“They forced me to sleep with as many as 50 customers a day. I had to give [the pimp] all my money. If I did not [earn a set amount] they punished me by removing my clothes and beating me with a stick until I fainted, electrocuting me, cutting me” (Global Sex Trafficking 1). This is the real-life testimony of a woman named Kolab, a sex trafficking survivor from Cambodia who shares her story with Equality Now, a female human rights advocate organization. Sucked into a world of fear, subjugation, and danger, Kolab demonstrates a lifestyle that no female would ever want to imagine-yet which for many women is their everyday reality. Often times, when we hear the term “sex trafficking” we think of an illegal form of sexual exploitation, but what is little known to most people, is that “sex trafficking is the third largest international crime industry, reportedly generating a profit of $32 billion dollars every year,” a form of lifestyle that over “20.9 million female adults and children” can relate to because it is the norm in their countries, cities, or towns (Sabyan 1). Due to economic downfall, many countries fell into poverty. Forced to make ends meet and pay off debts, many families looked to selling their daughters into sex industries as a away to become free from their burdens. Not only are victims of sex trafficking sold into the industry, but can also be kidnapped and forced into this lifestyle by their “pimp.” The economic aspect, mainly in the United States, is the underlying factor that enables the sex industry to continue to exist and expand today. Evidence shows that the U.S generates the majority of the profits for the sex trafficking industry. Although, Asia is reported to have more sex slaves than any other country, t...
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Siddharth Kara. Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery. New York: Columbia University Press, 2009.
Taneeru, Manave. "The Number – The CNN Freedom Project: Ending Modern-Day Slavery - CNN.com Blogs." The CNN Freedom Project Ending ModernDay Slavery RSS. Cable News Network, 29 July 2011. Web. 17 Jan. 2014.
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As victim count continues to rise, its difficult to see how such great numbers of men, women and children are bought and sold every year. Trafficking can be found in many forms, including: prostitution, slavery, or forced labor (Harf and Lombardi, 2014). It wasn’t until the 1980’s that international human trafficking became globally noticed. With the lack of government intervention and control in several nations, and the free trade market, slavery once again became a profitable industry (Harf and Lombardi, 2014). As previously mentioned, easier movement across nations borders is one of the outcomes of globalization. It is also what makes human trafficking so easy today. It is estimated that about 20.9 million people are victims across the entire globe (United Nations Publications, 2012); trafficking accounts for 32 billion dollars in generated profit globally (Brewer, n.d). 58 percent of all human trafficking was for the purpose of sexual exploitation, and of this 55-60 percent are women (United Nations Publications,
The significance of this publication is to promote awareness on the issue of sex trafficking.
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Lerner, Sara. "Human Trafficking In The U.S.: One Woman's Story." NPR. NPR, 31 July 2010. Web. 21 Nov. 2013.
Leuchtag, Alice. "Human Rights Sex Trafficking And Prostitution." Humanist 63.1 (2003): 10. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 3 Nov. 2015.
Sexual exploitation exploits women and provides a vehicle for racism in a “first world” country like America, where victimization rates are disproportionately higher with “third world” women (O'Connor & Healy, 2007). Goodson is an anti-trafficking activist, is director of international programs for Shared Hope International which is an organization who works with victims of sex trafficking. From her experience, many victims are poor and are sexually abused children and young adults who are swayed by the promises of a better life. Once they reach the United States, the victims are psychologically and physically abused. In the United States, victims of international sex trafficking come primarily from South and Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, and Africa through states such as Florida, California and New York (Goodson, 2006). The U.S. Department of State estimates that about 600,000 to 800,000 people, mostly women and children, are trafficked across national borders annually. Furthermore, it is estimated that 17,500 to 20,000 victims are trafficked into the U.S. annually, with Florida receiving a high percentage of those victims. Although the people who enter the United States are often not legally permitted to enter the United States, Lagon asserts that it is important to note the difference between human
In order to understand how sex trafficking affects its victims, one must first know the severity of sex trafficking and what it is. The issue of sex trafficking affects 2.5 million people at any given time (Abas et al., 2013). The form of sex slavery affects many women and children across the world. Even though both males and females are sexually trafficked and exploited, there is a deep emphasis on the sexual exploitation of women and children. This is due to gender discrimination (Miller, 2006). This is because women and children are more vulnerable and appeal to the larger populations of brothels and the so-called “clients” since the majority are men. Ecclestone (2013) stated that children as young as age three are trafficked. Sex trafficking has changed over time; “Today, the business of human sex trafficking is much more organized and violent. These women and young girls are sold to traffickers, locked up in rooms or brothels for weeks or months, drugged, terrorized, and raped repeatedly” (Walker-Rodriguez & Hill, 2011). It is found that many of the victims of sex trafficking are abducted, recruited, transported and forced into involuntary “sex work”. These sexual acts include prostitution, exotic dancing, pornography, and sexual escort services (McClain & Garrity, 2011). What happens to these sex trafficking victims is extremely traumatizing.
"SEX TRAFFICKING OF WOMEN IN THE UNITED STATES." SEX TRAFFICKING OF WOMEN IN THE UNITED STATES. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Mar. 2014. .
Sex trafficking is a world wide epidemic. It targets unknowing victims such as women and children enslaving them and exploiting their innocence. Human trafficking is becoming one of the biggest money making organized crimes in the world. The sex trade is one of the most profitable of all current slave trades. Through the age, gender, class, and race many are trapped in a never-ending cycle of coercion and abuse in order to survive in the corrupt society around them. In order to stop this monstrosity in the world, we need to start at the root of the problem. We must bridge the barriers between gender, class, and race in order to respect one another and live in harmony
"Facts On Human Trafficking And Sex Slavery | Soroptimist." Soroptimist.org. N. p., 2017. Web. 14
Sex trafficking is essentially systemic rape for profit. Force, fraud and coercion are used to control the victim’s behavior which may secure the appearance of consent to please the buyer (or john). Behind every transaction is violence or the threat of violence (Axtell par. 4). Just a decade ago, only a third of the countries studied by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime had legislation against human trafficking. (Darker Side, par.1) Women, children, and even men are taken from their homes, and off of the streets and are brought into a life that is almost impossible to get out of. This life is not one of choice, it is in most times by force. UNODC estimates that the total international human trafficking is a $32-billion-per-year business, and that 79% of this activity comprises sexual exploitation. As many as 2 million children a year are victims of commercial sexual exploitation, according the the U.S. State Department.-- Cynthia G. Wagner. (Darker Side, par. 4) The words prostitute, pimp, escort, and stripper tend to be way too common in the American everyday vocabulary. People use these words in a joking manner, but sex trafficking is far from a joke. Everyday, from all different countries, people are bought and sold either by force or false promises. Some are kidnapped and others come to America with dreams of a dream life and job. The buyers involved in the trade will do anything to purchase an innocent life just to sell for their own selfish profit. Many people wouldn’t think of a human body to be something you can buy in the back room of a business or even online. But those plus the streets are where people are sold most often. There are many reasons and causes for sex trafficking. The factors behind sex traffic...
U.S. Department of State Publication (2007) Trafficking in Persons Report,11407, United States of America: Office of Under Secretary for Democracy and Global Affairs and bureau of public affairs.
Trafficking in humans is a massive underground industry throughout the United States as well as close to home, mainly Chicago and it’s suburbs. “Human Trafficking is the recruiting, harboring,moving or obtaining a person by force, fraud or coercion, for the purposes of involuntary servitude, debt bondage or sexual exploitation( Human Trafficking in Illinois ).” Human Trafficking is one of the largest and is the fastest growing criminal industry in the world. Annually, 9.5 billion dollars of profits are generated from trafficking humans worldwide. “Persons do not have to have been transported internationally to be considered victims of trafficking” (Facts about Human Trafficking).
The largest number of sex trafficking victims originates in Asia, with an estimated 150,000 annually from South Asia alone. India is a major destination country for sex trafficked women and girls, with large numbers of Nepalese, Bangladeshi, and rural Indian females trafficked to Indian cities annually. Mumbai is considered to be the most common sex trafficking destination within India (Silverman, Decker, Gupta, Maheshwari, Patel, Willis & Raj, 2007).
"SEX TRAFFICKING IN THE U.S." Sex Trafficking in the U.S. – July 2012 – CharitySub. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Nov. 2013.