2018 Human Trafficking Report | United States

The following reports come from the 2018 Trafficking in Human Persons Report

The United States is a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, transgender individuals, and children—both U.S. citizens and foreign nationals—subjected to sex trafficking and forced labor. Trafficking occurs in both legal and illicit industries, including in commercial sex, hospitality, traveling sales crews, agriculture, janitorial services, construction, restaurants, care for persons with disabilities, salon services, massage parlors, fairs and carnivals, peddling and begging, drug smuggling and distribution, and child care and domestic work. Individuals who entered the United States with and without legal status have been identified as trafficking victims. Government officials, companies, and NGOs have continued to express concern about the risk of human trafficking in global supply chains, including in federal contracts. 

Victims originate from almost every region of the world; the top three countries of origin of federally identified victims in FY 2017 were the United States, Mexico, and Honduras. Populations in the United States vulnerable to human trafficking include: children in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems; runaway and homeless youth; unaccompanied children; American Indians and Alaska Natives; migrant laborers, including undocumented workers and participants in visa programs for temporary workers; foreign national domestic workers in diplomatic households; persons with limited English proficiency; persons with low literacy; persons with disabilities; LGBTI individuals; and participants in court-ordered substance use diversion programs. NGOs noted an increase in the use of technology to recruit and advertise victims of human trafficking.

The government continued to demonstrate serious and sustained efforts by investigating and prosecuting both sex and labor trafficking, and increasing the number of prosecutions and convictions; providing services to a greater number of trafficking victims; providing various types of immigration relief for foreign national victims; continuing engagement with survivors to improve programs and policies on human trafficking; enhancing outreach initiatives through the development of materials for states and territories; and continuing funding for an NGO operated national hotline and referral service that added text and online chat capabilities to improve accessibility. Although the government meets the minimum standards, anti-trafficking advocates continued to report that victim services were not always provided equitably, urging an increase in resources for, and equitable access to, comprehensive services across the country. Advocates reported a lack of sustained effort to address labor trafficking compared to sex trafficking, and also reported continued instances of state and local officials detaining or prosecuting trafficking victims for criminal activity related to their trafficking victimization.

In FY 2017, DHS reported opening 833 investigations possibly involving human trafficking, a decrease from 1,029 in FY 2016. DOJ formally opened 782 human trafficking investigations, a decrease from 843 in FY 2016. (The FY 2016 number (843) represents a correction to the number cited last year (1,800), which in fact represented the number of pending cases rather than formally opened investigations.) DOS reported opening 169 human trafficking-related cases worldwide during FY 2017, a decrease from 288 in FY 2016. The Department of Defense (DoD) reported investigating 11 human trafficking related cases involving U.S. military personnel compared to 13 in FY 2016. DOJ initiated a total of 282 federal human trafficking prosecutions in FY 2017, an increase from 241 in FY 2016, and charged 553 defendants compared to 531 in FY 2016. Of these prosecutions, 266 involved predominantly sex trafficking and 16 involved predominantly labor trafficking, although some involved both. DOJ and DHS continued to partner with Mexican law enforcement counterparts to dismantle human trafficking networks operating across the U.S.-Mexico border. Through this collaboration, DOJ secured convictions against eight members of a transnational organized criminal sex trafficking enterprise. During FY 2017, DOJ secured convictions against 499 traffickers, an increase from 439 convictions in FY 2016. Of these, 471 involved predominantly sex trafficking and 28 involved predominantly labor trafficking, although several involved both.

The U.S. government maintained protection efforts and continued to fund victim assistance for trafficking victims. The funding level decreased slightly from the previous year, although the number of victims served significantly increased. The government had formal procedures to guide officials in victim identification and referral to service providers; funded several federal tip lines, including an NGO-operated national hotline and referral service; and funded task forces and NGOs that provided trafficking-specific victim services. Comprehensive victim assistance funded by the federal government includes case management and referrals for medical and dental care, mental health and substance use disorder treatment, sustenance and shelter, translation and interpretation services, immigration and legal assistance, employment and training, transportation assistance, and other services.

The U.S. government continued to provide training to federal, state, local, and tribal officials, as well as to NGO service providers and health and human service providers to encourage more consistent application of victim-centered and trauma informed approaches in all phases of victim identification, assistance, recovery, and participation in the criminal justice process. Advocates called for specialized training for law enforcement and service providers on the linkage between substance use and human trafficking, including the use of drugs to coerce victims. DOJ included training on the linkage between the manipulation of drug addiction and coercion in its trainings on human trafficking provided to federal, state, and local law enforcement officials.

The U.S. government maintained efforts to prevent trafficking. Federal agencies conducted numerous educational and training activities for their own personnel, including law enforcement and acquisition professionals, and field office staff. The government continued public outreach measures on the causes and consequences of human trafficking and continued efforts to increase victim identification among vulnerable populations and sectors and improve prevention efforts. HHS continued to fund an NGO to operate the national human trafficking hotline, and added text and online chat capabilities to improve accessibility. In FY 2017, the hotline received 62,835 calls from across the United States and U.S. territories, identified 8,759 human trafficking cases, and provided resources and referrals to 10,615 victims. The hotline also received information on 4,863 potential traffickers and 1,698 businesses facilitating human trafficking. More than 2,000 individuals who identified as victims of trafficking directly called the hotline seeking help.  In 2017, DHS continued its nationwide human trafficking awareness Blue Campaign and, with input from trafficking survivors and other partners, developed new products, including a new public service announcement focused on labor trafficking.

LCWR Calls for the Welcome and Humane Treatment of Arriving Migrants

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) is deeply troubled by President Trump’s continued denigration of those fleeing untenable situations in their home countries. These are mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers who have been forced from their homes by unimaginable violence and insecurity; runaway corruption; and droughts and floods linked to climate change. These are women and girls fleeing intolerable situations of domestic violence. These are young men and women who have no access to quality education and no hope of economic opportunity.

These are courageous people who have rejected cultures of corruption and exploitation. They are traveling the same road trod by our forbearers who fled tyranny and violence in search of the American dream. They are people of hope and promise who only want the opportunity to contribute their toil and talent to this nation.

We reject the president’s rhetoric of fear and policy of division that poisons our politics. We choose instead to embrace a dream for America that is filled with hope for a nation united in service of the common good. We stand with Pope Francis who calls us to “promote the dignity of all our brothers and sisters, particularly the poor and the excluded of society, those who are abandoned, immigrants and those who suffer violence and human trafficking.”

We urge the administration to manage refugee arrivals humanely and in a manner that respects their dignity and rights under US and international law and to:

• Allow migrants to approach our border and ask for protection in the United States and to be admitted for processing in a timely manner. 
• Ensure that asylum seekers have access to legal counsel and receive a fair resolution of their claim.
• Guarantee that parents and children stay together after they are apprehended. Holding families indefinitely in detention or detaining parents while releasing their children violates the values of this nation and the standards set forth in the Flores settlement.
• Eschew detention of those awaiting adjudication of their asylum petitions in favor of alternatives that are more humane and more cost efficient.
• Direct Homeland Security to cooperate with faith-based and humanitarian organizations who are prepared to assist asylum-seekers.

The United States has a long and proud history of welcoming immigrants and sheltering refugees. Women religious have been blessed to be able to accompany and serve migrant communities across this country for a very long time. We will continue to welcome them as our national history demands and our faith requires.

Testimony from Serving Migrants in El Paso by Sr. Ceci Zavala CCVI

My experience at the shelter of El Paso was very hard because of the migrants’ suffering and struggles.  Most of the migrants (mother and child or father and child) arrived without dignity because the conditions of their journey or their time at the detention center made them to lose it.

It was also a joy to see them recover their dignity at the time they left the shelter.  That is why, the service at the shelter is simple HUMANITARIAN help.

I also enjoyed the team work of many, many, many volunteers. The donations (clothes, food, time) of many people gave me back HOPE; hope in the good will of people, hope that other world is possible…

By Sr. Ceci Zavala, CCVI 

Sr. Ceci Zavala CCVI

Sutherland Springs Vigil: Examining the Idolatry of Guns

Twenty-six people were killed and twenty others wounded in the First Baptist Church at the Sunday Service on November 5, 2017 in a small town Sutherland Springs, not far from San Antonio, Texas. In the light of this terrible tragedy MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA held a Vigil service in downtown San Antonio in front of Madison Square Presbyterian Church. They invited Sister Martha Ann Kirk, CCVI, to speak.  

 

Photo by Lisa Uribe

These are some of the remarks that were shared: 

I have been around guns all my life. I grew up in south Texas, we have been farming and ranching since 1875. You never know when a rattle snake might come into the yard. Those deer are bad getting into good pasture land---and venison makes such good sausage and jerky. I’ve always been around guns, but guns are tools, like lawn mowers. My friend had her finger cut off by a lawn mower. You have to careful with all tools. Now the guns were in a high closet carefully hidden away. We knew that the guns were just tools and ones that needed to be handled very carefully.

How did we get to this point in our society that the guns are as looked to as the “saviors.” How did the tools get to be the idols that we worship? This change in attitude seems to have started during the presidency of General Ike Eisenhower. He had used guns in war, but when he left the presidency, he issued a warning that those who made guns, the military industrial complex were starting to dictate to the people that weapons would save us, that we must have more weapons. He spoke strongly of the great danger of letting the makers of weapons, the makers of guns dictate. People educated in democracy, human rights, diplomacy, and human relationships need to work for the common good. They need to think and not be puppets of the weapons manufacturers.

Let us be educated people and sensible people. When an alcoholic goes to an AA meeting, he/she must stand and say their name; for example: "I am Jane Doe and I am an alcoholic. I want to begin the process of rehabilitation." All of us as citizens must stand and say, "I am Martha Ann Kirk, I am a citizen of the United States, my nation has a violent national culture of which I am a part. I must recognize I am part of the problem and I am here to begin the journey to change our violent national culture."

Why is the US so violent? What can be controlled and not controlled? Though things will never be perfect, what can get better? Is there some sudden tendency to be violent when one crosses from Canada down into the US? Does the US have such bad racism that things are violent? Do we have more mentally ill people? Research has shown that the US is not extraordinary in those things.

“The only variable that can explain the high rate of mass shootings in America is its astronomical number of guns. . .The top-line numbers suggest a correlation that, on further investigation, grows only clearer Americans make up about 4.4 percent of the global population but own 42 percent of the world’s guns. From 1966 to 2012, 31 percent of the gunmen in mass shootings worldwide were American, according to a 2015 study by Adam Lankford, a professor at the University of Alabama.

Adjusted for population, only Yemen has a higher rate of mass shootings among countries with more than 10 million people — a distinction Mr. Lankford urged to avoid outliers. Yemen has the world’s second-highest rate of gun ownership after the United States. Worldwide, Mr. Lankford found, a country’s rate of gun ownership correlated with the odds it would experience a mass shooting.” (From “What Explains U.S. Mass Shootings?)

Guns do not kill people. People kill people BUT EASY ACCESS TO GUNS MAKES IT FASTER AND EASIER TO KILL PEOPLE. Global research indicates that, not a tendency to violence, but easy access to guns was the predictor of mass shootings.

While the US could and should do better providing care for the mentally ill,

“A 2015 study estimated that only 4 percent of American gun deaths could be attributed to mental health issues.  America’s gun homicide rate was 33 per million people in 2009, far exceeding the average among developed countries. In Canada and Britain, it was 5 per million and 0.7 per million, respectively, which also corresponds with differences in gun ownership. American crime is simply more lethal. . . A New Yorker is just as likely to be robbed as a Londoner, for instance, but the New Yorker is 54 times more likely to be killed in the process.” (“What Explains”)

“More gun ownership corresponds with more gun murders across virtually every axis: among developed countries, among American states, among American towns and cities and when controlling for crime rates. And gun control legislation tends to reduce gun murders, according to a recent analysis of 130 studies from 10 countries. . . The United States also has some of the world’s weakest controls over who may buy a gun and what sorts of guns may be owned.

“After Britain had a mass shooting in 1987, the country instituted strict gun control laws. So did Australia after a 1996 incident. But the United States has repeatedly faced the same calculus and determined that relatively unregulated gun ownership is worth the cost to society.

“In retrospect Sandy Hook marked the end of the US gun control debate,” Dan Hodges, a British journalist, wrote in a post on Twitter two years ago, referring to the 2012 attack that killed 20 young students at an elementary school in Connecticut. “Once America decided killing children was bearable, it was over.” (“What explains”)

Abusers’ access to guns increases the risk of intimate partner homicide as much as fivefold, according to a study in the Annals of Internal Medicine. (“Mass Shootings”)

Realize your power. We do not have to live in service to the weapons industry, the gun manufacturers, the NRA, we have freedom of speech, we can write letters to the editor, we can do research. We can elect sensible legislators.

WE do not have to worship guns as the saviors.

(More detail and background can be found in these sources used for this talk:

“What Explains U.S. Mass Shootings?International Comparisons Suggest an Answer. The Interpreter” By MAX FISHER and JOSH KELLER, New York Times, Nov. 7, 2017. 

“Mass Shootings Don’t Haveto Be Inevitable”  By THE EDITORIAL BOARD, New York Times, NOV. 6, 2017   

 “Demythologize the Gun,” Commonweal, By John Gehring, November 7, 2017. 

Take Action to Oppose the Trump Tax Plan

One way to take action this week to support the poor in the United States, is to let your congressional representatives and senators know that you oppose the tax plan proposed by President Trump and the GOP which they are voting on this week.  If this tax plan goes through, it will cut taxes for the most wealthy individuals and corporations, while raising taxes for some middle class families and weakening programs like Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security down the line.  This tax plan will only further the huge wealth gap that exists, and potentially push even more families into poverty with fewer social services to help them meet their basic needs. 

You can contact your Senators and Representatives 

by calling this number: 202-224-3121

Or search for their specific contact information: 
For Senators click HERE and for Representatives click HERE

Here is a sample script to use:

Hello! My name is [___] and I’m calling from [part of state]. I’m calling to let [Congressman / Senator __] know that I strongly oppose the tax bill that the Ways and Means Committee reported out on November 9. This tax bill will give massive cuts to the wealthy, paid for by forcing deep cuts to critical programs like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security down the line.  As a person of faith, I believe that we have a responsibility to protect the dignity inherent in every person and ensure that their basic needs are met.  This tax bill will harm the most vulnerable in our country.  I am asking the [Congressman / Senator] to vote against this tax bill in order to protect the common good.  Thank you.  

If you would like to read more about the proposed tax cuts and how they benefit wealthy individuals, click HERE.  

And if you would like to read more about how the proposed tax cuts will benefit wealthy corporations, click HERE.  

LCWR Statement on Recent Executive Orders

LCWR is Deeply Concerned about Executive Orders

The Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) is deeply disturbed by many of President Trump’s recent executive orders. His misplaced priorities and denigration of the values that form the bedrock of this nation, threaten us all.

We are deeply concerned about the administration’s executive orders on immigration and refugee resettlement which serve only to threaten border communities, force our immigrant community members further into the shadows, and endanger those fleeing violence. These misguided executive orders do nothing to make anyone more secure and may well have the opposite effect.

Spending billions of dollars on an unnecessary and ineffective wall and further militarizing the border will divert funding from health, education, and social programs and will not make America safe again. In fact, such action threatens the health and well-being of border communities, the environment, and those seeking refuge in our country. President Trump’s orders, if enacted, will tear families apart, challenge our already stressed immigration courts, and deny those fleeing persecution and violence their right to asylum; all at enormous cost to our treasure and our souls.

The president’s attempt to enhance public safety in the interior by cutting federal funding to sanctuary cities and counties will have the opposite effect. It challenges local authority and threatens to destroy the hard won trust of the immigrant community. The order eviscerates prosecutorial discretion and places every undocumented person in the country in danger of immediate deportation.

Finally, we are appalled by President Trump’s order which bans residents of seven Muslim majority countries from entering the U.S. for 90 days, suspends refugee resettlement entirely for four months, and bars resettlement of Syrian refugees indefinitely. This is unconscionable in the face of the unprecedented global refugee crisis. More than 61 million people have been displaced from their homes, more than at any time since World War II. Some 21 million are refugees; most are children who have been forced from their homes by unthinkable violence. The Trump administration has forced all of us to turn our backs on families who are literally running for their lives.

This nation has a long history of welcoming immigrants and sheltering refugees. Women religious have been blessed to be able to accompany and serve immigrant and refugee communities across this country for a very long time. Catholic sisters remain committed to welcoming refugees who come to this country after passing through the U.S. government’s already rigorous screening processes. Halting or undermining the U.S. refugee resettlement program leaves vulnerable refugees, including women and children fleeing violence, in extreme danger and diminishes us all.

We strongly object to President Trump’s attempts to limit our ability to heed God’s call to welcome the stranger (Mt. 25:35) and to care for those most in need (Mt 25:40) and we are particularly concerned about rules and regulations that deny access to refugees because of their religion, race, or nationality. It is a violation of our faith and every norm of humanity.

We vow to continue to welcome refugees and minister to immigrants. LCWR and its members will continue to press for restoration of refugee resettlement, relief for families, an end to needless deportations, and the closure of all family detention centers. We will continue to advocate for compassionate, bipartisan legislation that fixes our broken immigration system. We will continue to stand in solidarity with families, regardless of immigration status, who labor daily to provide safety and security for their children.

LCWR is an association of leaders of congregations of Catholic women religious in the United States. The conference has nearly 1300 members, who represent more than 38,800 women religious in the United States. Founded in 1956, LCWR assists its members to collaboratively carry out their service of leadership to further the mission of the Gospel in today’s world.

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We urge you to share the statement and publish your own statements, letters to the editor, and opinion pieces.

There are many resources that can help you craft a letter or an opinion piece. Here are just a few that you might find helpful.

• Information about how to place an op-ed or letter to the editor in the top 100+ newspapers in the United States is available from the Communications Consortium Media Center.
• Helpful hints for writing a Letter to the Editor are available from:
•  NETWORK Catholic Social Justice Lobby
•  Reclaim Democracy
• Advice on writing an OP-ED article is available from
• Smith College's News Office
• Harvard Kennedy School Communications Program

We have all been encouraged by the many people, including many women religious, who have participated in marches and vigils and protests across this country. Your promise of welcome and shouts for justice are appreciated. Thank you for your continued commitment to stand up and speak out.

 

Our members of Congress and elected leaders at every level need to be challenged to do what is right and just. We know they listen carefully to the voices of their constituents. Please stand with us as we stand with refugees and immigrants. Call your members of Congress, (202) 224-3121and tell them that you are constituent, a Catholic sister, and that you will stand with refugees and immigrants of every faith. Ask him/her to stand with you and for our American values which demand that we be an open, inclusive, welcoming community.

LCWR and CMSM Open Letter to President Donald Trump

SILVER SPRING (January 18, 2017). The Presidents of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and the Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM) representing the elected leaders of more than 55,000 Catholic religious sisters, brothers, and priests sent a letter to President-Elect Donald Trump reminding him of the gift and responsibility of leadership.

LCWR President, Mary Pellegrino, CSJ and CMSM President, Brian Terry, SA write out of their concern for the critical needs facing the country and the world today, and the call to respond through the service of leadership.

They express deep concerns about the “fractures and divisions” that “threaten the well-being and freedom of all Americans and those who have fled in fear to our shores and borders.” They urge all of us to commit to “respectful and dignified civil discourse.”

Sister Mary and Father Brian invite President-Elect Trump and his administration to join them in promoting the “common good” and  they renew their own commitment to “actively advocate against promoting the privilege of some over the needs of others and turning away from our shores those who are in need.”

They make this commitment in the context of the Holy Father’s message for the World Day of Peace and they urge President-Elect Trump “to join us in accepting Pope Francis’ challenge to political and religious leaders to apply the Beatitudes in the exercise of our respective responsibilities. ‘It is a challenge,’ the pope writes, ‘to build up society, communities and businesses by acting as peacemakers. It is to show mercy by refusing to discard people, harm the environment, or seek to win at any cost.’”

 The letter to President-Elect Trump reads as follows:

The gift of leadership is given to American leaders by the “Right of the People.” Leadership brings with it a great joy and a great responsibility.

We serve as Presidents of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) and the Conference of Major Superiors of Men (CMSM), respectively.  Together we represent the elected leaders of 38,800 Catholic Sisters and 17,000 Catholic Brothers and religious priests who live and minister throughout the United States.  As elected leaders we know and share with you both the joy and the burden of this service. 

We and the members of our communities seek to be instruments of the reconciliation our people urgently need. In our poverty of spirit, we rely on the help of God and the example of Jesus, the one who came to serve us all. Since before the founding of our nation and often during its darkest hours, Catholic Sisters, Brothers and religious priests, ourselves often immigrants, have served the needs of both civic leaders and those on the outskirts of influence. We have chosen to live with those who were sick, dying or living in poverty. Our schools, hospitals and social services helped to build, shape and humanize American society by healing, educating and serving those in need regardless of ethnicity, religion, means or circumstance. Then and now, we strive to bring healing, hope and consolation in the face of sadness and despair.

As religious leaders, we are committed to contemplative prayer which compels us to take a long, loving look at what is real, to name its truth and to respond lovingly to its call through our service and leadership. We write today from this contemplative space, immersed in the Gospel call for all of us to grow in unity, peace, dialogue, and ultimately, conversion to the Reign of God. 

We are deeply concerned by the fractures and divisions—seen so clearly during this past election season—which continue to threaten the well-being and freedom of all Americans and those who have fled in fear to our shores and borders. We remember how we struggled at our country’s very foundation as strangers and pilgrims in this land. From this humble beginning, we celebrate how the United States of America has often been a beacon of hope and unity to a broken world. We rejoice in how our diversity has been our strength. America is at its best when its people come together to overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles with ingenuity and creativity even going so far as to courageously risk their lives to transform conflict into peace. 

Jesus Christ’s Gospel of Love is the charter that moves us to action. In order to be “one nation under God,” we believe we are all called to live as true ambassadors of reconciliation, in all places and all times, so “that all may be one” (John 17:21).  We believe that we need a President who transcends party politics and personal agendas in order to heal deep divisions that threaten the stability of our nation.  We strongly believe that we all need to be dedicated to respectful and dignified civil discourse with those whose positions differ from our own. 

We pledge our own efforts toward this end. 

To the extent that the new administration seeks to promote the common good through its policies, practices and people, we stand ready to collaborate. We will actively work for the preservation of the dignity of all whose home is here in America and to welcome those who come to our shores in search of safety, freedom and a life worthy of their dignity. We will also actively advocate against promoting the privilege of some over the needs of others and turning away from our shores those who are in need. Together, we have the opportunity to advocate for and build a just, merciful and humane society worthy of the dignity of all. 

We invite you to join us in our constant prayer and hope that God might act in our hearts and through our actions as leaders.  We urge you to join us in accepting Pope Francis’ challenge to political and religious leaders to apply the Beatitudes in the exercise of our respective responsibilities.  (Pope Francis, World Day of Peace Message, January 1, 2017)  “It is a challenge,” he writes, “to build up society, communities and businesses by acting as peacemakers.  It is to show mercy by refusing to discard people, harm the environment, or seek to win at any cost.”

We pledge the service of our leadership and urge you to pledge yours toward this great endeavor of building a truly good and just society. 

We congratulate you on your inauguration and assure you of our prayers as you begin your service as President of the United States.

Original article published on LCWR website

Secretary Kerry's Statement on National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness

John Kerry, Secretary of State

Washington D.C. 

January 11, 2017

Congress designated January 11 as the National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness in 2007, targeting a problem with an estimated 20 million victims in every corner of the world.

Human trafficking continues today to be a threat to freedom and stability, undermining the rule of law, scarring communities, and degrading the rights of individuals.

We must not waver in our resolve to combat this crime.

The State Department's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons has led the United States' global engagement against human trafficking, and with our embassies and consulates, collaborates with foreign government and nongovernmental partners to continue to raise awareness of this issue and press for change around the world.

In India, the U.S. Mission collaborated with a local NGO and state and local governments to develop a grassroots awareness-raising program and launch an anti-trafficking caravan, staffed by survivors of human trafficking, that traveled through the states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Odisha and reached some one million people.

The U.S. government has partnered with the Mexican government to host a series of events, trainings, and meetings to raise awareness, build capacity, and discuss progress and challenges in combating trafficking in persons.

As the Chair of the President's Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, I have worked closely with our federal partners to do more to bring justice to victims and empower survivors to successfully rebuild their lives.

I have also found strong partners in Congress, where many Members from both parties are leaders on this important issue.

Just last month, following a long collaboration with congressional partners, the President signed into law a provision in the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 that authorizes State Department funding to be used for grants that support transformational programs to reduce the prevalence of modern slavery.

(original article posted HERE)

Presidential Proclamation: National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month

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

Join in Prayerful Solidarity during the Border Convergence

Congregations of Women Religious and Other Organizations are Invited to join Giving Voice Sisters in Prayerful Solidarity with the Border Convergence October 7-10 and All Catholic Sisters Attending the Border Convergence in Nogales are invited to the “Encuentro de Hermanas” on Oct 8th. 

Interested congregations of women religious, Church groups, faith communities, and other concerned organizations are invited to join members of Giving Voice in prayerful solidarity with the SOAW Border Convergence in Nogales, Arizona and Nogales, Mexico the weekend of October 7-10th, 2016. Giving Voice has prepared a prayer service and media kit that can be printed out and used as it is or tweaked for your setting and group. In order for a copy of the prayer service and media kit to be emailed to you, please sign up HERE. 

Participants are encouraged to connect with the network of groups praying in solidarity with the border convergence by promoting and sharing their prayer service on social media. Groups are encouraged to post videos and photos of their prayer service on Facebook Live, Twitter, Instagram and other social media channels using the hashtags/caption: We pray with #GivingVoice in solidarity with the #ConvergenceAtTheBorder and adding the name of their group and location.

Catholic sisters who will be attending the SOAW Border Convergence in Nogales are welcome to join Giving Voice for "Encuentro de Hermanas" on Saturday, October 8th, 2016 from 2:00-3:30 at the Kino Border Initiative "Comedor," Bulevar Luis Donaldo Colosio 55, Nogales, Mexico. Sisters will share about ministers, discuss how they might collaborate further around immigration issues and pray together. An optional tour of the Kino Border Initiative will follow the gathering. It is suggested that Sisters at the Border Convergence who attend the Encuentro de Hermanas bring their passports and cross into Mexico by foot on Saturday morning for the Rally at the Border Wall then eat lunch on the Mexican side of the border before coming to the encuentro. For more information about the Encuentro de Hermanas contact Sister Tracy Kemme, SC at tracykemme@gmail.com.

Giving Voice is an inter-congregational peer-led organization for women religious under the age of 50. Giving Voice sisters are from several different congregations of women religious throughout North America. These “young nuns” are often times the youngest members of their religious orders. Members center their lives on living the Gospel and live communally while being committed to service and social justice. Many of the sisters serve in the trenches with immigrants and refugees most impacted by the outdated and unjust policies.

The goals of the Border Convergence program are to expose the root causes of immigration, end the U.S. intervention in the Americas, resist border militarization, and engage in non-violent direct action, education, art and culture. The Convergence is sponsored by School of Americas Watch (SOAW), the organization that has previously hosted November protests at the Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation (WHINSEC), a combat training school for Latin American soldiers, located at Fort Benning, Georgia. 

Voices at the Border to join SOA Watch border action Oct 7-10th

The original pilgrimage that Voices at the Border planned for September 29 - October 2, 2016 has been rescheduled to join forces with the SOA Watch Encuentro at the Border October 7 - 10, 2016.  Voices at the Border is an initiative of Giving Voice, an organization for younger women religious.  They are still planning what their exact participation will look like, but we ask you to keep these women and all who will be attending the Encuentro at the Border in your thoughts and prayers in the weeks to come and especially Oct 7-10th.  

During this weekend of October 7-10, 2016, activists throughout the U.S. and Mexico will gather on both sides of the US/Mexico border in the lead-up to the November elections. 

Their goal is to: 

• highlight US intervention in Latin America as one of the root causes of migration
• stage protests, cultural events, and nonviolent direct action against racism, xenophobia and US militarization at home and abroad.

To make the Convergence at the Border a success, we need you to mobilize your communities to take a stand for justice and against militarization from October 7-10, 2016 at the border wall in Nogales, Sonora / Arizona. The convergence will include workshops and events on both sides of the U.S./ Mexico border, as well as art, music, and resistance. To learn more about why SOA Watch is moving from the gates of Fort Benning to the border, read the article From the School of the Americas to the Border, watch the documentary The Empire’s War on the Border, and share the mobilizing video with your friends on twitter and facebook.

We need to build grassroots power to change our culture and challenge the racist status quo, and we need to take action: http://SOAW.org/border