Human Sex Trafficking in the United States: A Social Examination

Introduction

Human trafficking is a crucial problem that persists in the United States today. Human trafficking victims, as defined by the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act, are individuals who “through the use of force, fraud or coercion, are recruited for the purpose of exploitation.” In a study done by Alicja Jac-Kucharski, an assistant professor in political science at LSC-Kingwood, it is estimated that 800,000 people are trafficked across international borders each year (Jac-Kucharski). 20 million people are trafficked within countries, resulting in about 150 billion dollars of profit. The exact number is unknown because it is underground money. In the year 2018, 5,147 human trafficking cases were reported in the United States, which does not include the thousands of cases that go unreported. This number is miniscule compared to what the number is in actuality (Hotline).

Human trafficking is split into many categories. The two main categories are labor trafficking and human trafficking (Zimmerman). Many people go as far as to compare human trafficking to slavery, which exemplifies the seriousness of the situation. Children, females, and those that live in poverty are the most likely to be victims of human trafficking. Children compose half of the victims of human trafficking (Jac-Kucharski). Females consist of 80% of human trafficking cases, and 98% of the sex trafficking cases (Ferreira). Finally, those who are trafficked are most likely to come from poverty (Boyce).

Gender

When comparing genders in human trafficking, there is a noticeable difference in the statistics. According to the U.S. Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report, 1.39 million women and girls are victims of sex trafficking (Kloer). Sex trafficking is currently tied as the second largest criminal industry in the world. Sex trafficking is defined by the Victims of Trafficking and Violence and Protection Act of 2000 as the “recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act” (Perkins). As previously mentioned, women and girls make up 98% of victims of sexual exploitation (Ferriera).

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Some of these statistics are partially false because up until recently, men were not counted in sex trafficking (Zimmerman). In the past 30 years, 30 million women have been sex trafficked (Kloer). Women are typically forced into labor trafficking and then later pushed into sex trafficking (Ferreira). It is very important to mention that being sex trafficked is not just about sexual exploitation, but also about the humiliation, degradation, and dehumanization of victims (Henry).

Women are commonly forced into being trafficked by being promised fake jobs, sold to workers, and then moved by the workers into another area, which is how women are trafficked over borders. Women in vulnerable positions are also forced into trafficking by a promise of marriage. Yvonne Zimmerman, an Associate Professor of Christian Ethics at the Methodist Theological School in Ohio, wrote a detailed report on how much easier it is for a females to be trafficked compared to a male due to religious norms.

Zimmerman suggests that this is an important issue because the sex industry has rapidly expanded over the past several decades because females are being placed in positions where it is easy to be pushed into a prostitution ring. Many of the women in prostitution are also being sex trafficked (Zimmerman). Similarly, Elizabeth Perkins, a Professor at the Department of Sociology, dives deeper into the issue, noting that religion plays into human trafficking because there is a gender hierarchy. This male to female relationship leads to abuse.

According to Perkins, “90% of people were abused before being trafficked.” Thus, there is a strong correlation between abuse and trafficking (Perkins). Amanda Kloer, an organizer and activist for the end of human trafficking, argues that aside the horror of being trafficked and forced to have sex, these women have a higher chance of contracting HIV/AIDS. This problem is not just in sex trafficking, but in labor trafficking too. The women are often raped on a daily basis, making it difficult to avoid contracting HIV/AIDS. Because younger people are still developing, they are even more likely to get HIV/AIDS (Kloer).

Age

Not only are women victims of human trafficking, but large number of children are as well (Kloer). Since human trafficking is illegal, it is hard to know the exact number of children that are trafficked; but about 100,000 to 300,000 children are lured into sex trafficking every year. This means that about 40% of trafficking cases in the U.S. were children (Perkins). All prostitutes under 18 are counted at being trafficked. According to international law, child trafficking is “the recruitment, transportation, and harboring of a person under 18 years old for exploitation, sexual exploitation, slavery, forced labor, servitude, or removal of organs” (Greenbaum).

Child trafficking is one of the most brutal forms of trafficking because of the long lasting effects it has on children. When children are trafficked, the trauma they endure does not go away when they grow up, which leads to developmental issues. Moreover, adolescent pregnancy can lead to developmental issues, along with social, economic, and health vulnerabilities (Greenbaum). Sabrina Boyce, who works at the Division of Infectious Diseases and Global Public Health, stated that out of the individuals that are trafficked, one in four enter before the age of 18.

Boyce agrees with Greenbaum when she argues that these individuals are three times more likely to receive HIV/AIDS. Studies have found that children are 3.3 times more likely to be trafficked when pregnant before 16, 2.5 times more likely when married before 16, and 1.9 times more likely when they experience sexual violence before 16 (Boyce). Hence, being younger increases the chances and dangers of being trafficked.

Income

Furthermore, income affects the likelihood of a person being trafficked. Low-income individuals are much more vulnerable to being trafficked. Saying that human trafficking is driven by poverty is much too simple. Many people that are impoverished try to get jobs, but these jobs can subsequently lead to human trafficking (Feingold). Jordan Greenbaum, a child abuse physician who received her degree from Yale School of Medicine, said that after someone is trafficked, they commonly need healthcare providers. This would include mental health and physical health brought forth by the trauma of being trafficked.

The people that are trafficked do not get paid, which leads to not being able to afford healthcare after they get out of trafficking. This commonly leads to many negative effects on the families, which includes, but is not limited to, abuse and neglect, substance abuse, untreated mental health issues, and homelessness (Greenbaum). Perkins builds onto Greenbaum’s argument by stating that people who are in poverty are more likely to abuse drugs, increasing the likelihood for children to run away. Perkins proves that running away is an impending issue that makes people much more vulnerable and easily lured into trafficking (Perkins).

Conclusion

In conclusion, human trafficking is a large industry that is currently affecting thousands of people in the United States today. As our system continues to develop, many issues are beginning to be corrected. Some examples of places for improvement are the increase in healthcare for victims, training on the ability to identify trafficking victims, and an increase in funding towards combating human trafficking (US Department). According to the Trafficking Persons Report 2018, the U.S. is considered admirable in the efforts to deplete human trafficking compared to other countries, but our goal should be to eliminate human trafficking as a whole (US Department). As human trafficking continues to deteriorate the country, specifically geared toward specific groups of people, the lives of thousands are at stake.

Works Cited

1. Boyce, Sabrina C., et al. “Childhood Experiences of Sexual Violence, Pregnancy, and Marriage Associated With Child Sex Trafficking Among Female Sex Workers in Two US-Mexico Border Cities.” American Journal of Public Health, vol. 108, no. 8, Aug. 2018, pp. 1049–1054. EBSCOhost, doi:10.2105/AJPH.2018.304455.
2. Ferreira, Breezy. “A Global Crime Against Women: Sex Trafficking and Its Consequences.” Perspectives (University of New Hampshire), Jan. 2018, pp. 3–14. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=sih&AN=131709774&site=ehost-live.Feingold, David A. “Human Trafficking.” Foreign Policy, no. 150, 2005, pp. 26–32. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/30048506.
3. Greenbaum, V.Jordan, et al. “Child Trafficking: Issues for Policy and Practice.” Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, vol. 46, no. 1, Spring 2018, pp. 159–163. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1177/1073110518766029.
4. Henry, Nicola. “The Seductions of Quantification: Measuring Human Rights, Gender Violence, and Sex Trafficking.” Law & Society Review, vol. 51, no. 2, June 2017, pp. 459–461. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1111/lasr.12273.
5. “Hotline Statistics.” National Human Trafficking Hotline, humantraffickinghotline.org/states.
6. Jac-Kucharski, Alicja. “The Determinants of Human Trafficking: A US Case Study.” International Migration, vol. 50, no. 6, Dec. 2012, pp. 150–165. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1111/j.1468-2435.2012.00777.x.
7. Kloer, Amanda. “Sex Trafficking and HIV/AIDS A Deadly Junction for Women and Girls.” Human Rights, vol. 37, no. 2, 2010, pp. 8–25. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/27880573.
8. Perkins, Elizabeth, and Carey Ruiz. “Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking in a Rural State: Interviews with Adjudicated Female Juveniles.” Child & Adolescent Social Work Journal, vol. 34, no. 2, Apr. 2017, pp. 171–180.
9. EBSCOhost,doi:10.1007/s10560-016-0455-3. U.S. Department of State, U.S. Department of State, www.state.gov/j/tip/rls/tiprpt/2017/271117.htm.
10. Zimmerman, Yvonne C. “From Bush to Obama: Rethinking Sex and Religion in the United States’ Initiative to Combat Human Trafficking.” Journal of Feminist Studies in Religion, vol. 26, no. 1, 2010, pp. 79–99. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/10.2979/fsr.2010.26.1.79.