Human Trafficking
The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 defines human trafficking as “the use of force, fraud, or coercion to compel or subject an individual into providing labor services or commercial sex acts.” Any minor under the age of eighteen involved in commercial sex acts, is automatically deemed a victim of human trafficking. Sex trafficking victimizes women and children, and is the fastest-growing crime in the world. Hundreds of thousands of American girls are at risk because it is hidden from the general public and it thrives in secret.
Predators are masters of manipulation and coercion, especially when they appear as their gaming avatar. Pedophiles use gaming as a way to gain access to young children. Gaming can be very addictive, however in the United States it has not been officially recognized as a mental disorder.
The American Psychiatric Association has suggested that this will probably change soon. Parents need to be very mindful of the addiction to gaming. It can cause many detrimental behaviors for your children affecting their lives in destructive ways.
Allowing your children to play with strangers puts them in a position of vulnerability and is very dangerous. Keep gaming at a limit and put safeguards in place to protect your children.
Contributing Factors & Aspects of Human Trafficking
Contributing Factors:
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The persistence of extreme poverty and discrimination against women and minorities.
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The leading role of social media and the Internet in communication.
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The lack of parental guidance and mentoring leaves children open to stranger danger.
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Transnational organized crime syndicates, gangs, and traffickers.
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The failure of the government to make continued progress at eradicating this global scourge.
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Aspects of Human Trafficking
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Prostitution
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Pornography
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Sex tourism
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Forced marriage
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Sweatshop work
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Begging
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Farming
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Child soldiers
Violence against woman and children happens in every nation everyday!
Venues for the sex industry include residential brothels, hostess clubs, online escort services, fake massage parlors, strip clubs, bars, restaurants, truck stops, the streets, online gaming and social media. More people are trafficked today than at the height of the trans-Atlantic slave trade. We need continued education and training across sectors to guarantee that human-trafficking victims are not treated as criminals but as survivors.
We each have a responsibility to make this horrific crime a lot less commonplace and raise awareness. We must impose severe penalties for the people who buy and sell children. It is imperative to ensure that an aggressive approach to combat human trafficking and child pornography is enforced.
Who's at risk
Homeless children are especially vulnerable because they are left to fend for themselves in many cases, with no other choice except to engage in survival sex. Traffickers feed off the deprivation of financial resources and use isolation, power and control, to keep women and children in line. Victims of sex trafficking suffer devastating physical and psychological harm because of the frequency at which traffickers move them. Trafficking victims and their perpetrators are difficult to catch without assistance and support. Victims who do manage to escape are at risk of being recaptured. Currently, 99 percent are never rescued.
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The people who sell women and children use a variety of ways to condition and groom their victims. They can subject them to starvation, rape, physical abuse, and confinement. Threats of violence toward them and their family, forced drug use, and shame keep them compliant. In over fifty percent of human trafficking cases the recruiter is a stranger, and in forty-six percent of the cases, the recruiter knows the victim. The younger they are, the more money is made for the trafficker. A high percentage of children are under twelve and as young as babies.
