Bridgeport City Council Meeting
By Sherri Blevins
On Monday, January 11, 2021, the Bridgeport City Council conducted a meeting. Councilmember Barry Hughes was unable to attend, but all other members were present.
First, the Council heard from Mildred Poe. She requested a letter from the City stating that one acre of property she owned was not located within the Bridgeport City Limits. The Council granted her request.
The Council voted to donate $2,000.00 to the North Jackson High School Girls Softball Program. Mayor Hughes requested the City continue its beautification plan by constructing a limestone rock wall three-feet tall made from rock originating from the City. It will be built in front of the Methodist church. Mayor Hughes requested permission to bid out labor costs stating the City would supply all the materials. The project may cost more than $20,000.00, but will enhance the beauty of the City. The Council voted to approve this request.
January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month, and the Council approved a Proclamation showing its support of the cause. The Proclamation states the following:
WHEREAS, Alabama’s Human Trafficking Awareness Month was established in January 2011 in observance of National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, to proclaim the equality and freedom of all people, to advocate for legislation, to educate leaders, and to encourage public awareness of the various forms of human trafficking; and
WHEREAS, human trafficking occurs when an adult or child is recruited, harbored, obtained, or exported through force, fraud, or coercion for the purposes of sexual exploitation, forced and forced sexual activity; and
WHEREAS, the United States government estimates that 600,000 to 800,000 individuals are trafficked across international borders each year and exploited through forced labor and forced sexual activity; and
WHEREAS, the U.S. Institute Against Human Trafficking states that the United States is the number one consumer of commercial sex worldwide; and,
WHEREAS, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children estimates that 100,000 – 300,000 children are at risk for being trafficked in the United States; and
WHEREAS, in 2017, the University of Alabama identified 1,167 human trafficking victims within the state of Alabama with 57% of those being minors; and
WHEREAS Polaris estimates that the national age of entry into the sex trade is 17 years old, here in Alabama, Homeland Security has identified victims as young as nine years old;
WHEREAS the first step in eliminating human trafficking is to educate the community. We must work to ensure that all residents are aware of this problem, how to spot it, and how to report it. We must work together as a community to bring victims to safety and to punish human traffickers; and,
WHEREAS, we ask all residents of this community to join us in raising the visibility of this crime whose victims are all too often invisible. Together, we can become more informed and work to combat its injustices.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, David Hughes, Mayor of the City of Bridgeport, Alabama, do hereby proclaim January 2021 as “Human Trafficking Awareness Month” in Bridgeport.
The Council approved one final motion to purchase thirty additional Christmas angels for the streets of Bridgeport’s Christmas light decorations.
The next meeting will be on Monday, January 25, 2021, at 5:30 pm.
Bridgeport City Council Meeting
