The Sociological Problem Of Human Trafficking And Poverty

Every year, the percent of victims that are being trafficked increases. In the article, “56 Little Known Facts about Human Trafficking” by Karin Lehnardt, Lehnardt states, “Nearly 80% of human trafficking is for sex, and 19% is for labor exploitation.” This quote means that almost 80% of human trafficking is for sex and 19% of it is for labor exploitation. With this, nearly 99% of human trafficking is for sex and labor exploitation. In the article, “11 Facts About Human Trafficking”, it states, “According to the U.S. State Department, 600,000 to 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders every year, of which 80% are female and half are children.” This quote states that every year about 80% of female and children are being trafficked across the world.

Human trafficking is a crime that is vast and ever-growing. It is also hard to identify and prevent, which attributes to the growing industry associated with this crime. There have been researchers who have examined the current data on human trafficking through literature reviews. Unfortunately, there will be limitations to this research because one cannot properly assess all cases of human trafficking; especially because there are many occurrences that go undetected. There have also been researchers who have linked human trafficking with particular criminological theories, in attempt to explain both why traffickers partake in this crime, and how individuals become victimized. This paper will examine 2 of the literature reviews completed, the limitations of those reviews, and 2 theories that may be used in explaining how one may become a victim and trafficker of human trafficking.

Human trafficking is an organized crime that undermines the rights of citizens and violates many laws. Because trafficking is threatening to the human population, human trafficking is a huge problem and has caused great controversy globally. Sexual exploitation has been reported as the most common form of human trafficking, making up 79 percent of offenses followed by forced labor at 18 percent. This form of trafficking has been determined the most serious form of organized crime because it results in victims being victimized multiple times (Dammer, 2011). Human trafficking is a transnational crime that has become a huge problem throughout the world. To completely understand the issues of human trafficking one must first understand which

Absolute poverty is slightly harder to define. The definition used by most international organisations is that you cannot afford the basic needs of life—food, clothing and shelter.

Human trafficking, or the selling and buying of people, is a well-hidden yet prominent issue within today’s society. It is both an immoral and horrific topic that needs brought to attention and dealt with. When human beings are manipulated into work, sexual servitude, or economic hardship, human trafficking is occurring. In the year of 2006, only one individual is convicted of human trafficking per 800 victims (UNGIFT). By looking at straight statistics, reasons human trafficking happens, and the toll it has on people, it is very clear that this is a major issue that is happening in our world.

Imagine being taken from the comfort of your house and family. Then envision that you are forced to either inject or ingest as drugs to give sexual pleasure to one person while the other reaps financial benefits. You are experiencing such atrocity at the same moment in which your loved ones are mourn your loss. Eventually, you are unrecognizable and affected by traumatizing experiences. The effects that you frequently feel are numb and now you are suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder. This is the reality that many endure on daily basis. It is caused by the constant practice of human trafficking.

Over the last several years, the issue of human trafficking has been compared with the slave trade. This is because both are focused on taking someone against their will and forcing them to engage in demeaning activities. Yet, the practices of modern traffickers are different from slave traders. To fully understand the similarities and disparities requires contrasting them with one another. The combination of these factors will provide specific insights about the two. (Bales, 2010)

Human trafficking has been in existence in several states for many years. It is a form of slavery where people can be transported from one place to another for exploitation in farms, being forced into criminal activities such as terrorism, forced marriages, sexual abuse, prostitution among other forms of illicit activities (Butler, 2015). The trafficked individuals are often oppressed through violence, threats or coercion which forces the individuals to be involved in various things which they could not be willing to conduct. Majorly, members of the African continent have been widely bound to human trafficking. However, the ordeal has expanded even to trafficking within members of the same state.

Biljana Meshkovska, one of the authors of the article Female Sex Trafficking: Conceptual Issues, Current Debates, and Future Directions, reports, “According to this United Nations protocol, human trafficking is the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of threat or 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 the purpose of exploitation” (381). She records that 600,000 to about 800,000 females, males, and minors can become victims yearly (384).

The trafficking of human beings has evolved and become more universal and serious over the years. Trafficking of people is equivalent to modern day slavery. The duties and expectations of these people are outrageously irrational. The victims are forced to do unthinkable tasks for people they may or may not know. Anyone can be a leader or a victim of human trafficking. Victims of trafficking programs span from an extensive variety of women, children, and men ranging widely in age. There are two very diverse trafficking programs: sex trafficking and labor trafficking. Sex trafficking, the most common of the two trafficking programs, can also be referred to as sex slavery. The sex trafficking occurs when the unwilling are being forced to

The International Labor Organization estimates that there are 20.9 million victims of human trafficking globally. 68% of them are trapped in forced labor, 26% of them are children, and 55% are women and girls. Human trafficking, better known as trafficking in persons or modern-day slavery, is a crime that involves the exploitation of a person for the purpose of forced sex or labor. Anyone can be a victim regardless of race, color, national origin, disability, religion, age, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, education level, or citizenship status. Traffickers commonly prey on individuals who are poor, vulnerable, living in an unsafe environment, or are in search of a better life. These victims are misled by false

There are many factors that contribute to human trafficking. These include a high global demand for domestic servants, agricultural workers, political, social or economic crises, government disinterest in the issue of human trafficking and limited economic opportunities (Newton 4-5). Poverty remains the primary cause of human trafficking. According to the United Nations, nearly 2.5 million people from 127 different countries are being trafficked around the world. In Europe, the most common form of trafficking is sexual exploitation. Thousands of women and girls are bought, sold and forced into the sex market each year. These women and girls come from inside and outside the European borders ( Bryfonski 20-21). Europe is not the only country that has fallen prey to human trafficking. In West Africa, two thirds of the population subsists on less that $1 a day. Accepting a job offer for one of their children is often times a survival strategy for the family. Parents defend their choice by stating that it is better for the child to learn a trade than stay at home and starve. Traffickers use a ruse of economic promise

Human Trafficking is one of the most profitable transnational crimes today. According to Homeland Security’s article over “What Is Human Trafficking?,” Human Trafficking is considered to be modern-day slavery and involved the use of force, fraud, and or luring to obtain any type of labor or a commercial sex act. Over the last few years, sex trafficking has gained plenty of attention from the media. According to a report conducted in September 2017 by the International Labor Organization and Walk Free Foundation, an estimated 24.9 million men, women, and children are trapped in modern-day slavery. Of the 24.9 million about 16 million are being exploited for labor, 4.8 million are being sexually exploited, and the remaining 4.1 million are being

There are several factors to why human trafficking exists: poverty, governmental instability, natural disasters, addiction, and organized crime are just a few. Although there certainly are men victimized into trafficking (particularly forced labor), women and children are the most vulnerable to trafficking. Generally, those who become prey to traffickers are poor, weak, ill-educated, or isolated woman (3). Some recruiters befriend teens and adults with the intent of exploiting them. Deceived with the promise of a better life, young women travel with them into unknown territories. Once they reach their destination, traffickers burn their passports and immediately force them into sexual labor. Raped and beaten, girls are chained to beds and are repeatedly forced to serve up to forty men a day. In several low income communities, fathers and mothers will sell their children due to an overwhelming amount of

Human trafficking is the trade of humans by force, mainly women and female children, for the purposes of sexual slavery, sexual exploitation, and domestic labor. Global human trafficking has often been labeled as modern- day slavery; however the history and causes have been identifiable just as the causes of traditional slavery have been. What causes human trafficking? In this present paper, the hypotheses on the primary causes of global human trafficking will be identified. There are three major themes that cause human trafficking: a nation’s economy, political and legal factors, and social factors that enable the continuance of human trafficking. According to previous research indications of historical influence and social hierarchy have the greatest impact on the causes of human trafficking; these topics will further be elaborated upon during the discussions of political influences and social factors that impact human trafficking.