Richard Gottfried is the co-sponsor of the “Stop Violence in the Sex Trades Act,” the first of its kind in the country, designed to decriminalize and decarcerate the sex trade. Gottfried talks about why sponsors believe bringing the sex trade into the open and removing the stigma from sex workers will help stop trafficking. They say, police will be more willing to listen to sex workers who have been trafficked or exploited, because they will no longer be seen as criminals. And, the bill would allow previously convicted sex workers to apply to have their records expunged and their convictions overturned. The bill did not pass this year, but will be re-introduced next year. Carolina Holderness sees the effects of human trafficking every day. As the head of the Manhattan D.A.’s Human Trafficking Response Unit, she’s spent years working with victims, helping them find a way out while punishing the criminals who exploit them. Holderness talks about the changes in the way cases are handled: victims no longer face arrest, but are, rather, issued a desk ticket and offered programs to help get them off drugs, or turn their lives around. She also speaks to her office’s program that allows trafficking survivors to have their convictions overturned, and why she believes they find the courage to turn on their exploiters simply because someone is listening to their stories.