A bill introduced by North Carolina Senator Ted Budd would require abortionists to file a report with the National Human Trafficking Hotline if they suspect a patient is a victim of human trafficking.
The Stopping Traffickers and Their Accomplices Act would also require abortionists to participate in annual training to recognize signs of human trafficking and certify that they are taking steps to offer assistance to trafficked women.
“Human trafficking is a horrific crime that must be confronted and eradicated,” Budd told The Daily Signal. “Given the nature of how abortion clinics operate, it is necessary to provide needed accountability to ensure they are not aiding and abetting the abuse of women enslaved in the sex trade.”
Though detractors have derided the bill as “bizarre” and claimed there is no link between trafficking and abortion, abortion is a frequently-used tool among traffickers. Live Action’s Aiding Abusers investigation, for example, found a decades-long systemic cover-up of child sexual abuse at Planned Parenthood. The series featured interviews with former abortion facility staffers, information on sex trafficking, recorded cases, and more. Planned Parenthood has additionally been caught telling abusers to pose as guardians for minors and encouraging them to lie about the ages of their victims. There are also numerous real-life examples of predators aided by Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry.
A report published by the Annals of Health Law in 2014 also found that Planned Parenthood is visited frequently by trafficking victims. The report revealed that survivors had “significant contact with clinical treatment facilities, most commonly Planned Parenthood,” (emphasis added) and testified to having multiple abortions at the demand of their pimps, with one survivor specifically explaining that Planned Parenthood was chosen because “[they] didn’t ask any questions”:
I got pregnant six times and had six abortions during this time. Several of them were from a doctor who was a client — he did them back door — I came in the back door after hours and paid them off the books. This kept my name off any records… At least one of my abortions was from Planned Parenthood because they didn’t ask any questions.
Other studies have likewise affirmed that traffickers rely on abortion to keep their victims able to work.
Concerned Women for America CEO and President Penny Nance praised the legislation in a press release as a much-needed effort to help women.
“Most Americans find it hard to believe that slavery still exists, yet an estimated 27.6 million worldwide are victims with the majority being women and girls,” she said. “It is no surprise that abortion facilities aid and abet traffickers by ending the life of their little one, only to be sent right back into forced sex labor. Studies show that it is common for women who are being trafficked … [to be] the victim of at least one forced abortion.”
Kristan Hawkins, President of Students for Life Action, also said the corruption in the abortion industry and its ties to trafficking need to be addressed.
“Abortion is an avenue for traffickers to continue their horrific abuse of women and girls,” she said. “The abortion industry must be held accountable for aiding and abetting traffickers, and any opposition to this humanitarian bill will show that abortion’s financial interests are being placed [above] the needs of women. The Stopping Traffickers and Their Accomplices Act is a great step towards preventing the abortion industry from profiting off of sex trafficking and ignoring the crimes they may be facilitating.”
