U.S. Conference of Mayors Adopts Resolution Reducing Demand

Global Centurion was founded five years ago to help communities think creatively about how to reduce demand for commercial sexual exploitation in order to end human trafficking. Over the last couple of years new NGOs have begun to work on the issue, and now we are beginning to get traction in the public sector too. At their recent annual meeting, the U.S. Conference of Mayors unanimously adopted a resolution, combatting commercial sexual exploitation through comprehensive demand enforcement and prevention, emphasizing the importance of targeting purchasers in the sex trafficking industry.

In light of continuing demand for commercial sex in our country, the U.S. Conference of Mayors has proposed a series of changes in law, law enforcement, and education and awareness programs to address this problem. First, they advocate for legislative change. Specifically, they urge Congress to pass the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act (S. 1738/H.R. 3530). In addition, they call on local governments and the criminal justice system to stop and deter sex buyers through arrest and prosecution, fines, fees, and penalty assessments that match the severity of the crime. They also call for additional research evaluating the effectiveness of demand reduction programs. Finally, they encourage the creation of educational programs that teach students about the dangers of the commercial sex industry.

With a hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people at risk of becoming victims of sex trafficking each year in the United States, including 300,000 children, there is an urgency to promote demand reduction. Global Centurion lauds the U.S. Conference of Mayors for its important resolution and looks forward to seeing new and innovative ways that cities incorporate the suggestions from the resolution into local government.

To view the full resolution, please visit: http://usmayors.org/82ndAnnualMeeting/media/resolutions-final.pdf#page=37