Imagine waking up cold in a dark, unfamiliar place—surrounded by the sounds of startled whimpers. The collective whimpers of pubescent children who are not even old enough to think concretely and make sense of what is about to happen to them. According to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, 1 in 6 runaways in 2016 were likely to be trafficked for sex.
Unfortunately, sexual abuse and sex trafficking is the harsh reality of 4.5 million of people around the world. According to the Department of Homeland Security, human trafficking is the illegal trade of people for exploitation or commercial gain by the use of force, fraud, or coercion. Human trafficking is modern day slavery, and it is also one of the largest, global crimes that is committed daily; trafficking is a profitable business at $150 billion globally (ILO, 2014). I wanted to focus on sex trafficking because it is a major issue in every community and those who partake in sex exploitation cold be anyone. Meredith Dank, a senior research associate with the Justice Policy Center, stated that “there tends to be a failure with the child welfare system, with the educational system, or within the family unit that leaves the young person in a particularly vulnerable state in which they can be emotionally coerced because they never felt that someone has cared for them the way that their assailants have (Tilsley, 2016).
The victims that suffer through these heinous acts—that is their live—are often criminalized after a long history of being forced into prostitution. The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 was the first major milestone in providing protection for victims of assault and abuse, while also prosecuting their assailants with federal crimes (Polaris). It was reported that many victims of sexual exploitation did not feel safe reporting their cases to the authorities because they are led to believe that they are the criminals (Alvarez, 2016). There was a lack of trust in the justice system and with the law enforcement units but the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 made it possible for victims to feel safe, protected, and supported. “Between the fiscal years 2001-2007, there was a 360 percent increase in convictions (Alvarez, 2016), and the reported cases of sexual abuse has had a 35% increase in 2016 with 8,042 cases just within the last year,” (Polaris).
The reality of the matter is that sex trafficking is a large network of interconnected individuals that work worldwide to keep victims under their control. Over the years, the cases reported has risen as a result of public awareness about the issue and courageous individuals from all backgrounds reaching out to in order to put a stop to sex trafficking. There are a variety of ways that you can get involved in helping and supporting the victims of sex trafficking. It is important to recognize the signs of human trafficking. Report any suspicious behavior. Educate yourself about the cruel realities of survivors and victims. Sign up for the newsletter or discover local organization where you can volunteer your time. Sign a petition to strengthen anti-human trafficking programs at the polarisproject.org. Learn more about the laws and policies that are in place to protect our victims and catch our criminals (Polaris). One of the most important things that I have learned in my undergraduate career is to use your voice; it may seem simple but a single voice can be used to give victims the voices that they never had.