New Texas task force will tackle human trafficking | Dallas | News from Fort Worth, Dall...

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Posted Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2010

By the numbers

14,500-17,500 people are trafficked into the United States
5,000-7,000 people are trafficked into the U.S. from East Asia and the Pacific
3,500-5,500 people are trafficked into the U.S. from each of these areas: Latin America, Europe and Eurasia

Source: Annual estimates based on 2004 U.S. Trafficking in Persons Report

By ALEX BRANCH
abranch@star-telegram.com

DALLAS -- A new state task force will take an aggressive stand against human traffickers, who have turned Texas into a hub for international and domestic forced labor and prostitution rings, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said Tuesday in Dallas.

The Texas Human Trafficking Prevention Task Force will coordinate, fortify and expand law enforcement tools to prosecute traffickers and help better identify victims of "modern-day slavery," he said.

"We are not going to be defeated by human trafficking," Abbott said. "It is a horrific crime that affects far too many people."

Abbott spoke about the task force, which held its first meeting last month, at the Texas Summit on the Trafficking and Exploitation of Children, organized by Children at Risk.

The Texas Legislature created the task force last year, calling for the attorney general's office to oversee a mix of state and local law enforcement officers, state social services personnel and representatives from nongovernmental organizations.

While Texas already has several task forces related to human trafficking that are funded by the U.S. Justice Department, the new task force will connect investigations and intelligence throughout the state, officials said.

"Human traffickers in Houston may have connections to human traffickers in Dallas and Fort Worth," said Bill Bernstein, deputy director of Mosaic Family Services, a Dallas nonprofit that helps trafficking victims. "This will increase communication and allow a broader view of these illegal operations."

Major destination

Texas is considered a major destination for victims of domestic and international human trafficking. In 2008, 38 percent of all calls to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center hot line were dialed in Texas, according to statistics.

Texas was among the first states to enact a law against human trafficking, in 2003. However, Abbott said that awareness of the law is low -- even among some prosecutors, law officers and judges. He said he has assigned two investigators in his office to work on trafficking cases with jurisdictions statewide.

"I think we will begin to make real progress," he said.

Victims' rights workers have called for more safe houses and increased public awareness. A common misperception is that victims are always forced into the sex trade. But, advocates say, more than half are forced into other types of labor, so clues about their situation are often ignored.

Bernstein gave several examples of such jobs:

One young man was rescued from a McKinney dry-cleaning business where he was forced to work 14-hour days, sleep on the floor and eat three meals a day at Burger King.

Several young boys from Africa were forced to sing in a Dallas-Fort Worth traveling church choir.

A few years ago, about 70 Latin American women were rescued from forced labor at nightclubs in Fort Worth.

Difficult mission

Investigations into human-trafficking schemes are often difficult because the people trafficked don't always realize they are victims, Bernstein said.

"They think, well, they owed someone money and they couldn't pay it off so they had to take this job," he said. "They are with their own people, speaking their own language and might come from a country where law enforcement is viewed with suspicion.

"They don't seem to realize they are in need of being rescued."

State House Bill 4009, which mandated creation of the task force, requires it to report statistics on the number of people trafficked and the number of traffickers convicted. It also must report on ways to curb demand for the services that victims provide and study the routes used by traffickers.

Interstate 10, which links El Paso to San Antonio and Houston, is considered the most active route.

Rep. Paula Pierson, D-Arlington, who attended the conference, said abuse, particularly of women and children, has gone on for "years and years."

"We can't just bury our heads in the sand and pretend it does not go on," she said. "We have to take a stand and stop it."

ALEX BRANCH, 817-390-7689

New Texas task force will tackle human trafficking | Dallas | News from Fort Worth, Dall...