The historic and newly-enacted FOSTA-SESTA which overwhelmingly was passed by the Senate earlier this year and signed into law prevents websites who knowingly facilitate sex trafficking to be shielded from claims filed by child trafficking victims.
We must keep the protections and legislative intent provided under FOSTA-SESTA intact. The inclusion of this language in the trade agreement would be a slap in the face to trafficking survivors, their families, law enforcement and the countless anti-trafficking advocates and organizations who have served to bring a voice to this issue and seek justice.
FOSTA-SESTA fulfills a promise by then-candidate Trump, who in 2016 signed Enough Is Enough®’s Children’s Internet Safety Presidential Pledge in which he promised to advance public policies and provide law enforcement with the resources and tools needed to investigate and prosecute Internet crimes involving the sexual exploitation of children. The Pledge called out the need for Congress to amend section 230 of the CDA, which is exactly what FOSTA- SESTA accomplished.
It is evident that the inclusion of Section 230-like language is the tech lobby’s strategy to undermine the provisions of FOSTA-SESTA. The intent of key opposition was clear this past January in a statement saying: "baking Section 230 into NAFTA may be the best opportunity we have to protect it domestically." Friends, we can't let this happen!
For the sake of all trafficking survivors and their families, let's not allow these underhanded attempts thwart the historic progress recently made, nor allow countless others to be victimized because this language was not retracted. We must continue to hold websites accountable for knowingly facilitating trafficking, and allow victims to seek justice. We simply will not stand for any attempt to undermine or threaten the dignity and well-being of our women and children.
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