Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ) Press Conference on HR 1144, Frederick Douglass TVPRA of 2025

Video Description

Since its enactment over 25 years ago, Congressman Chris Smith’s Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) has led to the convictions of over 5,000 human traffickers and freed tens of thousands of trafficking survivors. Among these human trafficking network operators are Ghislaine Maxwell, who was convicted under the TVPA, and Jeffrey Epstein, who was charged under this law, but died awaiting trial. Rep. Smith’s new bill—HR 1144, the Frederick Douglass Trafficking Victims Prevention and Protection Reauthorization Act—will reauthorize and enhance the TVPA, which established a whole-of-government domestic and international strategy to combat human trafficking. To effectively confront and curb human trafficking, our laws must evolve to match the evolution of this heinous crime—and HR 1144 does exactly that. This press conference will gather renowned anti-trafficking survivor leaders, advocates, and service providers from throughout the United States to call for the immediate passage of the Frederick Douglass TVPRA of 2025, which will fully support survivors’ transitions out of trafficking situations, bolster prosecutions of human traffickers, and reaffirm the United States’ role as a global leader in the fight against this horrific injustice.