National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, 2016

Proclamation 9386 of December 31, 2015

National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention
Month, 2016

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

One hundred and fifty years ago, our Nation codified
the fundamental truth that slavery is an affront to
human dignity. Still, the bitter fact remains that
millions of men, women, and children around the globe,
including here at home, are subject to modern-day
slavery: the cruel, inhumane practice of human
trafficking. This month, we rededicate ourselves to
assisting victims of human trafficking and to combating
it in all its forms.

Human trafficking occurs in countries throughout the
world and in communities across our Nation. Children
are forced to fight as soldiers, young people are
coerced into prostitution, and migrants are exploited.
People from all walks of life are trafficked every day,
and the United States is committed to remaining a
leader in the global movement to end this abhorrent
practice. My Administration has made addressing human
trafficking issues in supply chains a priority. Earlier
this year, the White House brought together private
sector and non-governmental organizations to discuss
ways to prevent and eliminate trafficking-related
activities in Federal contracts and in private sector
supply chains. Our National Convening on Trafficking
and Child Welfare helped promote partnership and
establish coordinated action plans to end human
trafficking. Additionally, my Interagency Task Force to
Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons has proposed
a robust set of initiatives. Our anti-trafficking
efforts are supported by a newly established Federal
Office on Trafficking in Persons, under the Department
of Health and Human Services, which helps ensure
trafficking victims can access the services they need.

As we work to end human trafficking here in the United
States, we will continue to lead the effort to root it
out around the world. Our intelligence teams have
devoted more resources to identifying trafficking
networks, law enforcement officers have been working to
dismantle those networks, and prosecutors have striven
to punish traffickers. We have also enhanced our
domestic protections so foreign-born workers better
understand their rights. Additionally, my
Administration has been working closely with technology
companies and law enforcement to better utilize
technology to combat human trafficking. And our Nation
will continue promoting development and economic growth
across the globe to address the underlying conditions
that enable human trafficking in the first place.

All nations have a part to play in keeping our world
safe for all people--regardless of age, background, or
belief. During National Slavery and Human Trafficking
Prevention Month, let us recognize the victims of
trafficking, and let us resolve to build a future in
which its perpetrators are brought to justice and no
people are denied their inherent human rights of
freedom and dignity.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the
United States of America, by virtue of the authority
vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the
United States, do hereby proclaim January 2016 as
National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention
Month, culminating in the annual celebration of
National Freedom Day on February 1. I call

upon businesses, national and community organizations,
families, and all Americans to recognize the vital role
we can play in ending all forms of slavery and to
observe this month with appropriate programs and
activities.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this
thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord
two thousand fifteen, and of the Independence of the
United States of America the two hundred and fortieth.