Loading video...
Source: Congress.gov
Participants
Transcript
Good morning. The subcommittee will come to order. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare recess at any time. We welcome everyone to today's hearing on protecting victims of human trafficking and online exploitation. I will recognize myself for an opening statement. Oh, I'm sorry. We're going to do the Pledge of Allegiance. I'm sorry. I'll ask this gentleman from Alabama, Mr. Moore, to lead us in the pledge. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Thank you.
I'll now recognize myself for an opening statement. I appreciate everyone being here today. We're here to continue an extremely important discussion on protecting the most vulnerable members of our population. Through the 118th Congress, our subcommittee held two victims-focused hearings. We passed two pieces of legislation out of committee, and one of them ended up being signed into law.
I look forward to continuing this work in the 119th Congress by spotlighting how to best protect victims of human trafficking and child exploitation and give a voice to these countless victims. Human trafficking, specifically sex trafficking, is a heinous crime that tragically continues to grow in America. While international sex trafficking may be more widely known, domestic sex trafficking also persists in the United States. Traffickers even use social media to lure innocent people, including children, to become victims. In the United States, an adult or child can be trafficked and exploited at hotels, truck stops, their own homes, and online. Trafficking victims are exploited in cities, suburban, and rural areas. It can happen anytime and anywhere. Traffickers use fraud, force, and coercion to induce their victims to commit crimes. This can lead to arrest, conviction, and incarceration of trafficked victims without consideration of their victim status. Thankfully, we as a country have and will continue to make significant progress to help victims and survivors move forward with their lives. We're also committed to protecting children and combating the growing issue of child sexual abuse material, CSAM. Identifying children depicted in CSAM is crucial to stop their ongoing victimization and capture offenders of producing it. More than 50,000 children in CSAM videos and images in the possession of law enforcement remain unidentified. It's tragic that so many children remain unknown, unfound, and unrescued. Last year, the committee worked with former members of Homeland Security Investigations, the main investigative body within DHS, and the prominent law enforcement agency combating human trafficking and child exploitation. We also heard from current and former Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force officers coordinating thousands of federal, state, and local enforcement agencies across the country combating CSAM.
We also had powerful testimony from Tim Tebow sharing the mission of the Tim Tebow Foundation and more about Operation Renewed Hope. Operation Renewed Hope is the first of its kind. It's joining federal law enforcement agencies with non-government organizations to identify, locate, and rescue victims of child exploitation. Thanks to these heroic efforts, over 300 victims were identified and at least 14 were rescued. I understand Operation Renewed Hope is ongoing and I hope more victims continue to be rescued and provided with the care they need and deserve. There is no question these criminals must be prosecuted. While there are many solutions to combat these issues, we must assure prosecutors are doing their jobs to put these criminals behind bars. I express my gratitude to the special agents of HSI and ICAC task force officers for their unwavering commitment to safeguarding children and liberating victims from the atrocities of these crimes. I also thank NCMEC and the Tim Tebow Foundation. These groups are leading the charge to identify and rescue victims of human trafficking and CSAM. For that, we thank you. Sunshine is the best disinfectant, it has been said. It is the best way to rid the world of these predators who abuse and exploit victims. We will continue our work to deliver hope to those who need it most. Again, I thank those witnesses who are here. and the members of the committee who are here and will come. And with that, I yield back and now recognize the ranking member, Ms. McBath, for her opening statement.
Sign up for free to see the full transcript
Accounts help us prevent bots from abusing our site. Accounts are free and will allow you to access the full transcript.