Ted Yoho: “I would like to thank Mr. Goodlatte. Madam Speaker, I rise in complete support of erasing human trafficking from the…”

“I would like to thank Mr. Goodlatte. Madam Speaker, I rise in complete support of erasing human trafficking from the face of the Earth. I am a proud cosponsor of all the bipartisan bills before us today, bills that will give us, the courts, and law enforcement the tools and resources we need to combat the plague that is human trafficking. It is unacceptable that today, in 2014, the 21st century, human beings are being sold, owned, and held against their will living a life that is, for lack of a better term, hell on Earth. Human trafficking is defined by the Department of Homeland Security as ``a modern-day form of slavery involving the illegal trade of people for exploitation or commercial gain.'' The victims of human trafficking are the most vulnerable among us: the poor, immigrants in search of a better life--a better life for their families--women, and even children. These exploited persons are victimized by the traffickers who lure them in with false promises of a better life and then are coerced into unspeakable acts, domestic servitude, or other types of forced labor. The traffickers only see the victims as a means to make a profit, no different from a commodity or livestock on a farm, and certainly not as the human beings that they are. Too often in our communities, there is a lack of pushback or even awareness that this terrible practice of modern-day servitude exists. It does, and it happens within our own neighborhoods, towns, and counties.…”