commission on the status of women. the mayor will be announcing not only the winners of the poster contest but also the winners of this year's abolitionist awards. fire commissioner -- is here and emily conroy from the department of justice is here. thank you for joining us. i want to bring up mayor lee so she can bring up the announcements of the honorees for today. apl(applause) >> thank you emily and thank you to the commission on the status of women to our human rights commission thank you for being here and the commissioners and staff as well. thank you police chief for being here and certainly all the other department heads. wendy thank you for being here as well. members of the community. advocacy groups that have been

so important to this movement. supervisor carmen chu, i know you and mayor newsom had this initial effort back some years ago to recognize the need to abolish human trafficking. an san francisco being such an international city, many of our roots are from immigrant families. we understand the problem. we did do something about it and continue that effort. i want to thank the us attorney's office for being here. and so many of you who have from the community done and continue to do what you can do to end human trafficking. this is such an important challenge for all of us. and because we here at from immigrant families; we hear from immigrant women and girls.

the stories are real. they come across international borders. and so san francisco being the city that is not only aware of this, and aware of international traffic that occurs we have to continue doing something about it. if anything, our goal is of course to educate our youth; to make sure they understand that they have partners in both city government and in the community to help. those that are lucky and can survive; all of this and when they end up on the shores of san francisco, if we can find them and provide them with support and help them change their lives. and then get to the business of the criminal acts involved in exploiting our kids. we should do all of that and this trafficking. i want to thank everybody for being here today, helping

celebrate this event recognizing the awareness month but also recommitting ourselves in every possible way to do what we can do to end this on a worldwide basis and to know the source businesses and individuals and groups of people organized to continue this effort and to do our best to end their activities as well. i want to make sure that i think both emily but also nancy goldberg for your interest as well not only interest but your work as a native san franciscan to do everything that you have been doing to end this too. i am privileged today to recognize a number of individuals who have been strong, strong advocates,

people who have gone way beyond the duty but also deserving of recognition for all their advocacy work. the first person i would like to introduce is these year's recipient of the abolitionist the word for advocacy, staff attorney with with the asian pacific legal advocacy services, 2013 abolitionist awardee for advocacy, cindy lu. apl (applause) we also have someone whose services have been both exemplary and deserving of recognition. she is a founder and executive director of freedom house. she is the 2013 abolitionist

award for providing exemplary services, -- em. (applause) we also together in collaboration with the status of women, with supervisors, department heads, the human rights commission we wanted to make sure that future generations of children are part of the solution. in that effort both in advocacy we have a strong, strong goal of educating our public and all the other kids and families in our city. this is a way of our quality of life, we cannot accept human trafficking.

part of the way to do that is to have this be part of the kids education, and push strongly. the collaborative this year, allow the youth of san francisco to enter in a poster contest to provide artistic ability to the messaging of this really important movement. the 2013 poster contest winners i get to announce. i will begin with third-place winners. the third-place winner, first one eighth-grade student, from james brannan middle school. shelley lu (sounds like) apl(applause) also an eighth-grade student from james dunham as well, stella lee. thank you. apl(applause)

(applause) to be an eighth-grader. the collaborative has chosen for the second place at 12 greater, from abraham lincoln high school. stephanie chung (applause) and then we have a number of

first place winners. i'm sure this is all about collaboration, talking about it, what it means absorbing the purpose and working together. the first place poster altogether for all of us to see. i would like to name everybody. community youth center of san francisco, the young asian women against violence youth participant jennifer chang. kimberly how. erica lam. allie lee. adriana wen (sounds like) diana -- and amy ung. congratulations everybody. (applause) (applause)

(applause) good job everybody. thank you. and so at this time supervisor -- or do i give it back to -- nancy. thank you again. >> at this time we would like to call supervisor carmen chu. (applause) >> i think that is part of the program they wanted the

winners to perhaps say a few words. >> thank you for choosing our picture. we were really surprised when you did. we are really happy. (applause) >> we were very surprised. thank you very much. (applause) >> i'm tiffany chung, so happy to be recognized in such a way. thank you very much. (applause) >> hi. i name is amy. thank you for letting us having this opportunity to make this

poster and also recognize us. thank you. (applause) >> thank you. i want to thank mayor lee and the members of the collaborative. as will build awareness for human trafficking issues i would like to call attention to the need for more shelter beds according to the project study released in 2012, there are only 678 beds in the entire country exclusively dedicated to trafficking survivors. there are thousands the deed aftercare services. that we offer at the monarch residence for women. last year freedom house --

sorry to do this again, there are thousands that need aftercare services that we offer at the monarch services. for girls ages 12-17 years old. we must do everything we can to bring resources. (applause) thank you. and support to these brave women and children who traffic right here in our own backyard. i am grateful for this tremendous award and the commitment through hope, restoration and a new life, to human trafficking survivors of all ages. thank very much. (applause) >> good morning everyone. i want to thank everyone for having us here today and what

an honor it is today. thank you to the human rights commission. i probably will not remember to thank everyone in this room that has been supported not only in my work but in the work with the client and the survivors that we work with in the community. i want to start by thanking mayor lee for the authorization of the women's act, a key piece of legislation. (applause) this award is special but in some ways the work should always continue to live on beyond just me as an individual, beyond any individual in the work should always live on in us together when we talk about collaborating in sfr san francisco. for the long-term in the future. the asian pacific legal

outreach was founded in 1975 to promote cultural and legalistic services to the most marginalized in this community and i had the benefit of standing on the shoulders of giants with the agency had a sister relationship with other agencies amazing agency such as the asian women shelter, cameron house and arica. in this fight against domestic violence, what is legal work? what is a restraining order out a piece of paper if there is no shelter or safe place? such as the ones that -- provide for the survivors. but is a -- together these agencies created in 2001, a

collaborative as of october 2013 we have expanded the collaborative to consist of legal outreach, asian women shelter, arica and -- to reflect the diversity of the needs of our clients. our mission remains true. to see the not as victims but to talk about what resilience and courage mean. not only for women and children, people of all genders. people often forget the elderly. people over 25 countries and a multitude of industries. basically the industry that you can be forced to work in, trafficking and forced labor them your current.

millions of people are trafficked worldwide. needs to make the top of our policymakers. political instability and other issues increase vulnerability to trafficking and other types of violent experiences. violence is interconnected. we cannot ignore the dynamics we talk about . being aware of anti- human trafficking efforts and anti-domestic violence, and sexual assault, other abuse concerns that affect our society and community. as of january first, 1863, president lincoln declared that the emancipation proclamation would take effect that they. here we are about 150 some years later we still see slavery in the form of trafficking and forced labor in our community. in the fight

the focus is often on education and awareness but it's not enough. we need direct services. we need to raise our voices and bush congress and let them know that the united states must recommit to putting resources to ending trafficking. and comprehensive immigration reform. and statewide. we should continue to fight for legislation like the domestic worker to live rights of other things that promote marginalization of our clients. at the end of the day and work with survivors we need to understand and listen and let them know that the work goes on. i want to thank -- a personal mentor. she has really been a mentor;

she challenges us and says we are not powerless. what about ...? that is the question we should always ask ourselves. thank you. (applause) >> thank you again to mayor ed lee who has to leave and catch a plane. thank you. (applause) now i would like to call on supervisor carmen chu who has been fantastic and is been really outspoken; she has spoken so often and so well. it is a pleasure to have you here. >> supervisor chu: i want to thank nancy, and the department, and the commission. i want to recognize my colleague amelia cohen a strong supporter. i want to thank and

congratulate the awardees and thank you for the work that you do to bring awareness and continue to fight and i want to thank the department heads who are here, annemarie conroy who is here. i'm glad that you're here because we will need all of your help to continue this effort. we talk about human trafficking and human trafficking awareness month which begins january eleventh, it's not about this month only. it's the opportunity for us to highlight the issue but it really is something that we ought to be working on all the time when we have the budget before us. we ought to be thinking about it when we have legislation before us, as department heads and you talk about coordination, we ought to be thinking about it. i want to thank you all for being here and i hope that you bring with you sort of a renewed dedication to deal with this issue. is something that we don't need to forget about. it is often hidden. today i want to congratulate everybody. i also want to introduce our

speaker that you will be hearing from today who has an amazing story to tell. i had the opportunity to speak you little with minjang (sounds like) earlier. she has served as an inspiration earlier for us all. the healing she wants to bring not only for her own experiences but for many other individuals who may have been human trafficked or had other traumas. it is an inspiration to see someone persevere through such a difficult ordeal and bring a strong voice and transform our own life into something that helps others. and so i am pleased and honored to be able to introduce to you all minjeng (sounds like)

(applause) >> thanks everyone. i am a survivor. it's an interesting way to be introduced to the crowd. it's usually a secret that you only tell your close friends. a brief history. typical story. my traffickers were my parents, severely abused at home, sold for sex and the city and throughout the south bay. the real secret i'm here to tell you is that i have an extreme, hidden desire to be a dancer. the thing i love about dancers is that they seem so graceful

and in their body. and curious about what their bodies are doing and flaunt with the music they feel fluid. there's something about that grace that i aspire to. be there is one thing that i can tell you about human trafficking and being sold in being abused as a child, the sense of fluidity and grace i had to fight for. also the sense of safety in my own body. you might hear a little shaking in my voice, physically shaking, not because there is danger to my life now and yet that history of almost 21 years of enslavement still lives with me. i am here today. this is part of my training to be a dancer. i will not bust out any moves. i am working to be fluid in my

body. i ask you think about this issue did not just think about having severed so many sexual assaults and rapes and molested by my parents and treated as a slave. think about the psychological change and the emotional poverty i had to face. i would like to share a quote, mark lagon, the head of the state department trafficking office. trafficking as a crime and human dignity. i look up the definition of dignity, once about worthiness and one about self-respect. human trafficking is a crime that robs people of their human dignity. is the traffickers

dignity question? why is my dignity question? one of the definitions of dignity is self-respect. that is what was stolen from me, not my self-respect but my sense of self-respect. i stand before you and up until when i started speaking i questioned why i am here. why do i get to speak. my fellow survivors who cannot speak english. why not the young man or boy because he was not a girl being raped? why not somebody who has tattoos and did not get a college education? because of those why's i'm here. i can give them voice. those people, my friends, the survivor friends of those who did not survive, there is an equal amount of self-respect

you give me today. that is why i am here. to ask as we move to end slavery that we look within our own lives and don't see traffickers has horrible people out there. what about the 15-year-old boy who was recruited by his father to become a trafficker? he himself was a victim. or what about people in severe poverty who have no other opportunity? the only thing they can do is sell another human being. this is a complex issue. we have the roots of violence within us. i see that within myself and i root them out within myself. i ask you to do that in your own lives. how are we loving our children? how are we loving our partners? how are we loving the strangest on the street. equally as important as passing the -- act which we need to do. equally important having press

conferences, reading stories, going on the news. it's how you treat everyone in your day-to-day life. thank you. (applause) (applause) >> wow. thank you so much. that takes so much courage. to be that voice. i don't know. i know what it is to tell the story of survival. and the people who you can reach with that it's untold amounts of people. you would be surprised how many would be affected by what you have to say and i'm glad that you brought up boys. i think that they are not always thought of as victims.

in trafficking or in many other things but they are. anyway, i just thank you all for coming. this was wonderful that you were here. i think to be able -- oh, one more. come here. >> my name is marilyn -- president of the friends of the san francisco commission on the status of women. this was awesome. thank you for inviting me. what comes to mind is a collaboration, 20 agencies and all of you here taking time off on a wor day to honor our keynote speaker. the quote that i had,

what margaret meade said, a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world. you all are doing that. and a half of the friends of the san francisco commission on the status of women, we are the group -- your friends that will help raise money to continue your work, that is why i'm here. i also wanted to say that trafficking involves exploitation in many forms. i have seen in my own community, sometimes it comes in many forms. bondage. professional women and men are in deep debt bondage because they have to pay the traffickers of those who recruit them to their jobs. there was a philippine american, the first to serve in

washington state legislature; among her many accomplish things as passage of the first -- washington with the first a donation to make human trafficking illegal, and you are containing her work. she authored the joint legislative oversight committee on trade policy. human trafficking touches every corner of the globe, especially the united states, especially san francisco.it is the second largest and fastest-growing crime in the world. 9,000,000,000 to 30 billion annually. this is something we need to be more vigilant. we need to look beneath the surface, look around us. this action, human trafficking could be happening in our