Modern Day Slavery: Human Trafficking In The United States

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Modern day slavery. This is what is known as human trafficking, the serious crime that occurs in countries all around the world. Human trafficking is simply known as the trade of humans for the purpose of forced labour, sexual slavery, or commercial sexual exploitation for traffickers or others. Unfortunately, thousands of men, women, and children are victims to this despicable crime. Almost every country is affected by cases of human trafficking. Many call human trafficking the “modern form of slavery” although slave trade was abolished decades ago. There are arguments about the measures that should be taken to end this underground trade. With trafficking occuring on the United States border to international countries like East Africa, law …show more content…
Human trafficking is done by means of the threat or use of force and coercion such as abduction or deception. The United Nations of Drug and Crime identifies three specific elements to human trafficking: the Act, the Means, the Purpose. “The Act” involves what is being done in this crime. Specifically, how do criminals involved in this illegal business go about trafficking people? Recruitment, transportation, transfer, and harbouring people are the ways that this works. “The Means” is the second element in human trafficking and it defines how is done. Many wonder how do people fall victim to human trafficking. Well, exploiters use the power of threat, force, coercion primarily. Often they use the method of abduction, taking young women and children, fraud, deception, abuse of power or vulnerability, or giving payments to the person in control of the …show more content…
In the United States, sex trafficking is often overlooked and many cases go unnoticed by law enforcement. This crime is unfortunately not reported by victims which makes the situation even more difficult. According to the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, sexual exploitation is the most common identified form ahead of forced labor. In sex trafficking, women and young girls are the ones that are usually taken against their will and “sold into prostitution” (Alvarez, 2016). This is a reason as to why victims of sex trafficking will not report their case. It becomes an issue with law enforcement when those who have been exploited fear coming forward about their situation. Detective Bill Woolf, a worker in the Human Trafficking Task Force, has interviewed about 300 victims over the years. He found that in many of their cases, the “victims will see themselves as the offenders” (Alvarez, 2016) although they were forced from their homes to sexual exploitation. When looking at the technicalities, the victims are committing a crime- prostitution. Rather than reporting themselves as a victim to this cruel exploitation, they stay in the situation to avoid getting in trouble with the