Policy Problem
Human trafficking, also known as the modern-day form of slavery is a global problem, a national problem, a state problem, and a local problem. Research findings revealed that one of the major challenges faced in fighting human trafficking is lack of awareness and education among the public (Johnstone, 2018). Most often, trafficking is underreported due to its nature, definitional differences or variations, and misconceptions held by the public. Often people in the United States believe human trafficking is a problem in undeveloped countries, sorry to say that is not the case.
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) defines human trafficking as the “involvement of recruitment, harboring, transporting, or procurement of a
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Victims are found working in various industries, such as agriculture, hotels, restaurants, domestic work, and prostitution (Waitt, 2017). Depending on the victim's age, they would be put into wide-ranging service markets from commercial sex to labor. Then, victims are divided into three categorical groups; children under the age of 18 are persuaded into commercial sex, adults ages 18 and over are persuade into commercial sex through force, fraud, or coercion, and both children and adults are persuading to perform labor or services through force, fraud, or coercion (Victims, n.d.). These victims would spend an average of 20 months in forced labor; however, this varies with the different forms of labor (Human trafficking, …show more content…
State Department, human trafficking is “one of the greatest human rights challenges of this century” affecting the world and the United States (Lehnardt, 2016). Among other countries, the United States is ranked very high as a destination country of trafficked victims (Lehnardt, 2016). In 2016, the International Labor Organization estimated 40.3 million victims are deceived in trafficking around the world, and with hundreds of thousands in the United States (Global estimates, 2017; Victims, n.d.). Meaning there are 5.9 adult victims for every 1,000 adults and 4.4 child victims for every 1,000 children in the world (Global estimates, 2017). More than 71% of the trafficked victims around the world are women and girls and 29% are men and boys (Human trafficking, 2017). In Texas, the Dallas Women’s Foundation reported that more girls are being trafficked in one month, than those who die by suicide, homicide, and accidents combined (Human, n.d.). In the last five years, trafficking profits grew by nearly 400%, making human trafficking the second most profitable criminal industry in the world and generate around $150 billion dollars globally (Shut out, n.d.). With its fast-growing criminal enterprises, it's anticipated that the drug trade would be surpassed by human trafficking in the next five years (Popp,
Human trafficking has always been a problem around the world. The human trafficking industry contains many different branches: trafficking for forced labor, trafficking for cells and organs, people smuggling, sexual exploitation of children, and sex exploitation of women (interpol). This industry as a whole is internationally run and is worth about $150 billion dollars from a recent 2017 statistic (venturebeat). An estimated 21 million victims are trapped in the trafficking industry and about 22% (4.5 million) of them are exploited for sexual use (humanrightsfirst). While the sex trafficking and exploitation branch isn’t the largest, it is the most profitable, generating about $99 billion dollars. One trafficker can make thousands of
Human trafficking is a criminal activity that has risen to be the second largest after drug trafficking. According to the International Labor Organization, 21 million people globally are victims of trafficking involving forced labor and sexual exploitation (Merry, 2015). There is no doubt that human trafficking is an evil that requires robust countermeasures to combat it. However, there are popular myths about human trafficking that do not only distorts a proper understanding of the problem but also hampers efforts to combat it. This paper describes two myths about human trafficking and challenges these myths with the aim of creating awareness about the truth surrounding human trafficking for better actions towards combating it.
Throughout the 21st century, the number of human beings being capture and put into sex trafficking and prostitution has risen. In 2013, about 270,000 young boys, girls, and women were forced into human trafficking in the United States alone and estimated 20.9 million in the world. The UN has also estimated that nearly 4,000,000 are trafficked each year. UNICEF has estimated that as many as 50% of all trafficking victims worldwide are minors and that as many as two thirds of those adolescents are at some point forced into the sex trade. This is a 52 billion dollar industry. Two kids are sold every minute, 120 per hour. In other cases mothers of these children would sell them off for money due to financial reason, which
Human trafficking is the form of modern day slavery and it is a worldwide problem that affects our local communities. Human trafficking presents itself in two forms: sex trafficking and labor trafficking. Human trafficking touches people of all ages: children, young adults, and the elderly. Human trafficking is defined as, “ the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of threat of use of force or other forms of coercion, or abduction,” (Lightfoot, p.1, 2013).
Formal Outline Topic: Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery General Purpose: To Persuade Specific Purpose: To persuade my reader that there is not enough awareness about human trafficking, let alone actions to stop trafficking. Thesis Statement: Although many believe that human trafficking is not a large, widespread issue that society should be attempting to solve, the exploitation of men, women, and children around the world should be a top priority for the government to provide safer routes and increased security for trafficked victims. Introduction As of 2011, human trafficking and modern slavery was reportedly the fastest-growing industry of organized crime.
This policy was monumental in the fight of human trafficking because it formalized the overall U.S. policies through an emphasis on prevention of severe forms of human trafficking, prosecution of traffickers, and protection of victims both domestically and internationally. The Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2003 amended the TVPA of 2000, which directed the President to launch programs of border interdiction outside the United States by providing grants to foreign NGOs that provide for transit shelters functioning at key border crossings. Border guards, officials, and other law enforcement officials are educated and trained to (1) identify traffickers and victims of severe forms of trafficking; (2) treat victims appropriately;
Human trafficking has disgustingly shaped today’s society and has robbed us of our children and parents; It is an illegal recruitment of defenseless young teens and adults. They unwillingly transport people from place to place, country to country. Although this criminal activity violates human rights on so many levels, statistics still continue to grow and there have been so little done about it.
The definition of human trafficking has changed since the first reports in 1994. The U.S department of state began to collect reports on trafficking across borders as a severe violation of human rights. Its’ office to monitor and combat trafficking in persons originally focused on the sexual exploitation of women and girls smuggled by international prostitution. Over the years the definition has broadened to cover anyone recruited, transported, transferred, harbored, and compelled to work in prostitution, domestic service, agriculture, construction work or factory sweat shops, by means of coercion, force, abduction, fraud or deception. Any commercial sex act performed by a person under age 18 is considered human trafficking, regardless of
Despite increased attention to combat the problem of human trafficking into, and most recently within, the United States, knowledge and understanding of the issue remains fairly limited (Albanese, Donnelly, & Kelegian, 2004; Derks, Henke, & Vanna, 2006). Research on trafficking has focused primarily on estimating the scale of the problem, mapping routes, and reviewing policies and legal frameworks (Gozdziak & Collett, 2005). Very little is known about the prevalence of trafficking and the number of victims; characteristics of the victims and perpetrators; the long-term impacts of human trafficking on victims, their families, and communities; the effectiveness of anti-trafficking programs; and best practices in meeting the complex needs of
Additionally, sex trafficking has become a “global business”, meaning that victims not stating within their own community, but rather being transported cross countries or even sometimes around the world. Furthermore, though this definition may contain key elements of explanation, it “fails to define key terms such as exploitation, slavery, forced labour and vulnerability.” (Larsen, 2011) As a result, interpretations of child trafficking vary markedly.” Meaning people may be obtained in China or Russia, but end up in either Central or North America. The Human Trafficking Foundation has calculated that victims of trafficking have been identified from 53 countries from around the world. The cities of these 53 countries that have been identified defy the myths that surround why or how trafficking occurs. Most believe that it is only the poor countries or cities that are faulty, but in reality common cities in the United Kingdom or the United States are of the largest receivers of sex trafficked
Trafficking affects men, women, and children(UNODC). According to the Polaris Project, 20.9 million people are affected by human trafficking. Also, there are at least 31,600 cases that have been reported and this number increases every year (Polaris Project). According to Grant, there are about 13,392 victims per year, 36 victims per day, and about one person an hour.Around 49 percent of victims are women, around 33 percent are children, and around 21 percent are younger girls (Grant,2013). Currently there are at least 510 human trafficking rings known. Although trafficking is illegal in most countries, there are still some governments who are active in the crime (Soroptimist). Yearly, traffickers gain billions of dollars off of their victims(Polaris
Around the world and right here in the United States, Human Trafficking is a form of modern slavery. The difficult comprehension of this human reality within our own communities, makes this travesty hard to combat. Understanding the pervasiveness, the reality of the crime and the impact it has on a community are a call to action for all of us.
If you ask people in the world what is human trafficking I bet half of them wouldn’t know half of the story about human trafficking. Human trafficking has become a really huge problem in the world today. People are begun to call human trafficking the new form of slavery. And we all know what slavery is; John Moore (2008) stated in his research “Slavery has been an important phenomenon throughout history. Different societies made use of slave labor, from ancient civilizations to Islamic societies, as well as in India, Asia, Africa, and the Americas.” Well now we have developed a new form of slavery. Human trafficking is a huge problem in not only in the United States but all around the world and there has
America is one of the capitals for human trafficking and acts as a transit port for many of these people for example the National Human Trafficking Resource Center said, “Since 2007, operations have received reports of 14,588 sex trafficking cases inside the United States.” It is estimated that one in six runaways will become sex trafficking victims in the United States. Certain states like Denver, Colorado’s underground sex industry made thirty four million dollars in profit in 2014 and Atlanta, Georgia made two hundred ninety
According to article 3 of the UN Trafficking Protocol, trafficking in persons means: The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud,