Combating Human Trafficking

Floor Speech

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Mrs. BEATTY. Mr. Speaker, first let me just say thank you to my
colleague from Missouri, Congresswoman Ann Wagner, for organizing
tonight's Special Order hour but, probably more importantly, a
bipartisan Special Order hour. And let me say, I proudly wear this
bracelet in honor of all of those survivors.

I also want to note that her work as a former United States
Ambassador exposed her firsthand to the horrors of human trafficking on
an international level. Her work has raised awareness of this problem
and has laid the foundation for congressional action.

Despite international efforts to eradicate human trafficking, it
still exists and affects communities in every country, including the
United States. This transnational crime exploits the weakest and often
subjects victims to mental and physical abuse.

Human trafficking is an estimated multibillion-dollar-a-year
international enterprise that forces the weakest among us into the
horrors of modern day slavery.

It is also one of the fastest-growing crimes in the world. In fact,
according to the United States State Department, human trafficking is
the world's second-largest criminal enterprise, Mr. Speaker, after
illegal drug trade. It is forced prostitution, domestic slavery, and
forced labor.

It is also oftentimes underground and masked so well that it is
difficult to recognize. These victims are our housekeepers, our
farmworkers brought into the United States by labor brokers who
promised a job but enslaved these victims instead. Sex traffickers
target the weakest members of our society by using violence or threats
or other coercive means to keep victims enslaved.

Human trafficking deprives individuals of their most basic and
unalienable rights--life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That
is why we must continue to work to end human trafficking and support
the victims by providing resources and assistance during their time of
need.

My home State of Ohio is the fifth-leading State for human
trafficking. In Ohio, an estimated 1,100 Ohio children become victims,
with some 3,000 more at risk. In fact, a preliminary report on the
scope of the problem in Ohio cited that 13 years of age is the most
common age for youth to become victims of child sex trafficking.

During my time in public service, as a public servant both in the
Ohio Legislature and here, I have heard story after story of
heartbreaking personal human trafficking experiences from Ohio. Just 2
weeks ago, my hometown paper, The Columbus Dispatch, reported that a
massage spa in central Ohio was serving as a front for organized
prostitution, where 18 women who spoke little or no English were forced
to work there, eat there, and sleep there. Authorities believe that
these women were likely trafficked into the United States to work in a
sex trade.

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Mrs. BEATTY. Because of the importance of this issue in my State and
in our Nation, I engaged during my first term in Congress to pass a sex
trafficking bill, 400-9. Last year, as you heard from Congresswoman
Wagner, I partnered with Senator Portman from Ohio to introduce
bipartisan, bicameral legislation, the Bringing Missing Children Home
Act, H.R. 3905.

This Congress, I have introduced H.R. 246, which would improve and
update the Missing Children's Assistance Act in order to reflect the
current state of Federal law and reinforce that children who are sex-
trafficked or sexually exploited are victims and not criminals.

Lastly, my bill would add the phrase ``sex child trafficking,
including child prostitution'' to section b(1)(P) of the Missing
Children's Assistance Act to fight the perception that sex trafficking
is a voluntary, victimless crime.

Mr. Speaker, I am honored to join my colleagues, Democrats and
Republicans, in speaking against and bringing awareness of human
trafficking. Our country, our constituents, our children need our help.

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