Ending Human Trafficking Through Legislative Advocacy
By Catherine C. Darcy, RSM
On July 16, 2025, I joined the Alliance to End Human Trafficking (AEHT) and the National Advocacy Center of the Good Shepherd Sisters (NAC) in their annual joint advocacy day on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. We focused on three pieces of federal legislation:
- H.R.1144 – 119th Congress (2025-2026): Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act of 2025
- S.1748 – 119th Congress (2025-2026): Kids Online Safety Act
- H.R.1379 – 119th Congress (2025-2026): Trafficking Survivors Relief Act of 2025
The day was extremely well-organized, with AEHT’s Executive Director, Katie Boller Gosewisch, and Marilyn Zigmund Luke, AEHT’s Director of Advocacy, working closely with Fran Eskin-Royer, NAC’s Executive Director, to plan the day and provide all the pertinent materials, which they presented in impeccable form. That day began with Congressman Chris Smith (among others) providing an update on the current state of what is now known as the H.R.1144 Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act. For those who do not know Congressman Smith (NJ), he has been a relentless pioneer in influencing the US Congress to support legislation that provides both funding and the systemic protections needed to diminish human trafficking in the USA and beyond significantly. We also heard from another friend and champion of legislation to diminish human trafficking, Congressman Greg Landsman from Ohio.
The second bill, S.1748 – Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA), has gotten the attention of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Bishop William D. Byrne, Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Communications, and Bishop Robert E. Barron, Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Laity, Marriage, Family Life and Youth, wrote to Senators Blumenthal and Washburn in support of their leadership in reintroducing the Kids Online Safety Act (KOSA) and to offer their support for this vital legislation. This bill requires technology companies to take actions that would keep minors safe online.
The third bill H.R.1379 Trafficking Survivors Relief Act will help survivors of human trafficking to restart their lives outside the dreadful world of human trafficking. In essence, the bill provides that crimes that survivors committed as a direct result of being trafficked can be taken off the survivor’s official record. This will better equip the survivor to be able to rent an apartment or obtain employment.
For each of these bills, there is still much that needs to be done. They have each been introduced and assigned to a committee. Your voice is needed. Please consider contacting your U.S. Senators and U.S. House of Representatives and urge passage so that we can come closer to our goal of ending human trafficking. For more information on AEHT’s legislative initiatives, please contact Marilyn Zigmund Luke.
