Michigan reforms child welfare with new human trafficking laws

Michigan lawmakers have introduced a package of bills to address issues in human trafficking dealing with youth in the sex industry.

When a child ages out of foster care, the only option is survival, no matter what it takes.  In numerous instances these young girls end up working in the strip bars or prostituting on local street corners.

It is about time Michigan realizes it can no longer run away from the problems it has created and take advantage of new resources to address the issues of children in human trafficking, even in foster care.

Senate Bill 585: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Mike Nofs (R) on October 3, 2013, to raise the minimum age for prostitution-related crimes to from 16 to 18, and prohibit local units of government from enacting ordinances that establish lower minimum ages. Individuals under this age caught violating the law could be taken into custody and placed under probate (family) court supervision.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161002

Senate Bill 586: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Tory Rocca (R) on October 3, 2013, to authorize diverting individuals under age 18 arrested for violating prostitution laws into probate (family) court supervision rather than criminal court prosecution. The court would be required to hold a hearing to determine if the juvenile was a victim of a human trafficking offense.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161003

Senate Bill 587: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Vincent Gregory (D) on October 3, 2013, to require a state agency supervising a child found to be the victim of human trafficking to provide psychological counseling services.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161004

Senate Bill 588: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Mark Jansen (R) on October 3, 2013, to establish as an “affirmative defense” for a person being prosecuted for a prostitution-related offense that the individual did it only because of his or her status as a victim of a human trafficking crime.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161005

Senate Bill 589: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Bruce Caswell (R) on October 3, 2013, to add human trafficking or commercial sexual exploitation of children to the (statutory) grounds for terminating a parent’s parental rights.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161006

Senate Bill 590: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. John Proos, IV (R) on October 3, 2013, to allow human trafficking victims to sue violators for damages.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161007

Senate Bill 591: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. John Proos, IV (R) on October 3, 2013, to establish that an individual could have prostitution or other criminal convictions cleared from his or her record if the offense was due to being a victim of a human trafficking crime.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161008

Senate Bill 592: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. John Proos, IV (R) on October 3, 2013, to revise the general state welfare law to authorize medical and psychological assistance benefits for having been a victim of a human trafficking crime.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161009

Senate Bill 593: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Rebekah Warren (D) on October 3, 2013, to require child placement agencies to give special consideration to information that a child may be the victim of human trafficking crimes, and on that basis find that the usual reunification, adoption, or other foster care services may not be suitable.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161010

Senate Bill 594: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Judy Emmons (R) on October 3, 2013, to allow local governments to adopt ordinances requiring individuals working at an adult entertainment business (strip club) to get a permit.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161011

Senate Bill 595: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Michael Green (R) on October 3, 2013, to impose a $3 per customer fee for entering an adult entertainment business (strip club), with the money going into a state fund.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161012

Senate Bill 596: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. David Robertson (R) on October 3, 2013, to create a state “human trafficking board” to collect and disseminate information on this crime, seek federal and other aid for addressing it and helping victims, and more.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161013

Senate Bill 597: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Rebekah Warren (D) on October 3, 2013, to require that medical professionals receive training to identify the signs of human trafficking in patients.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161014

Senate Bill 598: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Bruce Caswell (R) on October 3, 2013, to include “enticing a female away under 18 years of age” to commit prostitution-related crimes in the "predicate" crimes that come under the state racketeering law (RICO), which among other things would allow the seizure and sale of a violator’s assets, with the proceeds going to law enforcement agencies. Unrelated to human trafficking, the bill would also add felony liquor control code violations related to the sale, delivery, or importation of spirits to the predicate RICO offenses.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161015

Senate Bill 599: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Goeff Hansen (R) on October 3, 2013, to prohibit using the internet or a computer system to solicit a prostitute who is less than 21 years of age.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161016

Senate Bill 600: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Rick Jones (R) on October 3, 2013, to authorize specific regulations and procedures for the use of wiretapping and electronic monitoring to investigate human trafficking crimes.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161017

Senate Bill 601: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Rick Jones (R) on October 3, 2013, to authorize the use of covert listening “bugs” to investigate human trafficking crimes.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161018

Senate Bill 602: Human trafficking crime package
Introduced by Sen. Joe Hune (R) on October 3, 2013, to require individuals convicted of soliciting a prostitute to register on the state sex offender registry.
http://www.michiganvotes.org/Legislation.aspx?ID=161019

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DOJ: Recognizes Human Trafficking Prevention Month and Announces Update on Efforts to Combat this Violent Crime - Still No Word on CPS, Foster Care & Adoption

Still no word on CPS, Foster Care & Adoption.

In December 2018, President Trump proclaimed January 2019 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, dedicating the month to raising national awareness of the issue of human trafficking and highlighting efforts to combat this violent crime. Over the last year, the Department of Justice fought human trafficking through investigating and prosecuting traffickers, dismantling transnational human trafficking networks, enhancing victim identification and protection of all victims of trafficking, and funding and providing domestic and international anti-trafficking programs.

"Human trafficking is a horrific crime against the human dignity of the victims, and it can have no place in our society," Acting Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker said. "But the Department of Justice is taking action against the traffickers. In fiscal year 2018, the Department of Justice secured over 500 human trafficking convictions – an increase from the previous fiscal year. We also filed a record number of new cases. And in districts where our new Anti-Trafficking Coordination Teams are in place, we have ramped up the number of trafficking prosecutions. We have sent a clear message to traffickers that the Department of Justice will bring the full force of the law against them."

Investigating and Prosecuting Human Traffickers

In fiscal year 2018, the Justice Department initiated a total of 230 human trafficking prosecutions, charging 386 defendants and convicting a record 526 defendants. The Department continued its successful Anti-Trafficking Coordination Team (ACTeam) Initiative, working with partners in the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Labor. In 2018, ACTeams saw significant prosecution results, including increases of 10 percent, 75 percent, and 106 percent, in cases filed, defendants charged, and defendants convicted.

Successful cases under ACTeam leadership include one of the largest sex trafficking prosecutions in U.S. history, in which the Justice Department convicted 36 defendants operating a sex trafficking scheme that exploited hundreds of Thai women in multiple states. Additionally, five members of a notorious international criminal organization, known as the Rendon-Reyes Sex Trafficking Organization, were sentenced to prison terms of 15 to 25 years. Prosecution resulted in dismantling of this organization, which forced young women and girls from Mexico and Central America into prostitution for over a decade.

Also in fiscal year 2018, the FBI initiated 649 human trafficking cases and arrested 2453 subjects. The FBI’s efforts contributed to 410 human trafficking convictions and 422 sentencings in this same period.

The Department’s Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute child sex traffickers and other individuals who sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims. This collaborative effort yields powerful results, including, for example, five indictments and three superseding indictments charging a total of 19 defendants with sex trafficking offenses against children in the Southern District of New York. 

Dismantling Transnational Human Trafficking Networks

The Department of Justice continues to lead the U.S. Mexico Bilateral Human Trafficking Enforcement Initiative in collaboration with DHS and Mexican law enforcement counterparts to combat human trafficking networks operating across the U.S.-Mexico border.  The initiative has resulted in successful prosecutions in both Mexico and the United States, including U.S. federal prosecutions of over 170 defendants. The collaborative work of the initiative has enabled high-impact prosecutions have dismantled transnational trafficking networks through coordinated, bilateral enforcement actions to simultaneously apprehend associated traffickers in both the U.S. and Mexico.

The Justice Department also continues to target all individuals who contribute to sex trafficking, including online advertisers that facilitate the offense, such as Backpage.com. On April 5, 2018, several Backpage-related corporate entities, including Backpage.com, and Backpage’s co-founder and CEO Carl Ferrer pleaded guilty to federal charges and state charges in California and Texas for conspiring to facilitate prostitution and money laundering.  On April 6, 2018, DOJ seized and shutdown Backpage.com in the U.S. and the 90+ other countries in which it operated.

Enhancing Human Trafficking Victim Identification and Protection

The Department of Justice continues to offer help to and pursue justice on behalf of the victims of this heinous crime. The FBI’s Victim Services Division deploys 183 Victim Specialists who provide direct assistance to federal victims of crime to include human trafficking victims. Victim Specialists provide hundreds of presentations a year educating thousands of participants on trafficking.

In fiscal year 2018, the Justice Department provided extensive training on best practices when investigating child sex trafficking cases. In January 2018, the Project Safe Childhood Investigating and Prosecuting the Prostitution of Children Seminar was held at the National Advocacy Center.  The Department also sponsored the 2018 National Law Enforcement Training on Child Exploitation, held in Atlanta and attended by approximately 1,500 federal, state, local, and tribal personnel.

In 2018, the Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys (EOUSA), the Civil Rights Division’s Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit (HTPU), and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) published a quick reference guide entitled “Restitution for Human Trafficking Victims,” which will assist federal prosecutors in obtaining restitution for human trafficking victims. EOUSA also developed a “Toolkit” which provides information on practices, procedures, models, and forms employed in various U.S. Attorneys’ Offices that are helpful to establishing a pretrial coordination practice of obtaining restitution for victims.

As National Slavery and Human Trafficking Month draws to a close, the Department of Justice is committed to continuing its efforts to combat the heinous crime of human trafficking in 2019.

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TRUMP - Proclamation on National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, 2020 - The Year Of Ending The Industry Of Trafficking Tiny Humans

Happy Trafficking Tiny Humans Year - 2020

 Issued on: December 31, 2019

Human trafficking erodes personal dignity and destroys the moral fabric of society.  It is an affront to humanity that tragically reaches all parts of the world, including communities across our Nation.  Each day, in cities, suburbs, rural areas, and tribal lands, people of every age, gender, race, religion, and nationality are devastated by this grave offense.  During National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, we reaffirm our unwavering commitment to eradicate this horrific injustice.

Trafficking crimes are perpetrated by transnational criminal enterprises, gangs, and cruel individuals.  Through force, fraud, coercion, and sexual exploitation of minors, traffickers rob countless individuals of their dignity and freedom, splinter families, and threaten the safety of our communities.  In all its forms, human trafficking is an intolerable blight on any society dedicated to freedom, individual rights, and the rule of law.

Human trafficking is often a hidden crime that knows no boundaries.  By some estimates, as many as 24.9 million people ‑- adults and children — are trapped in a form of modern slavery around the world, including in the United States.  Human traffickers exploit others through forced labor or commercial sex, and traffickers profit from their victims’ horrific suffering.  The evil of human trafficking must be defeated.  We remain relentless in our resolve to bring perpetrators to justice, to protect survivors and help them heal, and to prevent further victimization and destruction of innocent lives.

This year marks nearly 20 years since our Nation took decisive steps in the global fight against human trafficking by enacting the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) and nearly 15 years since the United States ratified the United Nations’ Palermo Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (Palermo Protocol).  Both the TVPA and the Palermo Protocol established a comprehensive framework for combating human trafficking by establishing prevention programs, creating victim protections, and advancing prosecutions under expanded criminal statutes to usher in the modern anti-trafficking movement domestically and globally.  These two measures illustrate a global consensus on the issue, and yet as a Nation we must continue to work proactively to foster a culture of justice and accountability for this horrific crime.

My Administration is committed to using every available resource, strengthening strategic partnerships, collaborating with State, local, and tribal entities, and by introducing innovative anti-trafficking strategies to bring the full force of the United States Government to help end this barbaric practice once and for all.  In January 2019, I was proud to sign both the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act and the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, reaffirming our commitment to preventing trafficking in all forms.

With my resolute support, executive departments and agencies are steadfastly continuing the battle to abolish this form of modern slavery.  In October 2019, the 19 members of my Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons convened to highlight significant accomplishments in our sustained, whole-of-Government fight against human trafficking.  The Anti-Trafficking Coordination Team (ACTeam) initiative, led by the Department of Justice, more than doubled convictions of human traffickers in ACTeam districts.  Additionally, the Department of Homeland Security initiated more than 800 investigations related to human trafficking and the Department of State launched its Human Trafficking Expert Consultant Network, comprised of survivors and other subject matter experts, to inform its anti-trafficking policies and programs.  The Department of Health and Human Services continues to provide funding for the National Human Trafficking Hotline, and in Fiscal Year 2018 it funded victim assistance programs that provided benefits and services to more than 2,400 victims.  For the first time, the Department of Transportation committed $5.4 million in grants to the prevention of human trafficking and other crimes that may occur on buses, trains, and other forms of public transportation.  The Office of Management and Budget also published new anti-trafficking guidance for Government procurement officials to more effectively combat human trafficking in Federal contracting.

The inherent dignity, freedom, and autonomy of every person must be respected and protected.  Despite the progress we have made and the momentum we have built toward ending human trafficking, there is still more to be done.  This month, we renew our resolve to redouble our efforts to deliver justice to all who contribute to the cruelty of human trafficking, and we will tenaciously pursue the promise of freedom for all victims of this terrible crime.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2020 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, culminating in the annual observation of National Freedom Day on February 1, 2020.  I call upon industry associations, law enforcement, private businesses, faith-based and other organizations of civil society, schools, families, and all Americans to recognize our vital roles in ending all forms of modern slavery and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities aimed at ending and preventing all forms of human trafficking.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty‑first day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand nineteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-fourth.

DONALD J. TRUMP

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TRUMP: Proclaimation - January 2019 Is National Slavery & Human Trafficking Prevention Month, National Freedom Day Is February 1, 2019

What better way than to celebrate the birth of the Baby 2019 than with another worthy Presidential Proclamation on National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, which has yet to mention the industry of Foster Care & Adoption.

I am still working on script development for January, so we can showcase the entire history of trafficking tiny humans through the residuals of the peculiar institution, as the financial networks are complex financial fraud schemes around the world.

Presidential Proclamation on National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, 2019

Human trafficking is a modern form of slavery.  It is not enough merely to denounce this horrific assault on human dignity; we must actively work to prevent and end this barbaric exploitation of innocent victims.  During National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, we pledge to continue the battle to abolish modern slavery and restore the lives of those affected by human trafficking.

Human trafficking harms adults and children of all ages and demographics.  Through force, fraud, and coercion, traffickers push their victims into demeaning forms of abuse, including domestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation.  These crimes often remain hidden because victims are reluctant to seek help for a variety of reasons, including language barriers, fear of traffickers and law enforcement, and lack of trust.  Human trafficking destroys precious lives and threatens our Nation’s security, public health, and the rule of law.  It is a scourge on the global community.

We are morally obligated to confront and defeat the abhorrent practice of human trafficking, and I am keeping my pledge to take aggressive action.  In February of 2017, I signed an Executive Order to dismantle transnational criminal organizations that traffic and exploit people.  I have made it a top priority to fully secure our Nation’s Southwest border, including through the continued construction of a physical wall, so that we can stop human trafficking and stem the flow of deadly drugs and criminals into our country.  And my Administration is negotiating tough forced-labor provisions in our new trade agreements, including in the United States‑Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA.

In April of 2018, I was proud to sign into law the “Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017”, landmark legislation to fight online sex trafficking.  This legislation makes it easier to take legal action against individuals who use websites to facilitate sex trafficking, helping victims seek justice against the websites that profit from their exploitation.  It also clarifies that those who benefit from knowingly assisting, supporting, or facilitating an act of sex trafficking are in violation of Federal law.

At my direction, Federal departments and agencies are ensuring full enforcement of our laws so that those who seek to exploit our people and break our laws receive the full measure of justice they deserve.  In 2017 alone, the Department of Justice secured convictions against more than 500 defendants in human trafficking cases and the Federal Bureau of Investigation dismantled more than 42 criminal enterprises engaged in child sex trafficking.  The Department of Homeland Security initiated more than 800 human trafficking cases, resulting in at least 1,500 arrests and 530 convictions.  The Department of Health and Human Services modernized the National Human Trafficking Hotline.  The Department of Transportation recently established an Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking to assist State and local transportation stakeholders in developing best practices for combating human trafficking.  And my Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons is working tirelessly to prosecute traffickers and protect human trafficking victims.  The task force has also enhanced collaboration with other nations, businesses, and survivors of human trafficking.

Under my Administration, the Federal Government will continue to play a leading role in the fight against human trafficking. But all Americans can help in this effort by recognizing key indicators that can potentially save a life. Public awareness and education are critical, especially for those most likely to encounter perpetrators of enslavement and their victims, such as healthcare professionals, law enforcement officers, social services providers, and educators. Through the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, citizens can learn to identify victims, report suspected instances of trafficking, and bring those who exploit others to justice.

As a Nation, we cherish and uphold the notion that all people are created with inherent dignity and entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  Human trafficking and enslavement robs victims of these God-given endowments.  Modern slavery in all its manifestations is a blight on humanity and an affront to our fundamental values.  We will not rest until we eradicate this evil.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2019 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, culminating in the annual observation of National Freedom Day on February 1, 2019.  I call upon industry associations, law enforcement, private businesses, faith-based and other organizations of civil society, schools, families, and all Americans to recognize our vital roles in ending all forms of modern slavery and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities aimed at ending and preventing all forms of human trafficking.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-third.

DONALD J. TRUMP

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TRUMP: Presidential Proclamation on National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, 2019

Happy Black History Month!

Human trafficking is a modern form of slavery.  It is not enough merely to denounce this horrific assault on human dignity; we must actively work to prevent and end this barbaric exploitation of innocent victims.  During National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, we pledge to continue the battle to abolish modern slavery and restore the lives of those affected by human trafficking.

Human trafficking harms adults and children of all ages and demographics.  Through force, fraud, and coercion, traffickers push their victims into demeaning forms of abuse, including domestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation.  These crimes often remain hidden because victims are reluctant to seek help for a variety of reasons, including language barriers, fear of traffickers and law enforcement, and lack of trust.  Human trafficking destroys precious lives and threatens our Nation’s security, public health, and the rule of law.  It is a scourge on the global community.

We are morally obligated to confront and defeat the abhorrent practice of human trafficking, and I am keeping my pledge to take aggressive action.  In February of 2017, I signed an Executive Order to dismantle transnational criminal organizations that traffic and exploit people.  I have made it a top priority to fully secure our Nation’s Southwest border, including through the continued construction of a physical wall, so that we can stop human trafficking and stem the flow of deadly drugs and criminals into our country.  And my Administration is negotiating tough forced-labor provisions in our new trade agreements, including in the United States‑Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA.

In April of 2018, I was proud to sign into law the “Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017”, landmark legislation to fight online sex trafficking.  This legislation makes it easier to take legal action against individuals who use websites to facilitate sex trafficking, helping victims seek justice against the websites that profit from their exploitation.  It also clarifies that those who benefit from knowingly assisting, supporting, or facilitating an act of sex trafficking are in violation of Federal law.

At my direction, Federal departments and agencies are ensuring full enforcement of our laws so that those who seek to exploit our people and break our laws receive the full measure of justice they deserve.  In 2017 alone, the Department of Justice secured convictions against more than 500 defendants in human trafficking cases and the Federal Bureau of Investigation dismantled more than 42 criminal enterprises engaged in child sex trafficking.  The Department of Homeland Security initiated more than 800 human trafficking cases, resulting in at least 1,500 arrests and 530 convictions.  The Department of Health and Human Services modernized the National Human Trafficking Hotline.  The Department of Transportation recently established an Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking to assist State and local transportation stakeholders in developing best practices for combating human trafficking.  And my Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons is working tirelessly to prosecute traffickers and protect human trafficking victims.  The task force has also enhanced collaboration with other nations, businesses, and survivors of human trafficking.

Under my Administration, the Federal Government will continue to play a leading role in the fight against human trafficking. But all Americans can help in this effort by recognizing key indicators that can potentially save a life. Public awareness and education are critical, especially for those most likely to encounter perpetrators of enslavement and their victims, such as healthcare professionals, law enforcement officers, social services providers, and educators. Through the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, citizens can learn to identify victims, report suspected instances of trafficking, and bring those who exploit others to justice.

As a Nation, we cherish and uphold the notion that all people are created with inherent dignity and entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  Human trafficking and enslavement robs victims of these God-given endowments.  Modern slavery in all its manifestations is a blight on humanity and an affront to our fundamental values.  We will not rest until we eradicate this evil.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2019 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, culminating in the annual observation of National Freedom Day on February 1, 2019.  I call upon industry associations, law enforcement, private businesses, faith-based and other organizations of civil society, schools, families, and all Americans to recognize our vital roles in ending all forms of modern slavery and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities aimed at ending and preventing all forms of human trafficking.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-third.

DONALD J. TRUMP

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TRUMP: Oval Office Address On Border Security - Stop Trafficking Tiny Humans - The Residuals Of The Peculiar Institution

Someone finally stood up and formally acknowledged that we still traffic tiny humans.

Please, keep in mind, those who remain silent on the international industry of trafficking tiny humans just may be the ones doing it, and we know who you are.

It used to be called slavery, but now we call it child welfare.

The time has come to end Medicaid fraud in child welfare, whether you like it or not, Rashida.

We are in SCOTUS.

DOJ: Solicitor General Noel Fransico Files SCOTUS DACA, DAPA Briefs To Enjoin Actions In Trafficking Tiny Humans In DC Court Of Appeals - The Sinking Of The Privateers' UCC Ships

Happy National Adoption Month: TRUMP v. NAACP Petition For Certiorari To SCOTUS On Trafficking Tiny Humans - DACA, DAPA

SCOTUS Chief Justice John Roberts & His Trafficking Tiny Human Issues

Operation Underground Railroad: Trafficking Tiny Humans Has Its Detroit Roots In Chattel Law

Presidential Proclamation on National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, 2019

Human trafficking is a modern form of slavery.  It is not enough merely to denounce this horrific assault on human dignity; we must actively work to prevent and end this barbaric exploitation of innocent victims.  During National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, we pledge to continue the battle to abolish modern slavery and restore the lives of those affected by human trafficking.

Human trafficking harms adults and children of all ages and demographics.  Through force, fraud, and coercion, traffickers push their victims into demeaning forms of abuse, including domestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation.  These crimes often remain hidden because victims are reluctant to seek help for a variety of reasons, including language barriers, fear of traffickers and law enforcement, and lack of trust.  Human trafficking destroys precious lives and threatens our Nation’s security, public health, and the rule of law.  It is a scourge on the global community.

We are morally obligated to confront and defeat the abhorrent practice of human trafficking, and I am keeping my pledge to take aggressive action.  In February of 2017, I signed an Executive Order to dismantle transnational criminal organizations that traffic and exploit people.  I have made it a top priority to fully secure our Nation’s Southwest border, including through the continued construction of a physical wall, so that we can stop human trafficking and stem the flow of deadly drugs and criminals into our country.  And my Administration is negotiating tough forced-labor provisions in our new trade agreements, including in the United States‑Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA.

In April of 2018, I was proud to sign into law the “Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act of 2017”, landmark legislation to fight online sex trafficking.  This legislation makes it easier to take legal action against individuals who use websites to facilitate sex trafficking, helping victims seek justice against the websites that profit from their exploitation.  It also clarifies that those who benefit from knowingly assisting, supporting, or facilitating an act of sex trafficking are in violation of Federal law.

At my direction, Federal departments and agencies are ensuring full enforcement of our laws so that those who seek to exploit our people and break our laws receive the full measure of justice they deserve.  In 2017 alone, the Department of Justice secured convictions against more than 500 defendants in human trafficking cases and the Federal Bureau of Investigation dismantled more than 42 criminal enterprises engaged in child sex trafficking.  The Department of Homeland Security initiated more than 800 human trafficking cases, resulting in at least 1,500 arrests and 530 convictions.  The Department of Health and Human Services modernized the National Human Trafficking Hotline.  The Department of Transportation recently established an Advisory Committee on Human Trafficking to assist State and local transportation stakeholders in developing best practices for combating human trafficking.  And my Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons is working tirelessly to prosecute traffickers and protect human trafficking victims.  The task force has also enhanced collaboration with other nations, businesses, and survivors of human trafficking.

Under my Administration, the Federal Government will continue to play a leading role in the fight against human trafficking. But all Americans can help in this effort by recognizing key indicators that can potentially save a life. Public awareness and education are critical, especially for those most likely to encounter perpetrators of enslavement and their victims, such as healthcare professionals, law enforcement officers, social services providers, and educators. Through the Department of Homeland Security’s Blue Campaign, citizens can learn to identify victims, report suspected instances of trafficking, and bring those who exploit others to justice.

As a Nation, we cherish and uphold the notion that all people are created with inherent dignity and entitled to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  Human trafficking and enslavement robs victims of these God-given endowments.  Modern slavery in all its manifestations is a blight on humanity and an affront to our fundamental values.  We will not rest until we eradicate this evil.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2019 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, culminating in the annual observation of National Freedom Day on February 1, 2019.  I call upon industry associations, law enforcement, private businesses, faith-based and other organizations of civil society, schools, families, and all Americans to recognize our vital roles in ending all forms of modern slavery and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities aimed at ending and preventing all forms of human trafficking.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-third.

DONALD J. TRUMP

Notice how they refuse to mention child trafficking.

I believe Trump showed them the IG Report, but, hey, what do I know?

I know Trump needs to publish that IG Report, at the most opportune moment, of course.

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DOJ: National, State, Local and Tribal Government Officials Announce New Statewide Mississippi Human Trafficking Council to Combat This Violent Crime

I hope they do not use the playbook "Memo Man" signed off on.

U.S. Attorneys, Assistant Attorney General Civil Rights Division, Mississippi Department of Public Safety, and Mississippi Speaker of the House made the Announcement

Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division joined U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst, Southern District of Mississippi, U.S. Attorney Chad Lamar, Northern District of Mississippi, Commissioner Marshall Fisher, Mississippi Department of Public Safety, and Philip Gunn, Speaker of the Mississippi House of Representatives, today to announce the creation and launch of a new, statewide Mississippi Human Trafficking Council.

Building on the foundation established by Governor Phil Bryant’s Human Trafficking Task Force Report from 2015, as well as task forces from around the country, the Mississippi Human Trafficking Council’s mission will be to prevent trafficking, protect victims, and prosecute criminals using a victim-centered, collaborative, and multi-disciplinary model.  The Council will be led by three Co-Chairs: (1) Susan Bradley, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Northern District of Mississippi; (2) Kathlyn Van Buskirk, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Southern District of Mississippi; and (3) Ashlee Lucas, Mississippi Human Trafficking Coordinator, Mississippi Department of Public Safety.

“The Department of Justice is proud to announce the formation of the Mississippi Human Trafficking Council, which will serve as a crucial component to ongoing efforts to secure justice for victims of sex and labor trafficking crimes,” said Assistant Attorney General Eric Dreiband of the Civil Rights Division. “This is the first statewide trafficking council, and it will help law enforcement more effectively prosecute criminals and protect the rights of victims. This is another strong step in the Department of Justice’s commitment to fighting violent crime and protecting the most vulnerable in our society.”

“Human trafficking is a crime against humanity, and the monsters who commit these crimes against our children and our fellow human beings will continue to face swift and certain justice in our district,” said U.S. Attorney Mike Hurst. “This Council will coordinate multiple entities and agencies, and help our citizens effectively battle this growing epidemic in our state.  I want to thank our law enforcement, our prosecutors, and our governmental and non-governmental partners for stepping up to take this fight to the traffickers.  At the end of the day, this is all about protecting victims, preventing trafficking and prosecuting the criminals.”

“We are so pleased to announce the launching of multiple regional human trafficking task forces throughout the state, Northern and Southern Districts,” said U.S. Attorney Lamar. “Not only are these task forces collaborative efforts by federal, state and local law enforcement, but also state service agencies and non-government service providers.  The Human Trafficking Council and its committees, comprised of members from both Districts, will provide valuable direction and support.”   

“The Mississippi Department of Public Safety is dedicated to building an effective Human Trafficking Division to combat those who prey upon, victimize and traffic others for sexual or labor purposes,” said Commissioner Marshall Fisher. “With the aid of the Human Trafficking Council, MDPS’s Human Trafficking Division has access to a team of state and federal resources to thwart these threats to our communities.”

“Strengthening and improving Mississippi’s human trafficking laws has been and continues to be one of my top priorities,” said Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn. “It’s important to me that we make the process work for these victims while we support those law enforcement personnel on the ground across our state who are on the front lines fighting human trafficking. I envision the Mississippi Human Trafficking Council being an important resource to complement our state’s five existing regional task forces by collaborating and offering assistance when and where needed,” said Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn.

1. Steering Committee

The Council will have a Steering Committee, overseen by the Council Co-Chairs, and will be made up of the five subcommittee chairpersons along with the Council Co-Chairs.  The Steering Committee will serve as the primary policy making body of the Council. The Steering Committee will discuss and propose recommendations for the Council, upon which the Co-Chairs will vote to approve or disapprove of such recommendations. 

2. Subcommittees

The Council will consist of five subcommittees and will focus on all forms of domestic and international human trafficking, to include commercial sex trafficking and labor trafficking, for the protection of both adult and minor victims. Each subcommittee chairperson will oversee the operation of each subcommittee, arranges logistics for meetings, keeps records of activities and issues, serves as a member of the Steering Committee and performs other duties as necessary for the efficient and productive operation of the Council.

The five subcommittees and chairpersons are:

1. Outreach and Public Awareness Subcommittee

Chair: Mandy Davis, Mississippi Department of Public Safety

2. Strategic Planning and Trafficking Protocol Subcommittee

Chair: Dr. Tamara Hurst, University of Southern Mississippi

3. Policy and Legislation Subcommittee

Co-Chairs: Angela Cockerham, Mississippi House of Representatives; Lora Hunter, Mississippi Department of Public Safety

4. Training Subcommittee

Chair: Paula Broome, Mississippi Attorney General’s Office

5. Victim Service Subcommittee

Co-Chairs: Hollie Jeffery, Children’s Advocacy Center of Mississippi; Heather Wagner, Mississippi Department of Health

3. Task Forces

The Council will also consist of small, regional Task Forces, made up of local, state, federal and tribal law enforcement, local prosecutors, and victim service providers, and will be led by an Assistant U.S. Attorney.  These Task Forces will meet monthly and will share information, coordinate investigations, and discuss potential matters and active cases in preparation for prosecution.

The Department of Justice continues to fight human trafficking through investigating and prosecuting traffickers, dismantling transnational human trafficking networks, enhancing victim identification and protection of all victims of trafficking, and funding and providing domestic and international anti-trafficking programs. Information on the Department of Justice’s efforts to combat human trafficking can be found here. An update on human trafficking prosecution statistics can be found here.

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Happy National Slavery and Human Trafficking in Child Welfare Month

Federal bar codes for child welfare
 human trafficking billing databases

That is absolutely correct and I have not minced any of my words.

"You cannot prevent that which does not exist."

January is National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, the kick off of the cycle of maximizing revenue of chattel.

Children, as one shall soon see, are considered as chattel, but the United States has modernized the acquisition and procurement of the goods and services of "The Poors" as quite a compassionate Christian act.

In the United States we call it child welfare.

The Emancipation Proclamation and its subsequent federal codes and constitutional amendments, never thought to consider children when the peculiar institution was dismantled.

Children are, and have always been recognized as property, not just to the parents, but to the state which possesses the codified powers to grant custodianship and guardianship of the future of society, posterity.

When a custodian of the posterity of the nation has failed to execute the granted duties of guarding the goods which shall garner a future, societal profitable interests of becoming a productive, tax paying citizen, there is a default mechanism which kicks in as an eminent domain issue of neglect and abuse of property.

As a response to abuse and neglect, indicators of poverty, the state, in the case of children, Child Protective Services is empowered to enter a home without warrant, through ex-parte hearings to remove the goods and placed on a registry, without the ability or opportunity to face one's accuser, to be investigated without legal representation, without subpoena, based on the financial ability to provide for the required care of the good.

Once the financial argument of "failure to provide for the necessary needs of the good" is constructed and submitted to the court, without meeting any evidentary standards or validity, termination of parental rights commences, or rather the official transfer of the grant of custodianship and guardianship of the moveable good.

In this instance, the moveable good is the birth certificate, replete with the legal transfer of identity of the good, the birth certificate, or, in keeping with the theme of business, the taxable status of the good through either adoption incentives or your basic foster care job creation payments.

These actions are strictly based on pre-existing quota which are allocated as federal funding for sustainability of these privatized agencies which are exempted and excluded from taxes and public scrutiny.

What better way to keep track of property than to code children of "The Poors" into a database with the ability to predict abuse and neglect of children.

Protecting children and governing society is a business, a profitable business, which is woven into the fabric of this great nation in the name of God.

Unfortunately, no one considers the fact that children of "The Poors" have no civil rights or the protections that come with it.

In this spirit, we shall officially kick off January as the national slavery and human trafficking cycle because before you are a man, you are a child.

It must be noted that there are no 2017 Presidential Proclamations for the following annual cycle of human trafficking.

April:  Natonal Child Abuse Prevention Month

May: National Foster Care Month

November:  National Adoption Month

It must also be noted that not all children are trafficked for purposes of sex as adoption provides many more profitable opportunities.

Perhaps, the time has come to finally end the profiting from the children of "The Poors" through human trafficking, but I do have my reservations as the U.S. continues to promote this activity all over the world as collateral damage in the fight against terror, in the name of a tax-exempt, Christian God.

Presidential Proclamation  

National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, 2017

NATIONAL SLAVERY AND HUMAN TRAFFICKING PREVENTION MONTH, 2017

BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

A PROCLAMATION

Our Nation wrestled with the issue of slavery in a way that nearly tore us apart -- its fundamental notion in direct contradiction with our founding premise that we are all created equal. The courageous individuals who rejected such cruelty helped us overcome one of the most painful chapters in our history as we worked to realize the promise of equality and justice for all. But today, in too many places around the world -- including right here in the United States -- the injustice of modern slavery and human trafficking still tears at our social fabric. During National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, we resolve to shine a light on every dark corner where human trafficking still threatens the basic rights and freedoms of others.

From factories and brothels to farms and mines, millions of men, women, and children in the United States and around the world are exploited for their bodies and their labor. Whether through violence, deceit, or the promises of a better life, some of the most vulnerable populations among us -- including migrants and refugees fleeing conflict or disaster, homeless LGBT youth, Alaska Native and American Indian women and girls, and children in poverty -- are preyed upon by human traffickers. In order to rid the world of modern slavery we must do everything in our power to combat these violations of human decency.

The United States has pursued efforts to address these crimes and lift up individuals who have suffered unspeakable abuse at the hands of traffickers. Through the Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, we have joined with the private sector, faith communities, law enforcement, and advocates to coordinate efforts to prevent trafficking and protect victims. Focusing on an agenda that prioritizes victim services, the rule of law, procurement of supplies, and increasing public awareness, the Task Force has strengthened Federal efforts to end human trafficking. In 2012, I issued an Executive Order to strengthen protections against human trafficking in Federal contracting, and nearly a year ago, I signed legislation that strengthened our ability to prevent products made with forced labor, including child labor, from entering American markets.

We must address the consequences of human trafficking and work to tackle its root causes. This past fiscal year, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Justice provided more than $60 million to community-based organizations and task forces to assist human trafficking victims, and since the beginning of my Administration, we have nearly tripled the number of victims connected to services.The Department of Homeland Security has also taken steps to streamline immigration procedures for trafficking victims and ensure their regulations are consistent with existing law. And through new Victims of Crime Act regulations, Federal funds can now be used to help human trafficking victims with their housing. Through the White House Council on Women and Girls, we have worked to address the sexual abuse-to-prison pipeline that disproportionately affects those especially vulnerable to sex trafficking -- including young women and girls of color. And the U.S. Advisory Council on Human Trafficking -- comprised of 11 human trafficking survivors of diverse backgrounds and experiences -- recently released its first set of recommendations for combating human trafficking while keeping survivor perspectives in mind.

Every action we take at home, from the clothing we wear to the food we eat, is connected to what happens around the world. As a Nation, we have worked to address the problem of forced labor in our supply chains, and as individuals, we must strive to be conscientious consumers. Working with our friends and allies, we have made this issue an international priority. Just this year we used multilateral fora, including the North American Leaders Summit, the East Asia Summit, and the United Nations, to raise awareness and work with partners around the globe. In addition to urging other countries to develop and expand their anti-trafficking laws and services for victims, we are also stepping up our foreign assistance in this area. Working alongside the international community, we have seen significant increases in trafficking prosecutions and convictions, and we have made great strides in supporting victims.

As leaders in the global undertaking to end the exploitation of human beings for profit, we must always remember that our freedom is bound to the freedom of others. This month, let us find inspiration in America's progress toward justice, opportunity, and prosperity for all and reaffirm our pledge to continue fighting for human rights around the world.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2017 as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, culminating in the annual celebration of National Freedom Day on February 1. I call upon businesses, national and community organizations, families, and all Americans to recognize the vital role we must play in ending all forms of slavery and to observe this month with appropriate programs and activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this twenty-eighth day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand sixteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-first.

BARACK OBAMA

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DOJ: Human Trafficking Summit Did Not Mention Foster Care & Adoption

Hey, Jeff, did Boo Boo Barr tell you not to mention the trafficking of tiny humans?

It would be a bit awkward if you did, considering Boo Boo Barr advocates for the foreign invasion of trafficking tiny humans through those foeign corporations with those corporate parental rights over their tiny human capital.

Praise the lord.

#Time2AuditGod

Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey A. Rosen Delivers Keynote Remarks at the Department of Justice's Summit on Combating Human Trafficking

Washington, DC

 ~

Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Remarks as Prepared for Delivery

Thank you all so much for being here at this Human Trafficking Summit.  Prosecuting human trafficking and protecting and assisting victims are among our top priorities at the Department of Justice.  Today we highlighted initiatives that are moving us forward and also discussed challenges that we all, together, need to confront in order to make the next leap forward.

I am grateful to the U.S. Attorneys, FBI and DOJ personnel here today.  Your presence helps cement the message that our department has made the fight against human trafficking a top priority.  Our state, local, tribal and territorial government partners, including in law enforcement, are on the front lines.  We have your back and are in this work together with you.  I also want to thank officials from other U.S. government agencies here – today and every day – in partnership with us.  And I also thank the organizers of today’s event.

Expert survivor leaders informed the strategies we discussed today.  We salute your courage in stopping human traffickers from hurting others, even while you build your own lives and move from surviving to thriving.  Last but not least, I thank representatives from non-governmental organizations that assist survivors and work with communities to prevent human trafficking.  We are grateful for your partnership.

***

There are important takeaways from today’s summit.  First, protecting and assisting victims is important to the larger cause of justice and to the immediate needs of investigation and prosecution.  Second, human trafficking overlaps with other crimes, including drug trafficking, gang crimes, money laundering, and human smuggling.  And human trafficking is hidden in a very wide range of settings, from local and transnational commercial sex enterprises, to sweatshops and fields across the U.S., all the way to global supply chains of major multinational corporations.  We need more innovative strategies to detect it so that we can stop it.  Third, we need the availability of all law enforcement tools to adequately investigate and prosecute more human trafficking cases.  While some say we cannot prosecute our way out of this problem, the fact is that a human trafficker who remains at large can and will find other victims. 

These three points – victim protection, detection of hidden crime intersecting with other crime problems, and the value of effective investigations and prosecutions – are seen in recent cases that DOJ and its partners successfully investigated and prosecuted.

In May 2019, a federal jury found Brian Folks guilty of 13 federal felonies arising from his operation of a violent sex and drug trafficking enterprise that sold heroin and forced young, drug-addicted women to engage in commercial sex through the greater Burlington, Vermont, area.  Over almost four years, Folks targeted young, vulnerable women who were either addicted to drugs or homeless.  After recruiting victims and forcing them to perform commercial sex acts, he inflicted serious consequences if they “violated” his strict rules.  He beat the victims, often in front of others, creating a climate of fear, and he sexually assaulted them.  He also videotaped them performing explicit sex acts, and threatened to expose the videos to the public.  He, used heroin as an addictive tool, using painful withdrawal symptoms as punishment.  Folks is scheduled to be sentenced on Feb. 3, 2020, and faces between 15 years up to life imprisonment, as well as mandatory payment of restitution to the sex trafficking victims.   

Also last May, a U.S. District Court Judge sentenced a couple in Southlake, Texas, to seven years in prison each and ordered them to pay $288,620 in restitution to the victim of their crime.  A federal jury had convicted the defendants of forced labor, conspiracy to commit alien harboring, and alien harboring after a four-day trial.  The defendants arranged for the victim, then a young child in rural Guinea, to travel alone from her home in West Africa to the defendants’ home in Texas in early 2000.  The defendants forced the victim to cook, clean, and take care of their own children, some of whom were close to the victim’s age, all without pay, for the next 16 years.  This bears repeating: they managed to keep their crimes hidden for 16 years.  As a consequence of their convictions, the defendants, who are citizens of Guinea and lawful permanent residents of the United States, may lose their U.S. immigration status and be removed to Guinea pursuant to law. 

***

We have heard today from two DOJ prosecuting units whose work is at the heart of DOJ’s efforts.  They represent the DOJ’s commitment to the anti-human trafficking mission.  In response to the need for expertise from federal, state and local enforcement partners nationwide, DOJ formed the Human Trafficking Prosecution Unit, or HTPU, a specialized unit within the Civil Rights Division, in 2007.  The Unit is devoted to novel, complex, multi-jurisdictional, and international trafficking cases. Attorneys from DOJ Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, or CEOS, continue to serve as experts in child sex trafficking crimes and the online facilitation of sex trafficking. These two units provide distinct expertise in wide-ranging threats criminalized under the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 and other laws, including those prohibiting transnational crime, organized crime, and online exploitation.  Together with the 94 U.S. Attorneys’ Offices, they have prosecuted 2,302 cases, brought 4,244  traffickers to justice and secured 3,589 convictions since the TVPA was first passed.  These include cases against customers who fuel demand by purposefully seeking sex with children, and against those who facilitate this crime, such as the groundbreaking prosecution against backpage.com.

We heard today about DOJ-led enforcement initiatives spearheaded by HTPU, CEOS and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the FBI.  These include the Anti-trafficking Coordination Team Initiative, or ACTeams; the U.S.-Mexico Bilateral Human Trafficking Enforcement Initiative; and Innocence Lost task forces, among other efforts that have helped us to leap ahead.  One Phase II ACTeam District prosecuted a landmark case against 38 defendants who operated an extensive transnational sex trafficking enterprise that exploited hundreds of Thai women throughout the United States.  That same ACTeam, in Minnesota, also simultaneously charged and convicted two other forced labor cases involving foreign victims – one in a restaurant and another in domestic servitude.  Another initiative was Operation Independence Day, spearheaded by the FBI last summer to identify and arrest sex traffickers and recover child victims.  The month-long initiative relied on more than 400 law enforcement agencies around the country. In all, 103 juveniles were identified or recovered and 67 suspected traffickers were arrested. The sweep resulted in 60 new federal investigations.

Since the Trafficking Victims Protection Act passed, the numbers of cases charged and defendants convicted have increased exponentially. These cases have included complex cases involving multiple victims; extensive criminal enterprises that operated for years across multiple jurisdictions; labor trafficking cases across a range of work sectors; and sex trafficking cases affecting both adult and child victims.

***

The year 2020 marks the twenty-year anniversary of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000.  The TVPA responded to the fact that the ability of one person to control, exploit, abuse and profit from another person’s labor and commercial sex acts has not yet been fully eradicated.  And it needs to be.

This is why prosecuting human traffickers, and protecting vulnerable victims, are among our top priorities.  The Department of Justice is at the forefront of this fight but we would not be able to make progress without all of you.  We would not make a dent without our investigative partners.  We would not make a dent without governmental and non-governmental human services agencies that are helping traumatized victims.  We would not make a dent without those working to prevent this crime from happening in the first place.  We have so much left to do.  But this summit is also a time to pause and celebrate all that we have done together in the two decades since the Trafficking Victims Protection Act was enacted.  I want to personally thank each of you that has been involved in this herculean effort.

Today, we recommit to ending human trafficking.  Our work continues.  Thank you. 

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Michigan Helps Foster Care Survivors

The majority of human trafficking victims are foster children.

Michigan Department of Human Services, partners explain programs that meet needs of human trafficking survivors Contact:  Edward Woods III, Office of Communications director 517-373-7394

Dec. 3, 2010 OKEMOS, Mich - Representatives from the Michigan Department of Human Services and its partners gathered together today to bring awareness to the second-largest international crime - human trafficking - and highlight a network of services that meet the physical, emotional and mental health needs of victims, Director Ismael Ahmed said. "Human trafficking is second only to drug and arms smuggling. It's here in Michigan and it's very real," Ahmed said. "So real that people who work in this field call it ‘modern-day slavery.' "These are extremely strong words from people who have a strong commitment to meet the physical, emotional and mental health needs of these victims, including children." The U.S. government estimates that 14,500 to 17,500 young adults and minors are brought into the country each year to be used as unpaid labor or in the sex trade. The U.S. Department of Justice reports that human trafficking has occurred in every state in the nation, including Michigan. The Michigan Women's Foundation, for example, released a report in August that found that the number of young girls who are sexually exploited has been increasing. "Human trafficking, also known as modern-day slavery, exists in Michigan," said Bridgette Carr, attorney, law professor and human trafficking clinic director at the University of Michigan. "Victims have been found in small towns and big cities, in hotels, restaurants and hair salons. We must first acknowledge the reality of human trafficking within our state and then work together to identify and rescue victims." There are currently 361 unaccompanied refugee minors - children who are here without a parent or guardian - in the DHS refugee foster care program. Youth are placed in Michigan by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Refugee Settlement. Michigan has the largest program in the country for refugee minors who are here without a parent or guardian. About 35 of those children currently in the program were victims of human trafficking. DHS has provided services to about 80 child victims of human trafficking over the past three years. DHS works with its private agency partners to make sure these children are safely placed in foster care. Once in foster care, their psychological and physical needs are assessed and they are provided linguistically and culturally sensitive services, medical care and are enrolled in school. "Michigan receives many victims because we have an extensive network of partners and services available to help these youth," said Al Horn, director of DHS Refugee Services. "The agencies we work with are excellent, never shying away from a traumatic case." A strong partnership is vital to help victims, said Jane White, founder of the Michigan Human Trafficking Task Force.   "Most human trafficking victims do not self-identify as victims nor are they aware help is available," White said. "Collaboration must occur between law enforcement and victim services providers in order to prevent, prosecute and rescue victims." Miss Michigan 2010 Katie Lynn LaRoche has made human trafficking her platform to spread awareness. "Throughout my year and beyond, I will be working with the Michigan Human Trafficking Task Force, our state legislators and my nonprofit organization, One World One Future, to do everything in my power to help the victims of this crime," said LaRoche, who is a graduate student at Michigan State University. "By focusing on community awareness, policy and the funding of much-needed shelters and services, I truly believe we can shine a light so bright that this world of darkness will simply cease to exist," she added.