{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=53c0f73e-0bb6-4243-827f-0d13e5c45b17", "Heitkamp Brings DHS Blue Campaign Leader to ND to Raise Awareness, Build Resources for Statewide Anti-Human Trafficking Efforts", "2015-10-09", "2015", "2015-10", "Democrat", "House", "ND", "Heidi Heitkamp", "H001069", "www.heitkamp.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Senator Builds on Her Efforts to Advocate for and Protect Runaway and Homeless Youth from Falling Victim to Human Traffickers \r\nBISMARCK, N.D.  U.S. Senator Heidi Heitkamp today brought Maria Odom -- who chairs the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)s Blue Campaign, the agencys nationwide effort to combat human trafficking  to North Dakota to learn more about the challenges the state faces in fighting back against these crimes and discuss how to protect runaway and homeless youth from trafficking rings. \r\nDuring a visit to Youthworks, a Bismarck resource center dedicated to helping homeless and runaway youth, Heitkamp and Odom met with law enforcement officials local advocates, experts, and civic leaders who have partnered with Youthworks to combat human trafficking. Together, they discussed ways to work with the Blue Campaign in their continuing efforts to address the growing human trafficking issue in the state and protect North Dakotas most vulnerable young people from falling victims to these crimes  which quickly proliferated in the wake of the states oil and gas boom. They also talked about what tools and resources DHS has to help boost current efforts on the ground by working with groups and agencies in the state.\r\nAfter Heitkamp first raised awareness for Odom last year about the problems with human trafficking in North Dakota, Heitkamp encouraged her to visit the state and meet with advocates and law enforcement firsthand. Heitkamp and her staff coordinated Odoms trip throughout the state this week, during which Odom visited Fargo, Dickinson, and MHA Nation, as well as Bismarck. Heitkamps staff participated in each meeting throughout the week. \r\nBuilding a coalition with our federal partners to tackle one of the most hideous crimes afflicting our state  and our nation  is key to helping us to unmask perpetrators, rescue victims, and prevent future victimization, said Heitkamp. Thats exactly why I have worked with DHS to combat these crimes in our state, through training community sessions and by bringing to North Dakota the top official at DHS dedicated to stopping human trafficking. Her week-long trip throughout North Dakota has been eye-opening, and today, Maria and I visited Youthworks to reinforce the importance of supporting runaway and homeless youth who are often targeted by traffickers. As she and I continue working together to embolden and expand our local anti-human trafficking efforts, Ill also keep pushing legislation that provides resources and protections for our runaway and homeless youth  because it is our duty to take care of all of our children and prevent them from falling prey to these crimes.\r\nThe Department of Homeland Security, through the Blue Campaign, is committed to fighting the terrible crime of human trafficking, said Odom. The unfortunate reality is that human trafficking occurs all around us. Working with federal, state, and local entities  like Senator Heitkamp here in North Dakota  the Blue Campaign will continue to spread awareness of human trafficking in order to assist victims and bring their traffickers to justice.\r\nHeitkamp has worked closely with DHS to raise awareness about human trafficking across North Dakota and the nation. In the past year, Heitkamp has led multiple training sessions in North Dakota with DHS officials totrain North Dakotans,women leadersin the state, andlaw enforcement and victims service providerson how to identify, report, and investigate incidents of human trafficking. In April, Heitkamp joined the DHS Blue Campaign to address 150 students, teachers, and advocates about the need to empower students and educators to recognize and help report instances of human trafficking.\r\nYesterday, DHS and Heitkamp announced a new federal effort to create an alliance between DHS Blue Campaign and the North Dakota Public Health Association that will provide the North Dakota Health Association with the resources it needs to raise awareness and build up training efforts in health facilities throughout the state to better recognize, report, and intervene in cases of human trafficking to support potential victims of these crimes.\r\nBackground: \r\nHeitkamp has been leading the charge to combat and raise awareness about human trafficking in North Dakota and across the nation by:\r\n\r\n \r\nBuilding Progress in the Fight Against Human Trafficking From the Middle Out: Heitkamp helped introduce, and played an integral role in passing in the Senates bipartisan Justice for Victims of Human Trafficking Act which the President signed into law in April. Working across the aisle with Republican Senator Susan Collins, Heitkamp helped reignite the politically stalled legislation by offering a bipartisan, compromise path forward. The final bill provides greater assistance to victims of human trafficking, increased resources to law enforcement and victims services organizations, and secures greater punishments for perpetrators of these horrific crimes. The package also contains provisions Heitkamp fought for and won  including stricter punishments against traffickers who transport victims across state lines, and legal protections from her Safe Harbor bill to make sure victims are not treated as criminals.\r\nWorking Across the Aisle on Bipartisan Solutions: This spring, Heitkamp and Collins introduced bipartisan legislation to give health care providers  including doctors, nurses, and social workers  training to help identify and protect victims of human trafficking. Heitkamp and Collins Stop, Observe, Ask and Respond (SOAR) to Health and Wellness Act would build on Williston and New Town pilot programs to give health providers nationwide needed training on how to recognize, report, and potentially intervene when they see patients who are possible human trafficking victims. Recent studies suggest that nearly one-third of women trafficked in America saw a health care professional while they were still captive to these crimes. \r\nAdvocating for Protections for Young People at Risk: Long a vocal proponent of the Runaway and Homeless Youth and Trafficking and Prevention Act  which would help protect some of the most susceptible targets of human traffickers  Heitkamp helped introduce an amendment to add the measure to the Justice for Victims of Human Trafficking Act and took to the Senate floor to encourage other senators to support the measure  which unfortunately was not included, gaining 56 of the 60 votes needed to be adopted. Heitkamp is continuing to advocate passing the legislation. In July, Heitkamp successfully secured landmark anti-human trafficking protections for children in schools in the No Child Left Behind reform legislation.\r\nAddressing Human Trafficking as a Community Issue in North Dakota: Last fall, Heitkamp launched herStrong & Safe Communities Initiativeto address emerging challenges throughout North Dakota in the wake of the states energy boom, including human and sex trafficking. Specifically, Heitkamp is leading the Strong & Safe Communities Task Force which is comprised of experts, advocates, and officials across the state. Heitkamp will lead the group in providing recommendations for policies addressing these safety issues to keep our communities strong and families safe in their homes. This summer, Heitkamp brought international anti-human trafficking leader Cindy McCain to Bismarck for a Strong & Safe Communities roundtable on the challenges and next steps in North Dakotas fight against human trafficking.\r\n \r\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.heitkamp.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=53c0f73e-0bb6-4243-827f-0d13e5c45b17"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8689877577126026, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}