Ted Poe: “As a judge in Texas, I saw it all: rape, robbery, murder, kidnapping, child abuse. Now, in Congress, we are learning…”

“As a judge in Texas, I saw it all: rape, robbery, murder, kidnapping, child abuse. Now, in Congress, we are learning about the horrors of human trafficking, sex slavery. Many groundbreaking laws have been passed to increase resources for victims and crack down on traffickers and buyers, but like all criminal enterprises, traffickers constantly stay ahead of the law. Fortunately for victims, there is an army of individuals, NGOs, religious and other advocacy groups fighting on behalf of victims. The people serving in these organizations are New Friends New Life, RAIN, Polaris, Rights4Girls, Shared Hope, Coalition Against Trafficking, and Demand Abolition, just to name a few. They have all dedicated their lives to serve and save victims of trafficking on the front lines. On this National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, I want to thank all those warriors--the victims' posse, as I call them--battling the injustice of human slavery. We will not give up this fight until this scourge has been eradicated. And that is just the way it is. ____________________”