DHS opening new center to combat human trafficking

by Karen Faulkner, Worthy News Correspondent

(Worthy News) –
In an effort to combat what has been described as “modern-day slavery,” the Trump administration announced Tuesday it has opened a new Center for Countering Human Trafficking, the Daily Caller reports. The Center has been operational since early September and is being run by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has said.

In a statement about the center, Acting Secretary Chad Wolf explained: “Human trafficking is modern-day slavery. There is no other way to say it. Human trafficking is one of the greatest human rights abuses of our time – and we will not stop fighting to eradicate it until every person is safe and free.”

The center will focus on preventing and prosecuting human trafficking crimes and on partnerships to help protect those vulnerable to it, the Daily Caller reports. Operations will be carried out by law enforcement officials from several DHS departments.

“Human Trafficking, whether through sex or labor, is a detriment to our society and threatens the moral conscience of our nation,” senior ICE official Tony Pham told the Daily Caller. “Criminal organizations target those who are most vulnerable and exploit them through any means necessary. Victims are treated as commodities rather than human beings,” Pham said.

In September the Trump administration announced it is awarding $100 million in new funding to fight human trafficking.

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