Good News for Trafficking Survivors

[Trigger warning for references to trafficking.]

This is such amazing news:

Late yesterday, the New York State Senate passed legislation, already approved by the Assembly last month, to allow survivors of commercial sex trafficking to clear their records of prostitution-related crimes by vacating their convictions. Governor Paterson is expected to sign the bill (A.7670/S.4429) into law, amending New York State Criminal Procedure Law.

The vote came the day after Secretary of State Hilary Clinton released the State Department's annual "Trafficking in Persons" report, which for the first time included an assessment of trafficking in the U.S. and acknowledged the U.S. as "a source, transit, and destination country for men, women, and children subjected to trafficking in persons, specifically forced labor, debt bondage, and forced prostitution."

"All too often, victims of sex trafficking are arrested for and convicted of prostitution-related crimes long before they are able to exit their coercive circumstances," said Sienna Baskin, staff attorney at the Sex Workers Project at the Urban Justice Center. "This landmark legislation will allow these survivors to start over with a clean slate. By leaving behind any criminal record, they can avoid undeserved red flags and any stigma associated with their past exploitation. New York is creating a model that will help stop the justice system from treating these survivors as criminals. The rest of the country should follow New York's leadership."

Yes, yes the rest of the country should do that.

So, apart from granting survivors freedom from the substantial burden created by criminal records, giving them an immeasurably better chance to rebuild their lives, this legislation will also ensure that more people survive in the first place and are able to remain free:

"Our clients include women trafficked into commercial sex who were arrested more than 10 times. Their fears of retribution prevented them from informing law enforcement about their exploitation," added Baskin. "A criminal record for prostitution is a barrier to their recovery, especially when a potential employer asks these survivors to explain their convictions. These women have suffered enough and simply want to move on with their lives by finding a good job and a safe place to live, or applying for immigration status. With that economic security, we believe this bill will help these women escape being victimized or coerced again."

Joy joy joy.

[H/T to Shaker tehkenny.]