Every day men, women, and children are sold like objects on the black market. This is not some huge secret. It is common knowledge that this occurs all across the globe. It is speculated that 14,500 to 17,500 people, primarily women and children, are trafficked to the U.S. annually. As Americans, we assume these horrible acts don't happen here, when in fact they happen in our back yards. In 2014 the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children estimate that one in six reported runaways were likely to be victims of human trafficking. Many of you may be asking yourselves how does something like this even happen? Many of the victims are convinced they are doing something different and go into this willingly.
Every day men, women, and children are sold like objects on the black market. This is not some huge secret. It is common knowledge that this occurs all across the globe. It is speculated that 14,500 to 17,500 people, primarily women and children, are trafficked to the U.S. annually. As Americans, we assume these horrible acts don't happen here, when in fact they happen in our back yards. In 2014 the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children estimate that one in six reported runaways were likely to be victims of human trafficking.
Many of you may be asking yourselves how does something like this even happen? Many of the victims are convinced they are doing something different and go into this willingly.
For example, Natalia, a 13-year-old girl from Ghana, was unable to attend school because her parents were struggling to pay the education fee. When an opportunity for Natalia to travel to the U.S. and receive a free education arose, her family welcomed the idea. When Natalia arrived in the U.S., it wasn't long until she began being abused, both physically and sexually. Natalia was promised an education and instead was forced to work, clean, cook, and take care of other children. To make matters worse, she was not allowed to enroll in school, her sole purpose of coming to America. With the help of the Polaris Project, Natalia got the help she needed and later was enrolled in school and began the education she was promised. This is an example of foreigners being trafficked to America. However, there are also Americans being trafficked within our country.
Let's look globally for a second, there are 12.3 million slaves around the world—12.3 million slaves! Only 0.4 percet of those victims are identified. For every 100 people trafficked, only 8.5 offenders are convicted.
But I thought slavery didn't exist anymore.
Wrong, modern day slavery is different from the slavery you learn about in history class. This type of slavery is illegal but, for some reason, overlooked. So what about America? How does human trafficking in America compare globally? Well, the average age of an American entering into the sex trade is 12-14 years old. Every year, 600,000-800,000 people are trafficked across borders—80 percent women and 50 percent children. California is home to three of the FBI's highest sex trafficking areas in the nation. Atlanta's illegal sex industry brings in nearly $290 Million a year!
American law states the it is illegal to prostitute yourself, but what if these people aren't doing so willingly? Why should a young girl being forced to sell herself be arrested when she is being held hostage and forced to do things she is not comfortable with? In many countries, the act of prostitution is legal; however, it is illegal to buy a prostitute, making it so the "John" or the buyer, is the one facing the consequences. Granted, there are some prostitutes who do it as a way of life. S.O.A.P., an organization focused on ending human trafficking says that "77 percent of all adults involved in prostitution were trafficked as a child." It becomes a way of life—it is the only thing some of these adults know.
Unfortunately, the Super-Bowl, March Madness basketball tournaments, and many more of America's favorite events are some of the largest sex trafficking opportunities in America. During the 2015 Super-Bowl, one of the big time pimps in this industry was captured because of the outreach that S.OA.P. had done leading up the event.
Sex and human trafficking is modern day slavery and is happening all around us in our world, in our nation, and in our neighborhoods. So parents, please educate your children about the dangers of the world. Teenagers, watch who you friend on Facebook, as most victims are recruited via social media. As for the rest of you, be aware, be informed, and know how to take action.
You can contact The National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 1(888) 373-7888 if you suspect any human trafficking activities. You can also learn more by visiting their website http://traffickingresourcecenter.org.
