SUMMER Women of the Senate Campaign engages thousands in support for S. 1968

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1 SUMMER 2016 Women of the Senate Campaign engages thousands in support for S The Legislative Advocacy Work Group of U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking (USCSAHT) led a tenweek campaign in late April-June to build support among Senate women for S the Business Supply Chain Transparency on Trafficking and Slavery Act. The bill, introduced by Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), would amend the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 to require certain large companies to disclose information describing any measures the company has taken to identify and address conditions of forced labor, slavery, human trafficking, and the worst forms of child labor within the company's supply chains. Left to right: Marie Lucey, OSF, Ann Scholz, SSND and Laura C. Forero, Staff Assistant to Senator Gillibrand. The purpose of the campaign was to persuade the 20 women senators to co-sponsor S. 1968, the Business Supply Chain Transparency on Trafficking and Slavery Act. It included s, phone calls, a national sign-on letter, and visits with staff in Washington, D.C. and in the Senators home states. USCSAHT members sent hundreds of s and made numerous phone calls to Senate offices, urging the women in the Senate to make good on their intention to give priority to legislation addressing human trafficking during the 114 th Congress. Several groups made on-site visits to their Senators offices to advocate for S. 1968, including groups in Michigan, Washington, Oregon and California. Left to right: SNJM Associate Bob Juarez, Kelly Jones, Field Representative/Legislative Correspondent for California Senator Barbara Boxer, Margaret O Rourke, CSJ, Jo Ann De Quattro, snjm. (Photo by Nicolas D. Rodriquez, Field Representative for Senator Barbara Boxer.) The sign-on letter, personally delivered to the Senate offices by Ann Scholz, SSND and Marie Lucey, OSF in July, contained 3,352 signatures from USCSAHT members and others representing all 50 states and several countries overseas. Each letter, with signatures included, was an impressive 44-pages in length. The letter was also promoted by the Maryknoll Global Concerns Office and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR).

2 We had a great time and visited all 20 offices, said Ann Scholz. We thanked Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) for co-sponsoring S Many offices were already familiar with USCSAHT and receive regular calls from our members. Gilbert Ruiz, Staff Assistant in Senator Gillibrand s office, said that one sister calls him every Tuesday! Senator Baldwin s office also mentioned that they receive many, many calls from USCSAHT members. We stopped in Senator Blumenthal s (D-CT) office to thank him for introducing S and to explained our efforts in support of the bill. USCSAHT focused attention on S because it would require companies to provide consumers with information about their efforts to ensure that its products are free of child labor, forced labor, slavery, and human trafficking. That information will help businesses and consumers avoid inadvertently promoting or sanctioning these crimes through production and purchase of raw materials, goods, and finished products that have been tainted by human trafficking or slave labor in the supply chains. We are grateful to everyone who participated in any and all phases of this campaign. Human Trafficking Awareness Campaigns at the DNC/RNC Sisters in Cleveland and Philadelphia joined with other community groups to present strong anti-trafficking messages to visitors during the July Republican and Democratic National Conventions. A generous donor made it possible for USCSAHT to support these awareness campaigns. Photo of signage in a bus shelter near Penn Station in Philadelphia. Other shelters are located near City Hall and the Convention Center. In Cleveland, USCSAHT co-sponsored bus signage with VOCA, the office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, through the Ohio Attorney General's Office. Anne Victory, HM, reported, I ve been seeing buses all over the city when I'm out and about. The wording (too small to read in the picture) is:

3 Talitha Kum, the International Network of Consecrated Life Against Trafficking in Persons, held its first-ever meeting of the International Coordination Team on Wednesday, July 13. The online meeting was led by Gabriella Bottani, CMS, Director of Talitha Kum. Those attending included representatives from each continent, including Adeline Abamo, SDS (Asia/Philippines); Patricia Nnenna Ebegbulum, SSL (Africa/Nigeria); Carmela Gibaja Esquerdo, HAG (Latin America/El Salvador); Noelene Robyn Simmons, SM (Oceania/Australia); Nicole Rivard, OLA (Canada/ Montreal); Ann Oestreich, IHM (United States); and Imelda Poole, IBVM (Europe). "This message was supported by grant number VOCA awarded by the Office for Victims of Crime, Office of Justice Programs, through the Ohio Attorney General's Office. Victims of federal crimes will be served. It was also supported by the U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking. Stock photo. Posed Model." All of the verbiage about VOCA was required. Anne continued, It's hard to read from the pictures, but when you are behind a bus that has the sign on its tail, the message about who supported the work is quite clear! We have seven designs (different faces representing a variety of nationalities and both male and female) and three different tag lines: Sold for Sex, Trapped into Forced Labor, and Bought and Sold. After introductions and network reports, Sister Gabriella reported on Talitha Kum activities worldwide. These activities include: International Day of Prayer and Awareness on Human Trafficking February 8, 2017: Gabriella offered several ideas for a theme for prayer and education on this day. This team will make a decision on the theme at the October meeting. Gabriella will attend the COMPASS meeting, sponsored by USCCB in Rome, from July This meeting will address trafficking in the fishing industry. From September 5-7, Gabriella will attend the Africa Network meeting in Abuja, Nigeria. From September 19-24, the Mexican Network, the newest member of Talitha Kum, will hold its organizing meeting. Sister Carmela, the Latin American representative, will represent Gabriella and Talitha Kum at this meeting. Representatives of USCSAHT and the French Canadian network (CATHII) will attend to show support to this new North American member and open channels for communication and future collaboration. Talitha Kum will offer two workshops at the World Social Forum in Montreal (August 9-14):

4 one by the CATHII, and another by Gabriella and Ann Oestreich IHM, representing USCSAHT. Talitha Kum held a press conference announcing the launch of the Run for Life Campaign in Brazil to address human trafficking at the Rio Summer Olympics. Follow the campaign on Twitter: #winamedal. Website Update Have you visited our website recently? ( If so, you may have noticed several changes and additions over the past four months. The home page offers direct links to the newest posts on our site. Find these to the right of the main article. Under the Resources tab, you ll find a link to the latest Trafficking Reports from government agencies and partner organizations. Be sure to check out the recently released 2016 Trafficking in Persons Report from the U.S. State Dept. icking-reports/ Monthly bulletin announcements (August-November) that offer a fact about trafficking and a link to our website are available at er-resources/. They are available in English and Spanish. Looking for a prayer service for the World Day Against Trafficking on July 30? You ll find one on our Faith Resources page. (Special thanks to the CCVI Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Office for sharing this prayer with us English and Spanish versions available!) er-resources/ The monthly reflections by members of the USCSAHT Board are excellent! Be sure to read and share these spiritual resources with your congregations and coalitions: er-resources/monthly-reflection/ The website has a new look: with less tabs and more drop-down menus to simplify the homepage and give it a crisp, clean look. With the assistance of our Communications Work Group members, we are now able to feature a story about the anti-trafficking activities of U.S. Sisters on the home page. This story is changed each 7-10 days don t miss these great articles! We ll want promote your local anti-trafficking events! Send information on your events to atoestreich@aol.com and we ll add them to the Events calendar on our website. Visit the website often. You ll find interesting news items, resources, and much more there every week. USCSAHT plans for 2017 NCEA Conference

5 USCSAHT will be present at the April 18-20, 2017 National Catholic Education Association Conference in St. Louis. The NCEA Convention & Expo is the largest privateeducation association gathering in the nation. Those participating represent all aspects of Catholic school and faith-based education. Thanks to Margaret Nacke, CSJ, USCSAHT will have a display booth in the new nonprofit organizations sector of the conference. Jeanne Christensen, RSM, chair of the Educational Resources Work Group, has worked with Margaret to put together a USCSAHT-sponsored panel of sisters/educators who will offer a workshop entitled What Every Educator Needs to Know About Human Trafficking for NCEA participants. We will keep you updated on further developments regarding our presence at the NCEA. Be sure to let teachers and administrators from your congregations know about our booth, and that we look forward to seeing them at the NCEA next spring! Take Action: support trafficking survivors through education and employment Since the USCSAHT Survivor Support working group announced its program to assist survivors of trafficking with education and job placement opportunities, USCSAHT members have generously contributed over $6,500. We are very grateful for your support! The working group is establishing guidelines and procedures for women to apply for these funds. We will keep members informed and publish this information as soon as it is available. This Josephine Bakhita Scholarship Fund will assist survivors to reach educational goals: ESL, GED, BA and BS degrees. You can contribute in several ways: Make annual donations to the Josephine Bakhita Scholarship Fund; Offer a full or partial scholarship from one of your sponsored educational institutions to a survivor. Offer a survivor a paid position in a setting suited to her skills. To make a tax-deductible donation, please send a check payable to U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking. In the memo line or elsewhere, please indicate that this donation is directed to the Josephine Bakhita Scholarship Fund. Send your donation to: U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking Attn. Sister Kathleen Coll, SSJ 138 W. Carpenter Lane Philadelphia, PA For more information on the Education and Employment Partnership Programs, click on the following links: Employment Partnership Program: content/uploads/2016/01/uscsaht-employment- Partnership.pdf Education Partnership Program: content/uploads/2016/01/uscsaht-education- Partnership.pdf

6 Help USCSAHT Grow! Invite other congregations in your LCWR Region to join USCSAHT. Direct them to our online membership form or share this mail-in membership form with them. tent/uploads/2016/01/uscsaht-membership- Printable-Copy.pdf Encourage your members, associates, coworkers, and friends to visit and Like our Facebook page. The page is updated every day! cking/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel Help us show people throughout the country how active US Catholic Sisters are in the movement to end human trafficking. Send event information, educational and faith resources, articles and photos for inclusion on our website to As USCSAHT grows, so does our need for financial support to enable us to better serve our members. If your congregation has a fund that would allow USCSAHT to apply for a grant, please inform our treasurer, Kathleen Coll, SSJ. (dawnsplacekc@gmail.com) ICYMI (In Case Your Missed It!) In May, Marlene Weisenbeck, FSPA, researched and shared a compendium of references about the efforts of Pope Francis to end modern slavery. The FRANCIS Factor in Abating Human Trafficking can be found at ay-monthly-reflection/ The work of USCSAHT was featured in CHA s Health Progress magazine, July/August edition. Read Women Religious Unite to Eradicate Trafficking. The LCWR Region 9 Anti-Human Trafficking Task Force has prepared educational toolkits about human trafficking and distributed them to every Catholic parish in Wisconsin. nti-human-trafficking-educational-toolkits-distributedwisconsin-parishes/ Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Holy See Permanent Observer at the United Nations, gave a speech on July 13 dedicated to the elimination of trafficking in children and young people. no/pubblico/2016/07/19/160719a.html Is your annual membership contribution due? If so, please send your contribution to U.S. Catholic Sisters Against Human Trafficking Attn. Sister Kathleen Coll, SSJ 138 W. Carpenter Lane Philadelphia, PA As always, we are very grateful for your support.

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