After years of advocacy and tireless work by survivors, advocates, and a bipartisan group of lawmakers, the U.S. Senate has unanimously passed the Trafficking Survivors Relief Act, just weeks after the bill cleared the House of Representatives on a voice vote. The bill (H.R. 4323) now awaits President Trump's signature to become law.
When you think about where you’ve learned the most reliable information about safety, what comes to mind? The answer to that question is often not a formal institution, but from conversations, passing remarks and other shared experiences within your family or community. PACT often refers to using your “community as a resource.” But what does that look like?
In late November, the United Nations General Assembly, representing 193 countries, adopted a consensus declaration reaffirming its resolve to end human trafficking, which “constitutes a serious crime and a grave offense to human dignity…” The United States refused to sign the document, citing concerns that some references suggested a “one-world globalist approach.”
President Trump’s recent Executive Order, “Ensuring a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence,” is a gift to Big Tech and an insult to parents, families, and states, which have been clamoring for the government to enact common-sense legislation, as tech companies continue to release largely untested, and sometimes dangerous, technologies into homes and schools nationwide.
Congress has overwhelmingly passed the bill to release the Epstein files. For far too long, survivors of Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell have spoken out, only to be met by institutional silence and inaction.
On Sunday, November 2, 2025, PACT hosted its first-ever team for the 2025 TCS New York City Marathon, the largest marathon in the world. This iconic annual event is known for its remarkable scale: more than 55,000 runners and over 2 million spectators.
Through ongoing research, education, and partnerships, PACT remains committed to ensuring that boys are not left out of the global movement to end sexual exploitation and trafficking. Because every child — regardless of gender — deserves safety, dignity, and the freedom to grow up whole.
On September 29, the U.S. State Department released the 2025 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report. The annual report is the government’s principal tool for assessing sex trafficking and forced labor worldwide, and includes progress, challenges, and recommendations for more than 180 countries.
The first calls for action came from ECPAT International, who sounded the alarm about the horrific stories of children being sexually exploited overseas. What began as a call for awareness quickly evolved into a global movement consisting of advocates working together to strengthen systems that protect children around the world.
Crying, gasping for breath, vomiting from overwhelming terror, 76 Guatemalan children—some as young as three—were roused in the middle of the night and loaded onto an airplane like bulk cargo over Labor Day weekend.
Since 2021, we’ve hosted a summer youth internship program that brings together passionate high school and college-bound students. To wrap up this year’s summer youth internship, the interns’ final project was both creative and profound.
This past summer, I had the opportunity to work as an intern for PACT’s Educational Initiatives department. As someone who had little knowledge of human trafficking prior to this experience, I learned a lot about the hold this industry has within both the United States and across the globe.
Last month, I was privileged to represent PACT at the White House bill signing ceremony for the Take It Down ACT. This groundbreaking law seeks to prevent online exploitation and abuse by imposing criminal penalties for those who distribute or threaten to distribute sexually explicit images without consent.
On Tuesday, June 10th, 2025, we gathered together for a sold-out 2025 Freedom Awards! We are grateful for the generosity of our sponsors and this community for making the event possible.
We were excited to sit down with 2025 Freedom Awards honoree, Artists Athletes Activists (AAA) to learn more about their grassroots organization and their commitment to serve vulnerable groups across New York City.
I hope that you are all able to consume, but not be consumed by online and social media content. It’s normal to have insecurities at our age, but we are capable of finding our own narratives and we do not have to let our lives be dictated by those external influences.
We have the great honor of partnering with Hard Rock and Seminole Gaming, the Presenting Sponsor of the 2025 Freedom Awards. In this interview, we speak with Paul Pellizzari, Vice President, Global Social Responsibility, at Hard Rock and Vice Chair of PACT’s Board of Directors.
We have the great honor of partnering with Hard Rock and Seminole Gaming, the Presenting Sponsor of the 2025 Freedom Awards. In this interview, we speak with Durante Blais-Billie, Social Responsibility Specialist, to learn of their advocacy for human trafficking prevention and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW).
We are excited to share that we have transitioned from X to Bluesky, joining our peer organizations, including ECPAT International, on this growing platform.
We were excited to sit down with 2025 Freedom Awards honoree, David Peckinpaugh, on behalf of Maritz, to learn more about their commitment to implementing trafficking prevention into their business practices and support for organizations like PACT, on the frontline of their work.
Anora has garnered national attention, winning several awards it was nominated for at The Oscars, including Best Picture. Despite being praised for destigmatizing the commercial sex trade, it has glossed over the experiences of survivors of human trafficking.
We were excited to sit down with Bekah Charleston to learn more about her work as a Survivor Advocate, what drives her to continue to do this work, and so much more.
Safer Internet Day serves as an important reminder that staying informed about the evolving digital landscape is a responsibility that we all share. By understanding online risks, both children and parents can stay empowered, take control of their digital presence, and strengthen their own privacy.
We are honored to have contributed to the content of a historic treaty. Having a seat at the table at the United Nations allows us to contribute to strengthening protections for children from sexual exploitation and trafficking.
Artists Athletes Activists (AAA) is a grassroots organization founded to address the widespread need for community support to vulnerable populations in New York City. Established in 2018 as a 501(c)3 non-profit, AAA works to ensure socio-economic disadvantages are not an obstacle to peoples’ sense of worth and belonging, and their ability to contribute to the community.
Bekah Charleston is a nationally recognized leader, public speaker, and advocate whose story of survival and triumph has been featured by NPR, USA Today, the New York Post, and more. After enduring a decade of exploitation, she dedicated her life to empowering survivors and fostering community collaboration.
David Peckinpaugh started at Maritz in 2011 and became President & CEO in 2021. A 40+ year champion of the events industry, David provides strategic oversight for Maritz while ensuring the consistent design and delivery of engaging and inspiring program experiences that drive business results.
There is continuous research that reaffirms that boys are an underserved population and often fall through the cracks of child protection systems because of biases against their victimization.
I hope that you are all able to consume, but not be consumed by online and social media content. It’s normal to have insecurities at our age, but we are capable of finding our own narratives and we do not have to let our lives be dictated by those external influences.