The state of Nevada is home to "Sin City" Las Vegas, several counties with the only legal brothels in the U.S., and a significant human trafficking problem. Child sex trafficking is especially high in Nevada, as Las Vegas is often a destination for pimps and teen runaways alike. But starting on February 7, the Nevada state legislature will have the chance to seriously impede the trafficking industry in the state. Will you ask them to make fighting human trafficking a state priority?Anti-trafficking organization Polaris Project recently launched a campaign on Change.org asking the Nevada state legislature to pass four proposed anti-trafficking bills when they convene on February 7. The new bills would address everything from giving trafficking victims arrested for prostitution a chance to expunge their records to increasing penalties for existing offenses to bring them more in line with federal anti-trafficking laws.
The anti-trafficking bills up for a vote this session are AB4, which would expand the definition of involuntary servitude to include commercial sex acts; AB5, which would increase the penalties for pandering; AB6, which would create a procedure for victims of sex trafficking who had convictions for prostitution while they were a victims of trafficking to make a motion for a new trial; and AB106, which would increase penalties for living off of the earnings of a prostituted person and enhances those penalties if the person prostituted in a minor.
Together, these new laws would make Nevada a much less friendly place for those looking to exploit and profit from sex trafficking.
And the new legislation can't come soon enough. In Las Vegas alone, one investigation from Shared Hope International identified over 1,000 child victims of sex trafficking. The city as well as surrounding suburbs are considered to be one of the major U.S. destinations for child sex trafficking, and the Las Vegas Human Trafficking Task force is a busy group. But human trafficking affects all Nevadans, as children from other parts of the state are at risk for exploitation, agricultural workers in rural areas can suffer serious abuses, and domestic workers can be enslaved in the suburbs.
You can support the campaign by signing this petition to the Nevada legislature and sharing it with your friends (especially Nevadans). Stronger laws will help prevent sex trafficking in Nevada, and you can help make those laws a reality.
Photo credit: RickC
Amanda Kloer is a Change.org Editor and has been a full-time abolitionist in several capacities for seven years. Follow her on Twitter @endhumantraffic RELATED PETITION
Source: Change.Org
Will Nevada Legislature Pass Critical Anti-Trafficking Laws? | Change.org News
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