______________________________________ Human Trafficking and Exploitation: The Texas Requirement
SOCIETAL/CULTURAL Globalization
[52]. Abuse and neglect during childhood are clear ACEs, but other examples include witnessing family or community violence; experiencing a family member attempting or complet- ing suicide; parental divorce; parental or guardian substance abuse; and parental incarceration [52]. One study found that youths with human trafficking reports were significantly more likely to have experienced ACEs [53]. Specifically, sexual abuse was the strongest predictor of human trafficking. Girls with a history of sexual abuse were 2.52 times more likely to experience human trafficking, and boys who had been victims of sexual abuse were 8.21 times more likely to be trafficked. Poverty and Economic Disenfranchisement Poverty and incessant economic stressors caused by civil wars, natural disasters, and collapses of government systems all contribute to human trafficking [16; 30; 54]. In one study, the odds of being trafficked were nine times greater for those who felt extremely hopeless about upward mobility compared with those with lower levels of hopelessness [54]. RELATIONSHIP/FAMILY Families marked by instability (e.g., domestic violence, child abuse, continual unemployment) are also at higher risk of hav- ing a member trafficked [30]. In addition, families entrenched in deep poverty may feel they have no other recourse but to sell a child or may be more easily lured with promises of money and a better future [54; 55; 56]. COMMUNITY/INSTITUTIONAL Community factors (such as high social disorganization charac- terized by violence, unemployment, and high crime) contribute to higher risk of trafficking [30]. The rampant use of digital technology, such as the Internet, greatly facilitates sex trafficking. The relative anonymity of online contact can empower traffickers to recruit or sell victims. Graphic images of women and children engaged in sexual acts can be easily disseminated over the Internet [57]. Traffickers may employ the Internet for advertising, marketing to those interested in making pornography [57]. In addition, social media sites such as Facebook, Craigslist, and Instagram have been used as a means of facilitating trafficking (e.g., by connect- ing and grooming potential victims) [58; 59; 60]. Newsgroups offer opportunities for those interested in locating women and children for sexual exploitation. In a 2013 qualitative study, smartphones were found to be inte- gral in the business of trafficking [58]. Researchers indicated the phones were used “to maintain contact with each other, in order to facilitate the business ‘transactions’ and stay in touch with transnational ‘partners’ and other traffickers who remained in the country of origin” [58; 59].
Human trafficking has been called one of the “darkest sides of globalization” [61]. Globalization is the term used to describe the interconnectedness of countries and nations, which facilitates easy communication, exchange of ideas, and flow of goods, capital, and services [61]. Crimes such as human traf- ficking are affected by globalization just as legitimate businesses are [62]. Furthermore, the ideals of Western capitalism may reinforce human trafficking as a business or industry, with its emphasis on the free market and the flow of goods and services across international borders [62]. Globalization has also created the need for cheaper labor [34; 63]. A study involving 160 countries examined the effects of globalization and human trafficking trends [64]. Researchers found a positive relationship between globalization and traf- ficking for forced labor, sex work, and debt bondage. Corruption Human trafficking cannot occur without the existence of cor- ruption within existing infrastructures. Public officials, police officers, and local leaders in many developing countries have been known to take bribes to provide protection to parties involved in various aspects of human trafficking [61; 64; 65]. Racialized Sexual Stereotypes Race and ethnicity have been inextricably linked to sexual violence and victimization. Myths regarding sexuality in certain cultures or racial fetishization may affect trafficking patterns. For example, there is an over-representation of Asian women on American Internet pornography sites in part due to popular myths sexualizing, eroticizing, and exoticizing Asian women. This has translated into trafficking, as traffickers respond to the demand for young Asian women and girls in part fueled by these stereotypes of exotic, docile, submissive, and eager- to-please Asian women [36]. These stereotypes devalue and dehumanize people, which is the underlying core of human trafficking. This contributes to the acceptability of the exploi- tation of individuals, particularly members of marginalized groups [66]. These racial stereotypes go beyond simply framing the victims in a particular manner [67]. They raise implicit questions regarding how the powers of state are depicted. In other words, the patriarchal attitudes of certain countries lead to “bad” or “backward” cultural practices or ways of being that then cause trafficking—setting up a dichotomy of the “West” and “others” [67].
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