Operation Cross Country Research Paper

Sex trafficking, particularly that of children, has become a growing concern in the United States over the past several decades (Kotrla, 2010). By definition, child sex trafficking is “when a child (under 18 years of age) is induced to perform a commercial sex act” (U.S., 2013, para. 4), and includes forms such as prostitution and pornography (Kotrla, 2010). Researchers suggest that children are the most vulnerable to becoming victims of prostitution (Kotrla), and it is estimated that there are at least 100,000 victims in the United States (Estes & Weiner, 2001). Sex traffickers, otherwise known as “pimps,” often lure children with promises of food, clothing, love, and shelter, and then the pimps manipulate the children to keep them in prostitution (U.S. Department of Justice [DOJ], 2015). Awareness of the issue has led to the development of organizations, such as Children of the Night, that seek to help victims escape the sex trafficking industry (Children of the Night [COTN], 2016d).

Children within the United States who are being trafficked are part of what is called, domestic minor sex trafficking. These adolescents are citizens who have been forced, coerced, or misled to become a part of the commercial sex industry. Some of the most common ways to force minors into trafficking is through exotic dancing also known as stripping, brothels, porn, escorting, and massage services just to name a few (Minor Domestic Sex Trafficking). It is disturbing to know that there are children who are going through this. In order to create prevention and intervention programs for trafficking, it is important to understand what a sex trafficker is and the strategies they use to recruit children.

Images of foreign lands usually conjure up when the thoughts of human sex trafficking come to one 's mind. The United States of America is not immune to this type of horrific behavior. America is the land of the free and yet something as awful as human sex trafficking occurs in our very own backyard each and everyday. According to the Department of Homeland Security the definition of human trafficking is “modern day slavery that involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act” (“What Is Human Trafficking?”). In this research paper the reader will experience the savagery that comes with human sex trafficking and how it has expanded in the United States over recent years. Within this research

When one hears the words “Human sex trafficking”, they probably think of girls being stolen from their homes or lured into mysterious white vans and whisked away into the black market of sex trafficking. While these methods are not uncommon in the world of trafficking, the rise of technology and popularity of social media has given way to completely new opportunities for sex traffickers and pimps to scope out and lure potential trafficking victims. In the same way, this rise in technology and social media also offers law enforcement and special agencies new and unprecedented ways to stop black market deals before they happen, locate victims, set up sting operations,

Human trafficking is one of the largest growing criminal activities. The commercial sexual exploitation of children, also known as CSEC, is often perceived as a hidden atrocity that occurs in an international setting. However, this manifestation of sexual abuse has increased and has become a recognized health issue in the United States. You may hear this problem to be known as domestic minor sex trafficking (DMST). Domestic minor sex trafficking is defined as the “recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act” where the person is a citizen younger than the age of 18 years by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000. This includes sexual acts like survival sex, prostitution, and stripping, where the child is the victim of criminal exploitation in exchange for remuneration in the form of money, food, shelter, or other valued entity. Approximately twenty-eight percent of US minors living on the streets are reported to exchanging sex for drugs or money. The estimation so far is that 150,000 to 300,000 children are falling at risk of being victimized each year, and the average age at which they are recruited is twelve to fourteen years of age. By raising awareness we are avoiding children suffering from long-term health consequences such as severe sexual, physical, and emotional abuse. By raising awareness a family may not lose their little boy or girl to human trafficking. Consider how many young women have been kidnapped, drugged, tricked or even sold by

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.

Kotrla, K., & Wommack, B. A. (2011). Sex Trafficking of Minors in the U.S.: Implications for Policy, Prevention and Research. Journal of Applied Research on Children: Informing Policy for Children at Risk: Vol. 2 (Iss. 1), article 5.

The Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) of 2000 aims to combat human trafficking within the United States as well as abroad. On October 16, 2000, President Clinton signed the bill into law (Ryf, 2002). This statute states that slavery continues through the 21st century and is an issue that must be addressed. There is a three-tiered method to target human trafficking: prevention, protection, and prosecution. Additionally, this law requires the President to assign an interagency task force to monitor and combat trafficking as well as the responsibility to release the Annual Trafficking in Persons Report (Victims of Trafficking and Violence Prevention Act, 2000). Throughout this policy analysis, these areas of the law will be discussed in greater detail.

Have you ever walked into Wal-Mart and taken the time to look at the numerous pictures of missing youth that is plastered on the wall? When looking at how long they have been missing, it ranges anywhere from months to years. Looking at their age, both boys and girls, it’s hard not to wonder if they have been kidnapped and are being trafficked. Child sex trafficking also known as human trafficking is a major issue that is not only plaguing the United States, but also the world. Residing in a state where teen sex trafficking is very common, it is imperative that not only adults, but youth as well understand what child sex/human trafficking is, what is a sex-trafficker, and data that displays how serious child sex trafficking is.

Shaun Boyd’s article explains that a new law in Colorado is trying to be passed to protect children in the sex trafficking industry. Ms. Boyd is an award winning reported with more than 20 years of experience. Shaun Boyd is a political specialist, because she has covered Colorado legislature and has covered some of Colorado’s biggest political stories, I trust her expertise in this region of reporting. Boyd is a reporter from CBS Denver, which is based in Denver, Colorado. CBS is a well-known local and national commercial broadcast network. I triangulated the new Colorado law mentioned in Boyd’s piece with both the Colorado Legal Defense Group and the Denver Post and confirmed that Colorado’s Attorney General pushed for a law that allows law

When some people hear the expression “child sex trafficking” inevitably unspeakable thoughts come to mind, others are unaware this is even happening. Sex trafficking is a serious criminal issue taking place within the borders of the United States, but on the outside of these boarders this crime stands as a reliable source of income for those who participate. Although child sex trafficking is a local crime it is obvious that multiple nations have different viewpoints on the topic. The problem at hand is meeting in the middle where this situation can exist without creating a riot with residents and eliminating the destruction of young children’s lives. Though this topic is a sensitive one, there are ways to allow it to coexist in everyday

With a lot of the world creating laws and restrictions against trafficking of the person over the years, the United States decided to focus on the children that were being affected by these crimes. In 1984, the US passed the ‘Child Protection Act of 1984’, which brings larger penalties to those convicted and found guilty of child exploitation. It was a huge milestone in stopping the threat of human trafficking of a child and not just adults, because before this child exploitation was not looked at as a separate crime from exploitation of adults (USSC,

When one hears the word sex trafficking, many people assume that it only refers to prostitutes sold in poor countries in the Middle East or Asia. This is far from true. Sex trafficking is the modern day slavery for children and women; it happens in America as well as other parts of the world. The leaders of this rink appeal to the children’s vulnerabilities or the women’s needs in order to brainwash them to trust the leader. He or she then has the victim trapped and begins to sell them or use them for profit. So why are Americans not aware of this heinous crime happening right in their very own neighborhoods? There is not one direct answer to this question, but rather many factors that play a role in America’s unconsciousness.

According to the Bureau of Justice, human trafficking is becoming the nations second largest problem, following the war on drugs (“Anti Human Trafficking Initiative” 1.) Statistics on human trafficking in the United States are very scarce and there have not been many studies conducted on the issue. Of the studies done, many of the studies focus only on minors. 100,000-300,000 children are prostituted each year in the United States. In the Ohio, 1,078 people will be trafficked into the sex trade each year. Between January 2003 and June 2006, 15 human trafficking cases were identified in the Columbus and Toledo area. Human trafficking is not something that only takes place in foreign areas, which is why the Polaris project is working to fight human trafficking not only in foreign areas but also in the United States.

Slavery is a modern, pervasive problem. Human trafficking has been found in every state in America (humantrafficking.org). It seems that most Americans likely live within a comfortable drive of someone who is being exploited through human trafficking. There is a growing trend in human trafficking toward sexual exploitation (Bennetts, 2011). The Information Age has helped to create new opportunities for sex trafficking to flourish.