Briefings & Statements

# Presidential Message on National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month

The White House
January 6, 2026

This National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, my Administration renews our commitment to end the evil of human trafficking, restore law and order across our country, protect the most innocent among us, and ensure that every trafficker faces the full force of American justice.

Under the previous administration, hundreds of thousands of unaccompanied children who entered our country were lost, with many being placed in the hands of smugglers and sex traffickers. This was not only a failure of policy—it was a moral catastrophe that allowed perpetrators of modern-day slavery to exploit our country and our borders. Since returning to office, I have taken unprecedented action to shut down these human trafficking pipelines, rescue the innocent children put in harm’s way, and end the reckless policies that enabled this crisis.

On my first day in office, I immediately declared a national emergency at our southern border to stop the invasion of illegal immigrants and cut off the human trafficking routes that have devastated countless families. I designated the criminal cartels—the primary trafficking networks—as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and initiated the largest mass deportation operation in American history.

Last summer, I signed the One Big Beautiful Bill into law, a landmark piece of legislation that dramatically expands the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), secures historic funding for our Border Patrol, and authorizes the construction of hundreds of miles of new border wall. My Administration launched a fund for sex trafficking survivors exploited through online advertisements to seek compensation from forfeited assets. We have sanctioned more than 100 online scam operators, many of which used forced labor to seize billions of dollars from defrauded Americans and others worldwide. We increased funding for the National Human Trafficking Hotline. I signed the TAKE IT DOWN Act and Trafficking Survivors Relief Act to modernize our tools to fight human trafficking and enable survivors to rebuild their lives. With these enhanced resources, our great law enforcement officers are now equipped with the tools needed to remove dangerous illegal aliens from our streets and dismantle human trafficking networks.

As a result of these decisive actions, our border has been secured, and the flood of illegal aliens entering our country has stopped. For the seventh consecutive month, Border Patrol has released zero illegal aliens into our country. ICE has also launched the Unaccompanied Children Safety Verification Initiative, partnering with local law enforcement to ensure that the unaccompanied minors abandoned by the previous administration are safe, cared for, and not being exploited by traffickers.

This month, we continue our resolve to secure a future where American families can live safely and freely, without the threat of criminal aliens who have no right to be in our country. We are shutting down human trafficking rings, securing our borders, and deporting dangerous criminals to protect our people, communities, and great Nation.

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