Washington D.C., Jun 26, 2019 / 14:00 pm
Human trafficking survivors shared their stories of abuse and oppression before an audience on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, kicking off a day of education and advocacy in the U.S. Congress.
Experts, members of Congress, and trafficking victims spoke at a Capitol Hill conference on human trafficking held on June 26. The National Advocacy Center of the Sisters of the Good Shepherd co-hosted the event, along with the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the DC Baptist Convention.
"I cannot talk about human trafficking without saying 'modern-day slavery'. Because when I think about my situation, it was a form of modern-day slavery," said Evelyn Chumbow, speaker with Survivors of Slavery and a survivor of labor trafficking.
Chumbow emphasized the importance of not separating sex trafficking from labor trafficking when discussing the problems. "One thing I hate is separation. I hate to separate the issue of sex and labor [trafficking]," she said, because "if you're going to address the issue, address the whole issue."