Countries worldwide are failing to properly protect children from sex trafficking, a global child protection network said in a report on Thursday, urging governments to ratify U.N. protocols on the issue and give victims more support.
Countries worldwide are failing to properly protect children from sex trafficking, a global child protection network said in a report on Thursday, urging governments to ratify U.N. protocols on the issue and give victims more support.
It is time for New York State to get serious about implementing its Safe Harbor Law. Tell your state representatives that you support funding for services for sexually exploited children.
2. Or send a letter to your Assembly member or State Senator with the following text:
Greetings,
I write to ask you to support funding The Safe Harbor for Exploited Children Act. If funded, this bill will provide many of our State’s most vulnerable children with desperately needed safety, housing and services.
The Safe Harbor Act was signed into law on September 25, 2008. This legislation is aimed at providing critical services for the growing number of children who are exploited and forced to sell sex.
Due to lack of funding, the promise of the Safe Harbor Act is still unrealized. There are thousands of sexually exploited youth in New York. There are currently fewer than 50 beds state-wide designated for trafficked youth. As a first step in implementing the Safe Harbor Act, we ask that the New York State Legislature fund:
1. Short-term emergency housing: Without a place to take sexually exploited children, police fail to keep them off the streets or put them in jail in an effort to keep them safe. We must provide emergency shelter for these vulnerable children.
2. A long-term treatment facility: A long-term safe house with specialized services is urgently needed to provide sexually exploited children with ongoing safety and support.
3. Specialized Services: It is critical that young people identified as sexually exploited begin to receive specialized services immediately, including but not limited to counseling, group therapy and assistance with public benefits.
4. Police Training: The police are currently being trained to better identify sexually exploited children. However, they are not being trained to connect those children with much needed services. Without a referral to a service provider and a bed to sleep in, these children are forced to go back onto the street.
5. Long-term, therapeutic specially trained foster homes: Evidence has shown that therapeutically trained foster homes can tremendously help a sexually exploited child.
We must fight to keep these young people safe and provide a comprehensive array of services. New York took the lead and was the first to pass legislature that required treatment instead of punishment with Safe Harbor. Now it needs to take the lead and actually fund the services.
Due to lack of funding, the promise of the Safe Harbor Act is still unrealized. There are thousands of sexually exploited youth in New York who are not receiving the shelter and services the Act promises. As a first step in implementing the Safe Harbor Act, I ask that New York State fund the Safe Harbor Act with $3 million for housing and services.
Now is the time to stand up and fight for these children.
Sincerely,
[Your name]
Last Thursday, March 8, U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley discussed the link between the child welfare system and domestic trafficking and the need for a comprehensive response. You can click here for a transcript of his speech or view a video of the speech below.
In partnership with 55 other organizations, ECPAT-USA submitted a Report to the UN Committee on March 1. The report offers information to the Committee to help it evaluate the U.S. government’s activities to stop the “Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography.” The U.S. government signed an Optional Protocol committing to take steps to end these abuses. This report gives our evaluation of the government’s activities so far.