In an effort to better protect and keep safe the young victims of child sex trafficking, Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe will put forth two motions at next Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting:
- Supervisor Knabe will call for the expansion of the County’s Safe House Program in order to create more safe places throughout the region where minors, who are in danger of being exploited by pimps and traffickers, can go to for help. http://bit.ly/csec-safe-house
- Supervisor Knabe and Supervisor Hilda Solis will ask for the creation of a protocol to administer programs and services for victims of child sex trafficking in Los Angeles County. http://bit.ly/csec-unified
“The number one challenge we are facing in our war on child sex trafficking is keeping kids safe,” said Supervisor Knabe. “Nearly twenty years ago, I created the Safe House Program to protect our most vulnerable population from danger. Now, we have an opportunity to expand a lifesaving, but underused, program to reach children who are being sexually exploited for money. We must leverage every resource available to ensure these victims have a safe place in their own community where they can go to for help. There are fire stations, community centers and libraries all over the County where these children could escape the streets and their trafficker and get the protection they need.”
Once we have the victims in a safe place, we need to have the proper protocols in place to give them the tools and services they need to seek a better life. The County must bring together all of the good work we are doing and create a consolidated program to ensure we can serve these girls, and give them an opportunity to overcome their trauma.”