Trafficking of Human and Children for Prostitution and Regulation

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 is hard not to wonder if these kids are being trafficked. Child sex trafficking, also known as human trafficking, is a major issue that is not only plaguing the United States, but the world. Residing in a state where teen sex trafficking is very common, it is imperative that not only adults, but the youth understand what child sex/human trafficking is, what is a sex-trafficker, and the data that reveals the seriousness of child sex

Approximately 300,000 people die from being trafficked for sex from abuse, disease, and torture every year. Some victims are runaway girls that have been sexually abused as children. 98% of sex trafficking

Human Trafficking is the trade of humans mainly for sexual slavery, but also forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation for the trafficker and sometimes others who take part in this act. Human trafficking is also used for organs or tissues, including surrogacy, ova removal, or making these victims spouses for traffickers or their customers. Human trafficking is defined as a sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act induced by force (isolation and confinement to the brothel: transportation to multiple locations for the trafficking network and occasional physical and sexual abuse), fraud (false promises of a better life), or coercion (the practice of persuading someone to do something by using force or threats), or someone performing commercial sex under the age of 18. This is a crime that has newly risen to the public over the last decade and has been labeled as one of the most serious humanitarian crisis. Human trafficking is about profit. In 2004 the total annual income for trafficking in persons was estimated to be between $5 billion to $9 billion.

Human trafficking is as described by Wikipedia as the illegal trade in humans for the use of sexual exploitation or forced labor.

Human trafficking are the illegal activity of people, usually for the purposes of obligatory workforce or commercial sexual abuse. In other words, it is also defined as a modern-day form of slavery involving the illegal occupation of persons for exploitation or sexual abuse. Human trafficking is a hidden crime as victims rarely try their best to seek help because of language problems, scared of the abuser and lack of law enforcement. Every year, millions of males, females, and youngsters are trafficked in many countries around the world, including the United States. It is estimated that human trafficking produces many for almost a billion dollar profit per year, and second only to drug trafficking as the most market profit form of international crime. Traffickers use force, scam, or intimidation to lure their victims and force them into workforce or commercial sexual abuse. The trafficker look for people who are susceptible for a variety of reasons, including mental or emotional liability, economic poverty, and lack of a social safety net, natural disasters, or political uncertainty. The trauma affected by the traffickers can be so great that many may not identify themselves as targets or ask for help, even in highly community surroundings.

Although human trafficking is the fastest growing process by which a person is enslaved, it is also the fastest growing international crime and one of the largest growing incomes for organised crime. It is estimated that at least 12.3 million people are victims of forced labour worldwide. Of these 2.4 million are as a result of human trafficking. Consequently it 1.2 million children are trafficked every year.(STOP THE TRAFFIK 2014) Six hundred thousand to eight hundred thousand men, women and children are trafficked across international borders each year. Approximately eighty percent are women and children and up to half of them are minors. Predominantly the vast majority of trafficked people come from the poorest countries and the poorest strata of the national people. Human trafficking is the second largest source of illegal income, being surpassed by drugs trafficking. Some trafficking groups have been reported to be switching their cargo from drugs to human beings, in a search of high profits at a lower risk. (STOP THE TRAFFIK 2014)

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 modern-day slavery and involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act (Homeland).

Human trafficking is considered to be another form of slavery and very common in many countries around the world. Several countries throughout the world are sites of cause, travel, purpose, and/or inner trafficking. There are many cases of human trafficking that have been reported in all fifty states within the United States. Human trafficking is a market-based economy that exists on values of supply and demand. It thrives due to circumstances, which allows for higher earnings to be obtained at low risk. With that being said, it is important to understand how human trafficking is defined. According to the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000, the legal definition

Human trafficking is one of the most shocking human rights violations of mankind. It is a form of present day slavery, where men, women, and children are forced to perform manual labor or sexual services. This contains (but is not restricted to) work in sweatshops, eateries, home service, farming, meat packing plants, strip dancing, and sexual transactions.

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

Although both processes are illegal, only human trafficking violates fundamental human rights. Human trafficking is the largest growing industry in the world. The most recent Trafficking in Persons Report of the Department of State from 2010 states that about 800,000 people are trafficked across borders annually and a total number of approximately 12.3 million persons are currently in forced labor, bonded labor, and forced prostitution worldwide, with the majority of trafficking victims being women and children (Dep. of State 8). The ebook Human Trafficking: An Overview by the United Nations Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking states that the victims are recruited through abduction or kidnapping, false promises about legitimate employment or legal residence permits, and selling by families. The majority of the victims, however, knew the traffickers personally before being trafficked (UN GIFT 21-22). Human trafficking has emerged throughout the last years because slave traffickers have discovered the profitability of trading people. According to the Global Initiative to Fight Human Trafficking, estimated annual profits from human trafficking amount up to US$31.7 billion (UN GIFT 7).

Human trafficking refers to the movement of persons across borders for forced labor, sexual exploitation or other illicit activities. Sex trafficking is the most lucrative sector of human trafficking America, Southeast Asia, East Asia, Eastern Europe, and Russia. The global political economy, political corruption, human rights, gender and ethnic stratification, and migration are all related to human trafficking.

This research paper dives into the world of human trafficking looking into key details about the ethical implications of human trafficking as well as proposed solutions. With information such as statistics, methods of trafficking and the ending of trafficking that is found from websites from organizations that are dedicated to ending trafficking, the involvement of all countries are cited as necessary in ending this worldly crime. Information was found through University of South Florida’s library system and websites with information pertaining to their organization’s attempts at ending human trafficking. Articles utilized include Unintended Effects of United Nations Intervention, From Bush to Obama: Rethinking Sex and Religion in the U.S. Initiative to Combat Human Trafficking, Human Trafficking, and Supply and Demand: Human Trafficking in the Global Economy. In addition to these scholarly articles, websites used include the organizational websites of UNODC and UNICEF.

Different age groups fall victim to trafficking as well. Not only adults, but also children, are trafficked worldwide. Child trafficking is defined as "the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring, or receipt of children for the purpose of exploitation" (Child Protection from Violence, Exploitation and Abuse). Children make up almost twenty percent of trafficking victims around the world. "However, in some parts of Africa and the Mekong region, children are the majority (up to 100% in parts of West