Your Voice is Needed in Congress now

Your Voice is Needed in Congress now

I pledge to...

<b>Federal Appropriations Legislation&nbsp;&nbsp;</b>&nbsp;</p>
<p>Help Pass a Bill to Appropriate Funds for Human Trafficking Victims&nbsp;</p>
<p>In the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2008, Congress authorized tens of millions of dollars to fund services for U.S. citizen and foreign national victims of human trafficking in the U.S.&nbsp;</p>
<p><b>NONE OF THESE FUNDS CAN BE RELEASED</b> until Congress passes a separate bill to appropriate the needed funds.</p>
<p>It is critical that all senators and representatives are aware of this urgent need.<b>&nbsp;</b></p>
<p><b>Your Voice is Needed in Congress now </b></p>
<p>&nbsp;However, none of these funds can be released until Congress passes a separate bill to appropriate the needed funds, and to do this, it is critical that all federal legislators informed about the critical need for these funds and are urged to support this appropriation.</p>
<p>&nbsp;Since the TVPA passed in 2000, there has been no specific federal funding to support U.S. citizen trafficking victims.&nbsp; There are also no federally-funded shelters for child victims of sex trafficking, despite estimates of more than 200,000 children at high risk for commercial sexual exploitation in the U.S. every year.&nbsp; Only a small handful of shelters nationwide provide the specialized services and environment needed to help victims recover.</p>
<p>&nbsp;The U.S. government has not provided sufficient funding for foreign national trafficking victims in the past.&nbsp; For example, the Department of Health and Human Services recently had to decrease victim services from eight to four months in many cases.&nbsp; When recovery from trauma and abuse can take many years, four months of support is insufficient.</p>
<p>WHAT YOU CAN DO?&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;Please follow this link</p>
<p><a href="http://actioncenter.polarisproject.org/component/content/article/522">http://actioncenter.polarisproject.org/component/content/article/522</a></p>
<p>where you will find all the information you need to call your representative.</p>
<p>&nbsp;<b>Please make a quick, 30 second phone call to your two senators and representative today and urge them to make appropriations requests for $21.8 million to go toward intensive social service case management, shelter, legal services, and other critical services for victims.</b></p>
<p>&nbsp;An appropriation of $21.8 million would provide critical services for U.S. citizen trafficking victims for the first time and significantly increase the availability of services to foreign national victims too!</p>
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