[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 1]
[House]
[Page 789]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   HUMAN TRAFFICKING AWARENESS MONTH

  (Mr. HULTGREN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. HULTGREN. Mr. Speaker, during Human Trafficking Awareness Month, 
I rise in support of the 21 million men, women, and children worldwide 
who are victims of this insidious enterprise. Human trafficking is 
nothing less than modern-day slavery. It targets society's most 
vulnerable, stealing their souls and depriving them of any hope to 
escape a downward spiral of despair.
  Nations must be held accountable for their efforts to eradicate human 
trafficking within their borders, which is why, today, I am 
reintroducing the Sex Trafficking Demand Reduction Act. This 
legislation targets the demand for commercial sex because the evidence 
is clear that, where markets for commercial sex exist, human 
trafficking proliferates as well. The bill requires governments to take 
the initiative to eliminate the demand for purchase of commercial sex 
in their efforts to combat human trafficking overall.
  As a member of the Congressional Human Trafficking Caucus, I am 
pleased to see Congress taking a leadership role in the fight against 
human trafficking. We are getting closer to the day when human 
trafficking will no longer represent a blight on humanity and we will 
see victims and survivors created in God's image fully restored.

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