Faith & Freedom Coalition Urges Federal Leaders To Focus on Fight Against Human Trafficking as COVID-19 Drives Demand, Isolates Victims From Resources

DULUTH, Ga. – The Faith & Freedom Coalition urges federal leaders to turn their attention to fighting human trafficking, a crime that COVID-19 has worsened. Leaders at the United Nations have highlighted an increase in attempts to access illegal websites containing child pornography. They have also noted that the redirection of social services resources and law enforcement funding and personnel to address COVID-19 means that victims are less likely to get the help they need to flee a trafficking situation.

Similarly, Polaris, the organization that runs the National Trafficking Hotline, has observed that the mass unemployment caused by the novel coronavirus could make vulnerable individuals more likely to fall prey to the deceptive tactics of traffickers. The organization’s research has repeatedly demonstrated that it is individuals from marginalized groups whom these criminals take advantage of and abuse for financial gain.

“Trafficking is a scourge on our nation and has no place in the land of the free,” said Timothy Head, executive director of the Faith & Freedom Coalition. “We urge federal officials to remember these victims, even as they work to reopen the country and protect public health.

“President Trump has made key strides in combating this evil, increasing funding at the federal, state and local levels in his 2021 budget and holding a White House summit at the beginning of this year,” he continued. “The administration must continue to build on its good work, continuing to uphold America’s promises of freedom for everyone, even in this time of crisis.”

The Faith & Freedom Coalition advocates for individual liberty and family values, bringing together America’s faithful to champion the cause of the vulnerable and marginalized. Fighting human trafficking is one of its top organizational priorities. To learn more about the Faith & Freedom Coalition, visit https://www.ffcoalition.com.

About the Faith & Freedom Coalition

The Faith and Freedom Coalition is a national grassroots movement of over 2 million conservatives and people of faith in support of time-honored values, stronger families, and individual freedom. Learn more about Faith & Freedom at www.ffcoalition.com.