Providing for Congressional Disapproval of a Rule Submitted by the National Labor Relations Board
Floor Speech
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Mrs. GILLIBRAND. I also rise to speak about human trafficking, and I
associate myself with the comments of Senator Heitkamp.
Human trafficking is a form of modern-day slavery that is alive,
active, and must be stopped. Many of the stories we hear from traffic
survivors sound more like plots in a horror movie than real life in the
United States of America, but these stories are not fiction. Over and
over we hear stories about young Americans forced into captivity, about
young Americans forced into sexual exploitation, about young Americans
who have no freedom to say no to a violent pimp but are still tagged
with prostitution charges before they even turn 18. Human trafficking
is a crime that rips families apart, breaks down the trust in our
communities, and shatters young American lives.
It is long overdue for Congress to pay close attention to this issue,
and I commend my fellow female Senators for bringing this issue so
boldly to the floor of the Senate.
Today I will talk about what Senator Heitkamp talked about--the
vulnerabilities that led to these young boys and girls becoming
trafficked and how vulnerable they remain even after they have managed
to escape from their pimps and their captivity.
In small towns and big cities, thousands of Americans are trafficked
each year. Every single institution these boys and girls ever relied on
simply failed them, failed to protect them. Their families failed to
protect them. Their schools failed to protect them. The foster system
they were given to failed to protect them. Our laws are failing to
protect them.
Last month alone, in Rochester, NY, the U.S. attorney announced the
arrest of seven people on trafficking charges. Their victims were as
young as 14 years old. The U.S. attorney said: ``The victims in many
cases were singled out because they were identified as being
vulnerable.''
We have the responsibility in Congress to end these crimes against
the most vulnerable among us. We should pass Senator Leahy's Runaway
and Homeless Youth and Trafficking Prevention Act, which would provide
real help to runaway youth, who are especially vulnerable to this
exploitation. We should support Senator Klobuchar's Stop Exploitation
Through Trafficking Act, which would stop the prosecution of minors who
have engaged in commercial sex acts. We should pass Senator Cornyn's
Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, which would support programs
for survivors of human trafficking and child pornography and ensure
that the johns who are buying trafficking victims are actually
prosecuted in Federal court.
We need a law that would vacate the criminal convictions of
trafficking victims because these girls and boys are not criminals;
they are not prostitutes; they are victims who deserve a chance to lead
a fulfilling life. I will be introducing an amendment to Senator
Klobuchar's bill that would vacate the criminal convictions of
trafficked victims who were forced to break the law while they were
trafficked. No victim of human trafficking should have to go through
life--even after gaining their freedom from their trafficker--with
prostitution charges on their record. We have an obligation to protect
the most vulnerable Americans, and this vacatur amendment would help us
do just that.
I know that if Congress does its job and does everything it can to
help victims of human trafficking, thousands of young women and men in
this country will have a chance to live a fulfilling life.
I suggest the absence of a quorum.
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