Human Trafficking

Bishops' Statements/Teachings

The Catholic Church has condemned human trafficking and has developed social service programs to serve and protect its survivors.

During Vatican II, the Catholic Church reaffirmed its historic concern about forced labor, stating that “slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children, [and] disgraceful working conditions where [people] are treated as mere tools for profit, rather than as free and responsible persons” are “infamies” and “an affront to fundamental values. . . values rooted in the very nature of the human person.”

In the 2006 annual statement on migration, entitled “Migrations: A Sign of the Times,” Pope Benedict XVI deplored the “trafficking of human beings—especially women—which flourishes where opportunities to improve their standard of living or even to survive are limited.”

Pope John Paul II, in a letter on the occasion of the International Conference on “Twenty-First-Century Slavery—the Human Rights Dimension to Trafficking in Human Beings,” stated that human trafficking “constitutes a shocking offense against human dignity and a grave violation of fundamental human rights. In particular, the sexual exploitation of women and children is a particularly repugnant aspect of this trade, and must be recognized as an intrinsic violation of human dignity and human rights.”

The Catholic bishops of the United States and Mexico have also spoken out on the issue, calling upon the governments of the United States and Mexico to work together to apprehend traffickers and destroy trafficking networks: “Both governments must vigilantly seek to end trafficking in human persons. . . . Together, both governments should more effectively share information on trafficking operations and should engage in joint action to apprehend and prosecute traffickers.”

Adapted from On Human Trafficking, a resource developed by the Committee on Migration of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops

Ohio Legislation

SB 235, sponsored by Senator Fedor and Senator Grendell is pending in the Senate Judiciary-Criminal Justice Committee.
Further action is not expected until after the November elections.

HB 493, sponsored by Representative Chandler has many of the same features as SB 235.

You are encouraged to contact your elected officials asking support for such legislation.

Catholic Conference of Ohio Action Alert on Legislation Prohibiting Human Trafficking (April 23, 2010)

Resources

U.S. State Department's Trafficking in Persons Report 2010

Catholic Relief Services Blog Entry: Human Trafficking has Global Reach. Ken Hackett. CRS President

Catholic Conference of Ohio Testimony in support of SB 235 regarding Human Trafficking.

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Human Trafficking Resources

Need More Information

Contact Jim Tobin , 614-224-7147