As an organization, we endeavor to promote collaborative, multi-disciplinary responses to the complex issues inherent to commercial sexual exploitation. Therefore, we find it is crucial for our Board of Advisors to represent a diverse array of perspectives and occupations. In keeping with that commitment, we are proud to announce the addition of two new members to our Board: Mr. Nadeem Bezar, Esq. and The Honorable Joanna E. McClinton, Esq.
Nadeem Bezar, Esq., a partner at Kline & Specter PC, has over 20 years of litigation experience representing victims in medical malpractice and catastrophic personal injury matters, as well as cases involving child abuse and human trafficking, sexual assault and Title IX violations on college and university campuses. In March of 2017, Mr. Bezar and his colleague Emily Marks filed the first civil lawsuit under Pennsylvania’s human trafficking statute (2014) against the owners and manager of a Philadelphia motel on behalf of a teenage girl who was sex trafficked in the motel over a nearly two-year period.
The Honorable Joanna E. McClinton, Esq., serves constituents in parts of Delaware County and Philadelphia County as a State Representative in the 191st Legislative District of Pennsylvania. In 2016, Rep. McClinton introduced House Bill 2090, a bill that proposed to amend the current prostitution statute to remove the recidivist penalties for selling sex. Rep. McClinton is an alumna of Villanova University law school and former Philadelphia public defender. Throughout her legal career, she has combined her passion for community with her love of the law. Prior to her election to the House of Representatives, Rep. McClinton served as chief counsel to state Senator Anthony Hardy Williams where she worked behind the scenes steering policy decisions and developing legislative reforms in addition to organizing expungement fairs, public policy forums, and other outreach efforts.