Types of human trafficking Human trafficking in the U.S. cuts across a variety of labor sectors, including commercial sex work as well as domestic, personal service, factory, restaurant, farm, and agricultural labor. However, there may be other labor sectors that have yet to be identified. Labor or services trafficking may include recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, or obtaining a person for labor or services (Human Trafficking Hotline, n.d.b). There may be use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjecting the individual to involuntary servitude, peonage (paying off a debt through work), debt bondage (debt slavery, which is bonded labor or services for a debt or other obligation), or slavery (a condition compared to that of a slave in respect of exhausting labor or restricted freedom; Human Trafficking Hotline, n.d.b). When a child under 18 years of age is recruited and harbored for the purposes of sex, prostitution, pornography, or exotic dancing and is forced to work for little or no pay, it is considered sex trafficking (Human Trafficking Hotline, n.d.a). The victim is often threatened with serious harm, physical restraint, or abuse of legal process if they do not comply with the wishes of the perpetrator (Human Trafficking Hotline, n.d.a). Commercial sex trafficking may include recruiting, harboring, transporting, providing, or obtaining a person for sexual services (Human Trafficking Hotline, n.d.a). This type of trafficking involves a commercial sex act that is induced by force, fraud, or coercion or in which a person under the age of 18 years is induced to perform such an act (Human Trafficking Hotline, n.d.a). A commercial sex act is any sex act when anything of value is given to or received by any person (Human Trafficking Hotline, n.d.a). Victim identification Identifying victims of human trafficking is a complex and difficult task. There is often fear for victim safety and/or loyalty to the perpetrator (Keep Kids Safe, n.d.b). This may result in little cooperation from the victim when trying to validate or verify clinical findings (Keep Kids Safe, n.d.b). There are also problems with identification by the U.S. law enforcement personnel who are typically trained to focus on perpetrators of crimes. When the trafficked person is involved in illegal activities such as prostitution or is an undocumented immigrant (being undocumented is not a crime, but it is a deportable offense), it may be difficult to define them as victims rather than just as criminals. Thus, law enforcement officials often do not look past the criminal activity to see whether it is part of a larger problem such as human trafficking, leaving some victims of human trafficking identified only as criminals (Logan et al., 2009). In essence then, both the victims and the traffickers collude to keep the crime hidden, and law enforcement personnel do not always look past the obvious criminal activity to see the more complex crime of human trafficking making identification and estimates of its nature and scope very difficult (Logan et al., 2009). Victim identification and warning signs include the following (Keep Kids Safe, n.d.b): ● Has been verified to be under 18 years of age and is involved in the commercial sex industry or has a record of prior arrest for prostitution or related charges. ● Has an explicitly sexual online profile. ● Frequents Internet chat rooms and/or classified sites. ● Depicts elements of sexual exploitation in drawing, poetry, or other modes of creative expression. ● Has frequent or multiple sexually transmitted diseases or pregnancies.
Many victims are forced to commit criminal acts themselves (e.g., involvement in prostitution), are involved in illegal activities such as using drugs or false documents, or are undocumented and afraid to come forward because of their status in the U.S. Their own criminal activities and/or legal status makes it difficult, if not impossible, to bring their situations to light. The victims of human trafficking are part of a covert society that is hidden to most everyone except those who use trafficked persons. The victims are walled off from society and from their families, and they are not on the books related to tax and other employment records. In a strict legal sense, they do not exist and since their activities are often illegal, they dare not become visible (Logan et al., 2009). Populations at risk Although human trafficking victims may be of any age, younger and older teens are at highest risk, including the ● Youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning, intersex, and/or asexual (LGBTQIA). ● Youth who are homeless or runaways. ● Youth with intellectual or physical disabilities. ● Youth with mental health or substance abuse disorders. ● Youth with a history of sexual abuse. ● Youth with a history of being involved in the welfare system. ● Youth who identify as native or aboriginal. ● Youth with family dysfunction. following (Keep Kids Safe, n.d.b): ● Youth in the foster care system. ● Unexplained injuries and/or unbelievable or inconsistent explanation of injuries. ● Multiple bruises or cuts in various stages of healing. ● Lies about or has no identification or knowledge of personal data such as age, name, or date of birth. ● Wears sexually provocative clothing. ● Wears new clothes of any style; gets hair or nails done with no apparent financial means. ● Wears clothing that is dirty and inappropriate for the weather; it may be too large or too small (often dresses or skirts that are provocative in nature). ● Has multiple cell phones or very expensive items that they have no way of purchasing on their own. ● Has unaddressed medical issues or goes to the ER or clinic alone or with an unrelated adult. ● Maintains secrecy about whereabouts. ● Has late nights or unusual hours. ● Is found in a hotel, street track, truck stop, or strip club. ● Has a tattoo they are reluctant to explain. ● Uses specific terms such as “trick,” “the life,” or “the game.” ● Is in a controlling or dominating relationship. ● Avoids answering questions and lets someone else speak for them. ● Does not have insurance or control of own finances. ● Exhibits hypervigilance or paranoid behaviors. ● Expresses interest in or is in relationship with adults or much older individuals. ● Has significant change in behavior, including increased social media and new associates or friends at school. Factors that affect vulnerability to trafficking include poverty, immigrant status, hope for a better life, being female, being young, and being isolated. Factors that influence
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