Shine the Light on Slavery Day

Today, in honor of Shine the Light on Slavery Day, President Obama’s Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons released a draft five-year strategic plan. The Task Force includes fifteen federal agencies with a mission to ensure a whole-of-government approach that addresses all aspects of human trafficking, including enforcement of criminal and labor law, victim identification and protection, and education and public awareness.

The White House convened a forum this morning at the White House to kick off this new plan. Valerie Jarrett, Senior Advisor to President Obama and the Chair of the White House Council on Women & Girls; Eric Holder, the Attorney General; and Janet Napolitano, Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, all gave opening remarks.

Suzanne Tomatore, project director of the Immigrant Women & Children Project at the City Bar Justice Center, attended the forum. “It’s wonderful that there is so much attention on the issue of human trafficking from the White House and the federal government,” she said. “At the same time, we all must continue to work on the root causes of human trafficking, including poverty, lack of educational opportunities for women and girls, and lack of protection for low-wage workers.”

The Immigrant Women & Children Project works with survivors of human trafficking, child abuse, sexual assault and domestic violence in partnership with pro bono law firms. For more information about the work of the project, please click here.