By Joshua Jongsma, North Jersey Record-USA Today Network
Over $430 million will go toward combating human trafficking after New Jersey Rep. Chris Smith's bill was signed by President Donald Trump on Tuesday.
The bill named after Frederick Douglas is the fifth anti-human trafficking law from Smith, a Republican representing the 4th Congressional district. The $430 million that will be spent over four years in the latest bill includes funding for:
- Age-appropriate prevention education for children
- Shelter, therapy, and reintegration for trafficking victims
- Facilitation of trafficking-free supply chains in U.S. commerce
- Training of U.S. government officials and airline industry employees to better identify and prevent possible cases of trafficking
- Oversight to ensure that U.S. government purchases are not employing traffickers
“In the fight to end modern day slavery, my law honors the extraordinary legacy of one of the greatest Americans who ever lived,” Smith stated in a press release.
Douglass was a famed abolitionist who fought against slavery in the 19th century. In the release Kenneth B. Morris Jr., the great-great-great-grandson of Douglass, thanked Smith for his efforts.
“If my great ancestor were here today, I believe he would be driven to lead the struggle against contemporary forms of slavery," Morris stated.
The bill was co-sponsored by Rep. Karen Bass, a Democrat from California.
The International Labour Organization estimates that there are 20.9 million victims of human trafficking globally.
Polaris Project estimates there are hundreds of thousands of victims in the United States.
This article was published in the Jan. 10, 2019 print edition of the Asbury Park Press on page A-7, and by the New Jersey Record (page A-3) , both part of the USA Today Network/Gannett, and is online at:
https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2019/01/09/nj-rep-chris-smiths-anti-human-trafficking-bill-signed-into-law/2520136002/
