2023 House Resolution 7

Whereas, Human trafficking, a form of modern-day slavery, is a crime under international, federal, and state law; and

Whereas, Human trafficking is defined as the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of persons for labor or services through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt, bondage, or slavery, and the inducement of a commercial sex act by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such an act has not attained 18 years of age; and

Whereas, To combat this form of modern-day slavery, the people of the United States, the federal government, and state and local governments must work to better understand the complex nature of this problem; and

Whereas, The members of this legislative body encourage all Michiganders to use this week as an opportunity to educate themselves about human trafficking and be aware of how prevalent it is in our state; and

Whereas, Along with health care providers, social workers, child advocacy groups, and law enforcement, we all must work toward a statewide solution; now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the House of Representatives, That the members of this legislative body declare January 9-13, 2023, as Human Trafficking Awareness Week in the state of Michigan. We support and commend all work by individuals, businesses, organizations, and governing bodies for their important contributions to this commitment to end modern-day slavery. We encourage citizens to get involved with local efforts to raise awareness of and opposition to human trafficking.