April 6, 2018 at 1:53 p.m.
STATE LEGISLATION
Junior Leaguer fights human trafficking
Instead, Denise Murphy McGraw celebrated the fact that a bill protecting and bringing justice to human trafficking victims would receive individual attention and perhaps become law.
Mrs. McGraw, a parishioner of St. Kateri Tekakwitha parish in Schenectady and a government relations professional, has been working toward that end for more than a year as a volunteer with the Junior League of Schenectady and Saratoga Counties, a women's civic leadership organization.
"Human trafficking really impacts all walks of life," Mrs. McGraw told The Evangelist. While trafficking can be mistaken as something that happens only in poor, urban neighborhoods, she said, "We've seen that there have been issues like this in our own backyards.
What's trafficking?
"It's everywhere and we need to bring these issues to the forefront," she continued. "Part of it is education. People just don't know what [human trafficking] is."
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which sponsors an anti-trafficking program, calls human trafficking "modern-day slavery" and "a horrific crime against the fundamental rights and dignity of the human person." The United Nations defines it as "recruitment, transportation, harboring or receipt of persons by means of force, fraud or coercion" for the purpose of exploitation - which can include prostitution, forced labor or services, slavery and servitude.
Though statistics are elusive because of the nature of trafficking, the U.N. cites 20.9 million victims worldwide, with nearly 1.5 million in the U.S., Canada and developed countries of the EU. Human trafficking is known as one of the world's most profitable crimes and can happen anywhere - from hotels and spas, to restaurants and factories, to private residences - according to the USCCB.
Happens even here
Mrs. McGraw pointed to a 2012 case of forced labor by an illegal immigrant in the Llenroc mansion in Rexford, right in the Albany Diocese. She said the incident hit home because her chapter of the Junior League had showcased the house as part of a fundraising tour.
It made Mrs. McGraw think: What if her 12-year-old daughter, an altar server at St. Kateri's, fell victim to trafficking?
"Something could happen to our kids," Mrs. McGraw said. "They could be taken and get into something wrong and get into this world" of trafficking.
A Junior League member for 12 years, Mrs. McGraw has been her chapter's president, an international board member and, currently, a co-chair on the state level. The organization hones in on issues of importance to women and children, like domestic violence, literacy, children's nutrition and more.
The league welcomes "all walks of life," she said. "This isn't just about nice, white, well-off do-gooders," but women who want to affect public policy, gain self-confidence and make a difference.
Human trafficking has been the Junior League's focus since the Trafficking Victims Protection and Justice Act was introduced in the New York State Legislature last year.
Legislation's aim
The bill, said Mrs. McGraw, "levels the playing field of the law" so that victims of sex trafficking aren't criminally charged with prostitution and perpetrators are held to the same legal standards. The bill would also make sex trafficking punishable as a violent felony, and trafficked 16- and 17-year-olds would receive more services and shelter.
This year, the Junior League spearheaded a social media campaign using the slogan, "Women are not for sale," and lobbied more than 108 state senators to co-sign the legislation.
"I'm so proud of all of that," said Mrs. McGraw, who considers advocacy on the topic a form of evangelization. "It's such an important issue. This was my calling. You've got to remember these kids that were brought into this horrible life.
"As a Catholic," she continued, "you have to draw on your faith to believe that these people can be saved from this. [The faith is] not just about sitting there on Sunday morning or Saturday night. It's not about us. It's about helping others. This is [about] the fundamentals of what we all strive for: protecting children and protecting people."
The Niskayuna resident helps with parish youth ministry and meets with couples having their children baptized at St. Kateri parish. She plans to bring her concerns about human trafficking to the parish's social justice ministry.
If the legislation passes, Mrs. McGraw said, there will still be a need for more dialogue and awareness, prevention measures and supports for victims looking to rebuild their lives: "It's just the beginning."[[In-content Ad]]
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