On January 14, 2014 Rep. Erik Swalwell asked for and was granted one minute to address the issue of National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month.
“Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize January as National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. As unbelievable as it may sound, it is estimated that 20.9 million people were victims of some form of forced labor, including trafficking, in 2012. Most of these victims, sadly, were women and children. While we may believe or hope to believe that this is happening across oceans, it is actually occurring rampantly across the East Bay. I saw this firsthand when I worked for 7 years as a prosecutor in the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office, mostly with victims who were, too often, young teenage girls.”
“We cannot sit by as millions of people are exploited in this way–denigrated, demeaned, and disparaged. It is in this month that we recommit ourselves to ending these horrors of slavery and human trafficking once and for all”, she said.
” My home county of Alameda, under the direction of District Attorney Nancy O’Malley, is doing its part. They run a coordinated effort called H.E.A.T. Watch to fight trafficking. In fact, District Attorney O’Malley recently announced a massive public relations campaign to draw attention to this issue and help victims. I have one of the posters, and I hope people will call (510) 645-9388 if they suspect trafficking is happening. With their hard work and that of people around the world, we can bring trafficking to an end”, said Rep. Swalwell (source: Congressional Record).
Rep. Stalwell serves on the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, where he is the Ranking Member on its Subcommittee on Energy, and the Committee on Homeland Security.