Rep. Vargas Hosts Briefing on the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children to Raise Awareness of Epidemic
Washington, DC (September 19, 2013) –Today, Congressman Juan Vargas (CA-51) hosted the “Human Trafficking and the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children 101” briefing, which focused on the efforts being made to combat the sexual exploitation of children throughout the world. Earlier this Congress, Rep. Vargas introduced H.R. 1690, the Child Protection Act of 2013, which would remove the knowledge of age requirement in order to prevent child sex traffickers from receiving lighter sentences.
“It is an honor to host this much-needed and incredibly informative briefing on human trafficking and the commercial sexual exploitation of children. It is imperative that we bring awareness to the magnitude and severity of the sexual slavery epidemic our country is facing,” said Rep. Vargas. “This briefing is just one of many steps we need to take to combat child sex trafficking. We must continue to work together to ensure that more of our children are not victimized.”
Vargas was joined by both governmental and non-governmental groups to raise awareness of this devastating crime against humanity. The Department of State, Department of Homeland Security and Department of Health and Human Services provided their expertise via representatives that specialize in combating human trafficking. Shared Hope International and Rights4Girls provided attendees with an in-depth look at how their organizations fight sex trafficking and gender-based violence, respectively.
Yasmin Vafa, Director of Law and Policy at Rights4Girls stated, "Every day in this country, hundreds of children are bought and sold for sex. Tragically, instead of receiving services, many of these youth are routed into the juvenile justice system for prostitution or related offenses. American victims of trafficking are particularly vulnerable to criminalization for their exploitation. That’s why we are so pleased that Congressman Vargas is shedding light on the issue of child sex trafficking, by allowing us to finally give voice and visibility to our nation’s most vulnerable youth."
Samantha Vardaman, Senior Director at Shared Hope International said, “Children are being bought and sold for commercial sex acts every day in every part of the nation. Victims require specialized, long term care, but are rarely given it. In 2012, the laws in 18 states failed to fulfill the minimum needs to respond to the crime of child sex trafficking. We cannot rely solely on the federal government to protect our children, we must all work together to combat this horrific crime.”
Vargas represents California’s 51st Congressional District which includes the southern portion of San Diego County, all of Imperial County and California’s entire US/Mexico border. Vargas is currently serving his first term in Congress. He represented the 40th California State Senate District from 2010-2012, the 79th California State Assembly District from 2000 – 2006 and served on the San Diego City Council from 1993 – 2000.