At the summit – attended by over 400 prominent business, government and nonprofit leaders from around the world – Klobuchar and McCain spoke at the “Combatting Human Trafficking With Cross-Sector Solutions” session to discuss the importance of collaborative strategies to combat sex trafficking
Klobuchar has introduced bipartisan legislation modeled after Minnesota’s “Safe Harbor” law that helps make sure minors sold for sex aren’t prosecuted as defendants but are instead treated as victims
WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Cindy McCain, Co-Chair of Arizona’s Task Force on Human Trafficking, today discussed their efforts to fight sex trafficking at the annual Concordia Summit in New York City. At the summit – attended by over 400 prominent business, government and nonprofit leaders from around the world – Klobuchar and McCain spoke at the “Combatting Human Trafficking With Cross-Sector Solutions” session to discuss the importance of collaborative strategies to combat sex trafficking. Klobuchar has introduced bipartisan legislation modeled after Minnesota’s “Safe Harbor” law that helps ensure that minors sold for sex aren’t prosecuted as defendants but are instead treated as victims.
“As a former prosecutor, I’ve seen firsthand the horror and violence women and children suffer as victims of sex trafficking,” Klobuchar said. “Trafficking is now the third largest criminal enterprise in the world, and we need to crack down on this crime while providing victims the support they need. Cindy and I have worked closely on this issue, and this summit was an opportunity to meet with other experts and discuss strategies for putting an end to these heinous crimes.”
Other panelists included Letty Ashworth, Director of Global Diversity, Delta Airlines; Cyrus Vance, District Attorney, County of New York; and Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-FL). Erin Burnett, an anchor for CNN, moderated the panel.
Senator Klobuchar and Cindy McCain have worked in partnership to combat sex trafficking. Klobuchar, McCain, and Senator Heitkamp of North Dakota recently met with the United States Ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power to talk about shared strategies for fighting human trafficking. Klobuchar also led a panel with McCain at the McCain Institute in Arizona on international sex trafficking. In the lead up to the Super Bowl, Klobuchar and McCain met with the NFL to discuss efforts to crack down on sex trafficking ahead of the Super Bowl.
Klobuchar has introduced bipartisan legislation to combat sex trafficking. The Stop Exploitation Through Trafficking Act (SETT) would give incentives for all states to have a safe harbor provision to help ensure minors who are sold for sex aren’t prosecuted as defendants, but are instead treated as victims. When a state passes a safe harbor law, it means that kids sold for sex should be steered towards child protection services, rather than being arrested, charged, or convicted under a state’s criminal laws.
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