Alongside this year’s Commission on the Status of Women (CSW), ECPAT-USA presented a panel detailing how youth are using technology to empower their peers and raise awareness of child sex trafficking. The event, featuring Survivor-Advocate Shanifa Bennett and Brooklyn Technical High School students Nasrat Jahan and Rumana Khan, highlighted how important it is for students to take precautions online and for adults to talk to kids about the potential risks.

In one of the most divided and partisan Congresses in recent memory, a near-unanimous vote on legislation showed Republicans and Democrats can agree on at least one thing: trying to stop child sex trafficking.

The principal goal of the Allows States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act was to amend a law that absolves online companies of liability when users post illicit content. For years, websites like backpage.com or Craigslist have had trouble regulating advertisements that can be used to traffic people for sex, but because of the law protecting them, those victims had no course of action to sue a website. 

And the bill has already had an impact.

Senate joins House in passing law that strips websites of immunity for knowingly running sex trafficking ads

The Kentucky State Senate approved a resolution to curtail child sex trafficking by encouraging Kentucky residents, employees, and agencies to use travel brands that are combating the crime. Specifically, the resolution cites ECPAT-USA and The Tourism Child-Protection Code of Conduct (The Code) and recommends that people use hotels, venues, and other brands that are members of The Code.

On March 6, 2018, Congresswoman Ann Wagner, joined by Congresswomen Joyce Beatty, Mimi Walters, and Carolyn Maloney, thanked ECPAT-USA and other leading advocacy organizations for their their input and expertise as the House considered H.R. 1865, the Allow States and Victims to Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act. The Congresswoman also directed the letter to the more than 100 organizations that sent the February 26 support letter to Speaker Ryan and Leader Pelosi.  

Ground-breaking research into the online sexual exploitation of children has brought to light the urgent need to better understand and measure the problem says INTERPOL and a campaign group.

A report from a new study, released by INTERPOL and ECPAT International today, suggests that when online images or videos of child sexual abuse depict boys or very young children, the abuse is more likely to be severe.

Up until now, there have been two competing bills one in the Senate called Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act (SESTA) and the other in House, called Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act or FOSTA. The original bills took different approaches, but they ultimately ended up at the same place. They both allowed the victims of human trafficking to sue websites that knowingly assisted in the crime.  

This past year, the #metoo movement has sent shockwaves across the entire world. Sadly, some of the most unsettling revelations have been connected to the Olympic Games, an event that is meant to serve as a beacon of empowerment and inspiration. This is why it’s so heartening that major reform efforts were put into place heading into the 2018 Pyeongchang Games. Their impact is already being felt.

The Congress has been making important progress in reforming Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act. Section 230 is the provision that provides legal protection to websites like Backpage.com, which facilitate the sale of children online. Congress has introduced two bills—SESTA in the Senate (Stop Enabling Sex Traffickers Act) and FOSTA (Fight Online Sex Trafficking Act) in the House. The two bills take different approaches in crafting a legislative solution, but the core of what they seek to do is similar. Both bills have enjoyed broad-based, and bipartisan support, and both bills have made real progress in moving through the legislative process this year.  

An American Airlines ticketing agent made headlines this week when her gut instinct and quick thinking kept two underaged girls from entering into an unsafe and potentially child trafficking situation.

ECPAT-USA, the country’s leading anti-child trafficking policy organization, announced a new partnership with global hospitality company Marriott International to combat and prevent human trafficking and exploitation in all forms. Marking National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, Marriott International signed ECPAT-USA’s Tourism Child-Protection Code of Conduct (The Code), an industry-driven responsible tourism initiative with a mission to provide awareness, tools, and support to the travel and hospitality industry in order to prevent the sexual exploitation of children.

Pledging its commitment to help end human trafficking, Uber has partnered with ECPAT-USA and other leading organizations to provide education and awareness to ALL driver-partners across the United States.