Attorney general wants to bolster fight against human trafficking
November 18, 2008
According to the attorney general report, Texas is considered a major hub for human trafficking, and nearly 20 percent of all victims in the U.S. travel through the state on Interstate 10.
Written by Brandi Grissom, The El Paso Times
http://www.on-linemiami.com
AUSTIN - A beautiful woman raped repeatedly and beaten beyond recognition.
A 14-year-old boy enslaved with little food, forced to do chores all day and sleep outside in the middle of winter.
A maid never paid a penny for 15 years of housework.
They are just three of the many cases of human trafficking in El Paso, which, along with Houston, the U.S. Department of Justice called one of the most intense trafficking regions in the nation. In a report released Monday, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott recommended lawmakers give his office more power to prosecute traffickers and provide more training to help officials identify the victims.
"It's a modern-day version of servitude," Abbott said.
Elvia Garcia, outreach coordinator for Paso del Norte Civil Rights project, has been working with human trafficking victims for more than a decade. As Garcia recounted the women's and boy's stories, she said she knew there were more trafficking victims like them in El Paso but they are hard to find because their captors keep them hidden and in fear.
"You just hear the rumors," she said. "I think we need to educate our community."
According to the attorney general report, Texas is considered a major hub for human trafficking, and nearly 20 percent of all victims in the U.S. travel through the state on Interstate 10.
Fernando Garcia, executive director of the Border Network for Human Rights, said trafficking victims often are confused with immigrants who willfully crossed into the U.S. illegally.
"We can end up actually punishing the victims," he said.
More training for law enforcement, he said, could help officers investigate more fully and prosecute traffickers who exploit vulnerable men, women and children.
State Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, has filed a bill aimed at reducing human trafficking in Texas.
It would create a task force to collaborate with federal officials to prosecute trafficking and train local officials about the crime. Among other provisions, it would also require human trafficking training for new police officers and set aside funding to help find, prosecute and prevent the crime. "It's vile," Van de Putte said. "It's almost unthinkable what happens to these victims."
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