U.S. Rep. Chris Smith recently chaired a congressional hearing about child trafficking called “Children are Not for Sale: Global Efforts to Address Child Trafficking.” In it, the congressional committee heard testimony from child trafficking victims and advocates, and Smith believes the U.S.-Mexico border could be a very dangerous point for child trafficking.
"Child predators it turns out are everywhere—on the prowl, kidnapping, buying or renting children to exploit," Smith said in a press release. "The child predators never waste a crisis and are especially skilled in taking advantage of conflict, poverty, lawlessness, internally displaced persons and refugees and migrants. There are serious well-founded concerns that unaccompanied minors coming across our southern border may be the new victims."
Earlier this week, Smith introduced the SECURE Act of 2023, which would require the Biden administration to locate the approximately 85,000 unaccompanied migrant children it has lost contact with in the United States. It is believed that at least 345,000 children have crossed into the United States unaccompanied since the beginning of 2021. Smith believes these children are at great risk of abuse, death, labor trafficking and sex trafficking.
The congressional hearing heard testimony from Tim Ballard, former Homeland Security agent and founder of the anti-sex trafficking organization Operation Underground Railroad, whose work is recounted in the movie “Sound of Freedom.” Ballard said that Americans are the No. 1 consumer of child exploitation material and are major contributors to the worldwide child trafficking problem. Ballard said that leaders of Central American countries warn their people against human traffickers, but due to the policies of the United States, it is still very lucrative to be a human smuggler.
The hearing also heard testimony from survivor-expert Jeanne Celestine Lakin, a survivor of child trafficking and the Rwandan genocide, whose life story is told in the book “A Voice in the Darkness.” Her testimony focused on how chaotic situations can make children more vulnerable to trafficking. Lakin stated that “we must prioritize policies that shield them from the clutches of trafficking and falling in the hands of smugglers.”
In a press release, Smith notes that over 27 million people worldwide are victims of forced labor or sex trafficking, and about a third of those are children, though the actual figures might be even higher. In 2016, Smith authored the International Megan’s Law, which combats child sex tourism by notifying countries when convicted pedophiles travel there.
It is unclear whether Smith’s SECURE Act of 2023 would have a pathway to become law, the New Jersey Globe reported. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy seemed positive about it but the law could have a difficult time getting passed in the Democrat-controlled Senate or being enacted by President Joe Biden.
