge Poe said, women of our caucus have stood up and are leading the fight to combat human trafficking with a zero tolerance policy.

This is an historic week in the House as we seek to pass 12 bills to fight human trafficking. As the prime author of the landmark Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 as well as reauthorizations of that law in 2003 and 2005, I believe the bills under consideration by the House today and tomorrow will further prevent horrific crimes of human trafficking, protect and assist victims, and aid the prosecution of those who exploit and abuse.

A special thanks to our Republican leadership, especially Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers and Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, who have made this a priority for the House. Hopefully, it will be extended to the Senate, and the President will follow that lead.

When I first introduced TVPA, Trafficking Victims Protection Act, in 1998, the legislation was met with a wall of skepticism and opposition. People both inside of government and out thought the bold new legislation that included sheltering, asylum, and other protections for the victims, long jail sentences and asset confiscation for the traffickers, and tough sanctions for governments that failed to meet minimum standards was merely a solution in search of a problem.

Mr. Speaker, for most people at the time, the term ``trafficking'' applied almost exclusively to illicit drugs or weapons. Reports of vulnerable persons, especially women and children, being reduced to commodities for sale were often met with surprise and credulity or indifference. It took 2 years and numerous congressional hearings to overcome opponents and muster the votes for passage.

Now, according to the ILO, approximately 21 million people are victimized. Some put the number as high as 36 million subjected to modern-day slavery. The ILO also says that traffickers make profits in excess of $150 billion a year.

We do have a tier system. We have a trafficking office, an Ambassador at Large; we have a robust effort on the State level. Many States have passed laws that mirror what we have done on the Federal level, so that there are more tools in the tool box to put these traffickers behind bars and to liberate the women and children.

For the past 15 years, we have seen progress on a number of anti-trafficking fronts, including laws, over 300 laws around the world to combat trafficking; and an estimated 125,000 victims have been rescued worldwide.

We also, over the past decade, have had federally funded some 42 anti-human trafficking task forces and 85,000 law enforcement officers have been trained; still, there are still far too little prosecutions and far too few liberations of those who have been trafficked.

The best estimates available now are that there are at least 100,000 American children, mostly runaways. The average age of initial enslavement is 13 years old. Let me say that again: 13-year-old girls are exploited in the commercial sex industry each year.

These children, when found, are often unnecessarily charged for prostitution, fined or put in juvenile detention, when there are other options available. They need to be protected, not prosecuted.

Again, I want to thank our leadership for making this such a high priority. This is modern-day slavery. I thank my good friend and colleague for her leadership. We have got to end modern-day slavery.

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