In southern Minnesota, an operation involving Backpage.com resulted in 48 arrests around the towns of New Ulm and Mankato

Klobuchar has been a national leader in the fight to combat human trafficking; Her bipartisan legislation, the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, was signed into law in May of 2015


WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar released the following statement today on the announcement that Backpage.com, a major facilitator of sex trafficking in the United States, will be shutting down its adult services section.

“Websites like Backpage.com facilitate sex trafficking across Minnesota and our country. In fact, in southern Minnesota, an operation involving Backpage.com resulted in 48 arrests around the towns of New Ulm and Mankato,” said Klobuchar. “Backpage.com’s announcement that it will be shutting down its adult services section is long overdue, but another positive step forward in our fight against human trafficking. We need to keep working together to bring perpetrators to justice and get victims the support they deserve."

Klobuchar is a national leader in the fight to combat human trafficking. Her bipartisan legislation, the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act, was signed into law in May of 2015. The legislation was modeled after Minnesota’s “Safe Harbor” law, which gives 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. In addition to law enforcement provisions, the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act helps victims rebuild their lives by using fines and penalties against perpetrators to improve the availability of victim services. Last March, Klobuchar and Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) introduced the Stop Trafficking on Planes (STOP) Act that would require training for certain airline industry employees to recognize and report suspected human trafficking to law enforcement. A provision based on this legislation was signed into law in July as part of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2016.

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