DECLARING JANUARY 11, 2014 TO BE HUMAN TRAFFICKING AWARENESS DAY
WHEREAS, Human trafficking is a form of modern day slavery where traffickers obtain labor, sexual exploitation, and/or debt bondage through force, fraud, or coercion; and
WHEREAS, According to the United Nations, human trafficking is a multi-billion dollar industry where traffickers profit from the exploitation of over 27 million people across the world; and
WHEREAS, The US Department of State estimates that 14,500 to 17,500 people, primarily women and children, are trafficked into the United States; and
WHEREAS, According to an analysis of five years of data from the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, from December 7, 2007 to December 31, 2012, cases of human trafficking were reported in all 50 states and D.C. More than 42% of sex trafficking cases referenced pimp-controlled prostitution and more than 27% of labor trafficking cases referenced domestic work; and
WHEREAS, A 2002 study estimates that on any given day in the Chicago metropolitan area, between 16,000 to 24,000 women and girls are engaged in prostitution. In a recent Chicago study, 53% of prostituted women said they had to give all their money to a pimp. Many said they couldn't leave prostitution because they were afraid of what their pimp would do to them; and
WHEREAS, A 2008 Chicago study of 100 women up to age 25 found their average age of entry into prostitution was 16. Girls this young are often exchanging sex for clothes, shelter, or food—in order to survive. Many have run away from dysfunctional homes and are often in foster care; and
WHEREAS, For more than the past ten years, Illinois and Cook County have been recognized as national leaders in the fight against human trafficking because of its survivor leadership, community organizing and legislative reforms as well as elected official engagement and support; and
WHEREAS, Human trafficking was criminalized in Illinois in 2006, and, under Cook County State's Attorney Anita A...
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