[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 16 (Tuesday, January 28, 2014)]
[Senate]
[Page S529]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

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  SENATE RESOLUTION 340--EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF THE SENATE THAT ALL 
 NECESSARY MEASURES SHOULD BE TAKEN TO PROTECT CHILDREN IN THE UNITED 
  STATES FROM HUMAN TRAFFICKING, ESPECIALLY DURING THE UPCOMING SUPER 
    BOWL, AN EVENT AROUND WHICH MANY CHILDREN ARE TRAFFICKED FOR SEX

  Mr. BLUMENTHAL (for himself, Mr. Portman, and Mr. Booker) submitted 
the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
Judiciary:

                              S. Res. 340

       Whereas according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, 
     an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 children in the United States 
     are at risk of commercial sexual exploitation;
       Whereas the average age of victims at the time of their 
     entry into sex trafficking is between just 12 and 14 years 
     old;
       Whereas sex trafficking victims are often abducted or lured 
     into running away by traffickers;
       Whereas sex trafficking victims are routinely raped and 
     beaten, and sometimes even branded;
       Whereas the vast majority of child victims of sex 
     trafficking are children from the foster care system, where 
     they have often been failed by the officials entrusted to 
     protect them;
       Whereas instances of sex trafficking occur in every state, 
     and tens of thousands of men, women, and children are brought 
     to the United States every year and exploited for sex and 
     labor by traffickers;
       Whereas it is widely recognized that the beloved American 
     tradition of the Super Bowl, an event that draws tens of 
     thousands of fans to the host city, like other major 
     recreational events, leads to a surge in the sex trafficking 
     of underage girls and boys in the host city; and
       Whereas traffickers aggressively advertise and sell sex 
     trafficking victims on websites like Backpage.com during the 
     Super Bowl in order to meet the increased demand from 
     visitors to the host city: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) law enforcement officers, the juvenile justice system, 
     social services, and the public should recognize and treat 
     all children being trafficked for sex as victims of human 
     trafficking each and every day of the year; and
       (2) Federal and State law enforcement agencies should take 
     all necessary measures to protect children in the United 
     States from harm, including arresting and prosecuting both 
     traffickers and buyers of children for sex in accordance with 
     the applicable State and Federal laws against child abuse, 
     statutory rape, and human trafficking, particularly during 
     the festivities surrounding Super Bowl XLVIII.

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