The Baptist Press' article today misrepresents the reasons that the Department of Justice and several anti-trafficking advocates have opposed H.R. 3887. The writer attacks the DoJ and the Senate for backing S.3061 instead of H.R. 3887.

Writing critically of the S.3061, the article relies on an argument from Janice Crouce a few weeks ago. Crouce's article argued the position that abolitionists and conservatives have held on prostitution -- that prostitution is inherently wrong and should be banned under the guise of sex trafficking.

Despite Crouce's position, Baptist Press falsifies the support for H.R. 3887 and the link, if any, between prostitution and human trafficking.

From the beginning, several anti-trafficking advocates, including organizations like the Coalition to Abolish Slavery and Trafficking and the Freedom Network, have strongly opposed the provisions of H.R. 3887 that make prostitution a sex trafficking crime. More than 50 organizations signed on to a letter opposing the bill. They have pointed to the bill's inherent flaws, such as its failure to protect real trafficking victims and provide funds to the DoJ to prosecute real trafficking crimes. Other organizations have opposed H.R. 3887's provisions for other reasons. The conservative think tank, the Heritage Foundation, wrote a nine-page analysis criticizing the bill and its provisions as unconstitutional.

The Baptist Press also misrepresents the current laws surrounding human trafficking. In the article, the writer quotes Crouce:

"Considering that the average age of entry into prostitution in the United States is 12-14 years old, the House bill and abolitionists recognize that requiring proof of force, fraud or coercion in cases involving prostituted adults is a very high burden of proof and the burden falls on the victim," Crouse wrote. "Prostituted minors are de facto trafficking victims, but victims not identified until after age 18 are often so scared or traumatized that they will not testify against their pimps and traffickers."

While fraud, force or coercion is required to prove that someone has been trafficked for the purposes of labor, and required for all victims of trafficking over 18, the sex trafficking of a child requires no such proof. This article gets it wrong by stating that the elements of fraud, force or coercion are required for sex trafficked victims under the age of 18. The article falsely attempts to sway readers to believe that these elements make it difficult to assist children who are trafficked for sexual exploitation.

Also, the writer wrongly argues that sex trafficking is more common than other forms of trafficking. Anti-trafficking advocates and scholars have found that labor trafficking occurs more than sex trafficking. However, the media, because of its subject matter, reports sex trafficking stories more often than those involving other forms of trafficking. There is no evidence that sex trafficking is more pervasive than other forms of trafficking.