How Human Trafficking has Impacted Oklahoma

Human trafficking is a prominent problem within the United States that is often overlooked. The definition of human trafficking is, “Human trafficking - the illegal practice of procuring or trading in human beings for the purpose of prostitution, forced labor, or other forms of exploitation” (“Human trafficking”). People in the United States believe that human trafficking is a problem that occurs in other less developed countries compared to the United States. What these individuals do not realize is that human trafficking occurs on American soil contrary to popular belief. The United States is one of the top three destination countries of human trafficking and human trafficking is a top criminal enterprise across the world (“WEAVE, Inc.”).

Human trafficking is defined as a recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, of receipt of persons, by means of coercion, abduction, fraud, deception, or abuse of power of a position of vulnerability for the purpose of exploitation (Human Trafficking Information). Today human trafficking, also known as modern-day slavery, has been one of the controversial issues in the United States and nationwide. In fact, it is now considered as the fastest growing multi-billion-dollar business form of organized crime. Also, Human trafficking is affecting the lives of millions around the globe and robbing the victims of their pride. As a matter of fact, Traffickers deceive men, women, and young children from around the world to force them into unspeakable

Human trafficking is a significant, but hard to spot problem in Houston – and across Texas. Houston is known as a hub for human trafficking, which involves young women brought here for prostitution because of our proximity to the Mexican border. One fourth of all trafficking victims rescued in the United States are found in Texas, mostly in Houston (McCall). In the year 2011 alone, there have been a number of arrests for Human Trafficking made in the Houston area as well as several brothels have been closed down. However, FBI reports at least two new brothels open monthly in Houston (Palmer). There are a number of ways to fight human trafficking including educating yourself, spreading the word, taking a look in your own community,

Every day innocent girls are manipulated into the human trafficking industry. Human trafficking is the illegal movement of people, typically for the purposes of forced labor or commercial sexual exploitation. Typically, human trafficking involves bringing girls living outside of America, into the United States, telling them there is a better life for them. However, this could be further from the truth. In the United States, the top two states with the highest rates of human trafficking are California and Texas. One of the top cities for human trafficking in Texas is Dallas. Even though human trafficking may not be in the public eye as much as it has been in the past, it is still a prevalent issue within the city of Dallas.

According to the Human Trafficking Commission, “thirteen years old is the most common age in Ohio for children to becoming victims of sex trafficking.” Exact statistics on human trafficking are hard to calculate because of the secretive nature of the billion-dollar enterprise. With Cleveland’s high rates of poverty, there are few job opportunities, resulting in a plethora of problems, including sex trafficking. Ohio’s five major highways are partially to blame for the rising numbers in the human trafficking enterprise. With a sufficient amount of connections to other states, and to the Canadian border, there are more than enough accessible routes for victims to be transported.

People who fall victim to human trafficking are not willingly staying. “Traffickers lure and ensnare people into forced labor and sex trafficking by manipulating and exploiting their vulnerabilities. Human traffickers recruit, transport, harbor, obtain, and exploit victims – often using force, threats, lies, or other psychological coercion” (Polaris 1). People are being deceived by traffickers and once they are no longer willing participants they are in too deep to get out.

Melanie Orhant, in an article published in the Population Reference Bureau (PRB), noted that victims of human trafficking are so vulnerable that, at times, assist in their vulnerability (Orhant, 2001). She states that immigration has been a major issue, forcing some countries to adopt stringent measures against immigration. As such, migrants seek the services of traffickers to assist them move across borders. They do it so unconsciously, adding on to their vulnerability. As such, the reason why human trafficking is rampant is due to the vulnerability of the victims. Besides being desperate to cross borders, potential victims are desperate for jobs or a better lifestyle. This leaves them prone to the methods used by human traffickers.

Sex trafficking generally involves the forced prostitution of women, sometimes it falls on men as well, often children. Many times the abuser uses mind games to force the victim to have sex with them; some of those being promising marriage and a family if they do as they are told. Another thing that the traffickers tend to do is off the victim or the victim's family accommodations or services in return for prostitution. Jennifer Mandel stated, “Uneducated, marginalized, and discriminated against, these women may be lured by traffickers promising employment opportunities abroad (Mandel, 2012-2013).” This states that the traffickers do not only get lured in by promises of accommodations, but of other employment opportunities.

Ever since human trafficking has become an epidemic, police have been struggling to stop it. Human trafficking is "the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt that profits from enslaving people for sexual servitude and forced labor" (35). Traffickers are members of highly sophisticated networks of organized crime. Human trafficking occurs all around the world today leaving no discrimination towards anyone. Not everyone is aware of it being an issue in the United States, as opposed to many foreign countries. In the United States alone, traffickers earn up to 9.5 billion dollars yearly. Not only does human trafficking includes sex and labor, but also smuggling, which makes it the

Human trafficking is a huge issue that much is still unknown about. When we think of this practice we often think of the issue that only occurs overseas in poverty-stricken nations however this practice is very prevalent in our own backyards. And this is one of the biggest myths itself: trafficking does not always require the passage of transnational borders to be considered trafficking. Recently this issue has stepped more into the public eye when a sex trafficking scandal was exposed before the super bowl only two weeks ago. A fox article reported that children as young as 13 were missing and rescued by law enforcement as pimps had brought these children to New Jersey with the intent of selling their sexual services for money to tourists. In fact it is estimated that hundreds of thousands of children are at risk in the United States for this kind of exploitation. These statistics are extremely hard to estimate however because unfortunately, so many human trafficking cases still proceed without consequence. (Polaris project). It is also important to realize that trafficking occurs in many countries and not just to women or children. However the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime

The violence to women's in human trafficking is a the woman's being tricked into working terrible conditions. Victims of human trafficking may be kidnapped. They also may be lured with false promises of a better life in a new country. A person who is trafficked may be drugged, locked up, beaten, starved, or made to work, or made to work for many hours a day. The types of work a trafficked person may be forced to do include prostitution, farm work, cleaning, childcare, or sweatshop work. The ways a trafficker control a woman include “Making her work to pay back money they say she owes them, threatening to hurt her or her family, threatening to have her deported, taking away her passport, birth certificate, or ID card, preventing her from having contact with friends, family, or the outside world”. (www.womanhealth.gov.May

A trafficker may promise you a better life with a great job and living conditions, but in reality it’s just a trap! Within most cases, women and young girls become victims of falling for false information by a trafficker. In some cases a person is killed and trafficked for their organs.

In recent times, the number of human trafficking cases has skyrocketed through the roof. So, what exactly is human trafficking? Human trafficking is defined as a criminal activity, in which people are recruited, harboured, transported, bought or kidnapped for the purposes of exploitation. These exploitations include forced labour, child soldiery, sexual slavery, forced marriages and so on. Statistics show that the main victims of human trafficking consist of women and young girls while children come in a close third (Appendix A). Over the years, human trafficking has become rampant worldwide as the demand for human labour and sex slaves drastically multiplies due to the Internet.

Human trafficking is a serious crime that violates a person human rights. It is any type of recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring, by means of the threat, use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for exploitation is all considered human trafficking. Every year there are thousands of men, women and children who fall into the hands of traffickers. The International Labor Organization estimates there are about 21 million people being enslaved in the world today. This illegal underground industry is generating around 32 billion dollars a year, while the money being used is illicitly traded in the world with no taxes being paid. Human trafficking is a big issue that is constantly increasing not only around the world but in the United States as well. With many people being exploited every day and money being illegally used, this is of course an issue that affects us all.

Human trafficking is a type of slavery in the present day. It is a criminal industry worth several billion dollars that that denies opportunity to 20.9 million individuals around the globe. Furthermore, regardless of where you live, odds are it's occurring close-by. From the young lady constrained into prostitution at a truck stop, to the man found in an eatery kitchen, stripped of his travel permit and held without wanting to. All trafficking casualties share one basic experience: the loss of opportunity. Sex traffickers utilize brutality, threats, lies, debt slavery, and different types of pressure to force children and adults alike to participate in sex acts for money without wanting to. Under U.S. government law, any minor less than 18 years old years instigated into business sex is a casualty of sex trafficking—regardless of whether the trafficker utilized constrain, extortion, or intimidation. The circumstances that sex trafficking casualties confront change drastically. Numerous victims turn out to be involved romantically with somebody who at that forces them into prostitution. Others are baited in with bogus guarantees of a vocation, like dancing or modeling. Some are compelled to offer sex by their folks or other relatives. They might be included in a trafficking circumstance for a couple of days or weeks, or may stay in the same trafficking circumstance for quite a long time. Casualties of sex trafficking can be U.S. citizens, immigrants, ladies, men, youngsters,