[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 12]
[Senate]
[Page 17050]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              NATIONAL DAY OF HUMAN TRAFFICKING AWARENESS

  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate now 
proceed to the consideration of a concurrent resolution submitted 
earlier today.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the concurrent 
resolution by title.
  The bill clerk read as follows:

       A concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 40) supporting the 
     goals and ideals of observing the National Day of Human 
     Trafficking Awareness on January 11 of each year to raise 
     awareness of and opposition to human trafficking.

  There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the 
concurrent resolution.
  Mr. REID. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the concurrent 
resolution be agreed to, the preamble be agreed to, and the motion to 
reconsider be laid upon the table; that any statements in the Record.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  The concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 40) was agreed to.
  The preamble was agreed to.
  The concurrent resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:

                            S. Con. Res. 40

       Whereas the United States has a tradition of advancing 
     fundamental human rights;
       Whereas because the people of the United States remain 
     committed to protecting individual freedom, there is a 
     national imperative to eliminate human trafficking, including 
     early or forced marriage, commercial sexual exploitation, 
     forced labor, labor obtained through debt bondage, 
     involuntary servitude, slavery, and slavery by descent;
       Whereas to combat human trafficking in the United States 
     and globally, the people of the United States and the Federal 
     Government, including local and State governments, must be 
     aware of the realities of human trafficking and must be 
     dedicated to stopping this contemporary manifestation of 
     slavery;
       Whereas beyond all differences of race, creed, or political 
     persuasion, the people of the United States face national 
     threats together and refuse to let human trafficking exist in 
     the United States and around the world;
       Whereas the United States should actively oppose all 
     individuals, groups, organizations, and nations who support, 
     advance, or commit acts of human trafficking;
       Whereas the United States must also work to end human 
     trafficking around the world through education;
       Whereas victims of human trafficking need support in order 
     to escape and to recover from the physical, mental, 
     emotional, and spiritual trauma associated with their 
     victimization;
       Whereas human traffickers use many physical and 
     psychological techniques to control their victims, including 
     the use of violence or threats of violence against the victim 
     or the victim's family, isolation from the public, isolation 
     from the victim's family and religious or ethnic communities, 
     language and cultural barriers, shame, control of the 
     victim's possessions, confiscation of passports and other 
     identification documents, and threats of arrest, deportation, 
     or imprisonment if the victim attempts to reach out for 
     assistance or to leave;
       Whereas although laws to prosecute perpetrators of human 
     trafficking and to assist and protect victims of human 
     trafficking have been enacted in the United States, awareness 
     of the issues surrounding human trafficking by those people 
     most likely to come into contact with victims is essential 
     for effective enforcement because the techniques that 
     traffickers use to keep their victims enslaved severely limit 
     self-reporting; and
       Whereas the effort by individuals, businesses, 
     organizations, and governing bodies to promote the observance 
     of the National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness on January 
     11 of each year represents one of the many examples of the 
     ongoing commitment in the United States to raise awareness of 
     and to actively oppose human trafficking: Now, therefore, be 
     it
       Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives 
     concurring), That Congress supports the goals and ideals of 
     observing the National Day of Human Trafficking Awareness on 
     January 11 of each year and all other efforts to raise 
     awareness of and opposition to human trafficking.

                          ____________________