Washington, DC – The Senate is expected to vote early next week on H.R. 1865—legislation known as FOSTA-SESTA. This legislation restores civil rights of action to victims of sex trafficking and empowers states Attorneys General to prosecute the corporate entities and websites that facilitate online sex trafficking. The National Center on Sexual Exploitation calls on the Senate to pass a clean bill without any amendments.
“It is absolutely crucial that the Senate pass FOSTA-SESTA without any amendments. It is no secret that even seemingly beneficial amendments to this legislation are intended to kill the bill,” said Lisa L. Thompson, Vice President of Policy and Research at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation. “Entities in the tech sector and their allies in the Senate are attempting to undermine this legislation. If they succeed in amending FOSTA-SESTA, victims of online sex trafficking will be denied their legal right to have their day in court, and state prosecutors will restricted from bringing cases against corporations with business models based on sexual exploitation. In other words, lawlessness on the Internet will prevail.”
“Giving victims of online sex trafficking the ability to obtain justice from the facilitators of their abuse is long overdue. Our U.S. Senators have an important choice to make: whether they side with the corporate kingpins of sex trafficking or with the victims of sex trafficking,” Thompson added. “I hope they choose the latter and ensure that victims of sexual trafficking are no longer sacrificed on the altar of corporate self-interest.”
To learn more about the Communications Decency Act and its role in facilitating online sex trafficking visitendsexualexploitation.org/cda. See also: Does #MeToo Have the Power to Bring Down Corporatized Sex Trafficking?