Sex Trafficking in America - Essay Example

Sex Trafficking in America Introduction Over the past few decades, the trafficking of women and children for slavery and sexual exploitation has become a serious problem all over the world and policymakers, governments, NGOs, human rights organizations, and others have to put in their efforts to find sustainable solutions to these horrible crimes. Sex trafficking is often associated with South Asian and Southeast Asian countries, East European countries, and others, but many people do not realize that it is becoming a serious problem in the United States of America (Kara, pp. 85-87). Children and women who are nationals of US as well as immigrants face the increasing threat of becoming the victims of sex trafficking industries, which is amongst the fastest growing criminal industries in the world and these people are making billions of dollars by victimizing innocent children and women (DeStefano, p. 347). This paper is an attempt to, briefly, explore, and understand the extent and depth of sex trafficking within the United States, the actions taken by the government to combat this problem and the way forward. Discussion Significant here to note is that almost all the statistics regarding this trafficking are unreliable and incomplete because many of these activities are taking place off the grid and underground. However, some statistics indicate that at least 0.1 million and as much as 0.3 million children within the United States are victims of sex trafficking within the country (Kyle & Koslowski, p. 49). During the past few months, many US states have passed legislation considering the increasing seriousness of this problem. The State of Virginia, during the first week of May 2012, passed new anti human trafficking laws. It was on April 5, 2012 that Governor Earl Ray Tomblin signed the legislation, which criminalized human trafficking within West Virginia thus effectively making it the 49th state to pass anti human trafficking laws, with only Wyoming left as the only state in the absence of any anti human trafficking laws. Earlier in November 2011, Massachusetts became the 48th state of pass such legislation according to which the pimps and other running brothels and forcing women and children into labor and sexual exploitation would receive life imprisonment. Furthermore, the law would also treat the women and children forced into prostitution as victims rather than offenders. In the aftermath of the report, which indicated, that every year over 1000 US born children are forced into sex trade and more than 800 immigrants become the victim for trafficking in the state of Ohio, the policymakers in the state created an anti-human trafficking task force. However, human rights activists and NGOs still believe that US has a lot to do to protect the victims of sex trafficking and discourage such events from happening in the near future. Even today, USA is a tier 1 country for trafficking that means that the government is only meeting the minimum requirements to solve the problem. Furthermore, unlike Massachusetts in many other states, the trafficking laws and law enforcement agencies, rather than providing relief to the victims consider them as the offenders. More importantly, these people, even when freed from sexual exploitation and bonded labour, these people have to face the social stigma associated with their past lives (Kyle & Koslowski, p. 49). They fail to become well functioning members of the society because the authorities refuse to clear their records. On top of it, even if they try to become a part of the society, multiple arrests, incarceration, housing discrimination, employment discrimination, deportation and presence of a criminal record prevent them from doing so (Zhang, p. 247). Furthermore, many states have also failed to include safe harbor clauses into the anti trafficking laws to protect the minors, eliminate their liability, and recognize them as victims (Beeks & Amir, p. 108). Two significant developments that have taken place in the recent past have increased the threat of volume of human trafficking in the US. First, the recent wave of globalization and increased integration of internet in our lives has made the jobs of people who prey on children and women to force them into sex trafficking (DeStefano, p. 347). Cross border trade has become easier and quick, and so is human transportation. Furthermore, in the old days, these people had to establish face-to-face contact with young children and girls, often in public places to lure them into this business through giving them false hopes. However, with the internet, they can easily enter into the lives of these people, without even exposing them in the daylight and there is little that parents and guardians can do about the same to protect their children (Clawson, Dutch, Solomon, & Grace, p. 8). Second, the recent recession has shrunk the economic activity and increased unemployment drastically. Even though, the recession formally ended, but the recessionary pressures still exist considering the uncertain economic climate due the European Sovereign Debt Crisis. Therefore, the point is that decreasing demand for labor and job opportunities, people are now willing to take such risks (Kara, pp. 85-87). However, there are other demographical characteristics associated with women and children that end up in the sex trafficking industry of United States. Most of these people have a history of past sexual abuse, traumatic childhood and other vulnerabilities and in search of a better life; they become easy targets for pimps, to lure them into this business (Kyle & Koslowski, p. 49). Sex trafficking industry is tilted towards young girls who join the industry during the mid teenage. Furthermore, most of them come from low-income families and while trying to sustain their families and build a respectable life for themselves, they may end up in the hands of monsters. The sex trafficking industry within the United States consists of US nationals and immigrants (legal and illegal) (Beeks & Amir, p. 108). However, there are no concrete data to suggest that whether the percentage of immigrants is higher or US nationals, but there is theoretical evidence that suggests that immigrants, especially illegal are soft targets. Most of these immigrants are trying to escape from the police since they fear detention thus they end up spending all of their lives in this business. Furthermore, their lack of knowledge about the language, people, culture, and employment systems make them even more vulnerable. One their passports is confiscated, they have no choice, but to fulfill the demands of the pimps and brothel owners for as long as they require (McCabe & Manian, p. 73). The biggest evidence of sex trafficking in United States is the fact that, over the years, many regional hubs have emerged which have become the centers of sex trafficking. Houston, Texas is one of them where there are more than 200 functioning brothels and every year, the number increases by 24 new brothels. In fact, Houston is home to more spas, massage parlors, and strip clubs than Atlantic City and Las Vegas (Zhang, p. 247). The presence of two large airports, one seaport, proximity to the Mexican borders and the presence of a large number of immigrants make Houston just the perfect location for sex trafficking. Furthermore, Houston is home to many people from Southeast Asia, Middle East, and Latin America, who come here, legally and illegally, to find jobs and live a better life. However, many of the males end up finding themselves in labour trafficking and women and girls get involved in sex trafficking. A research conducted in Texas was able to find out that only within a 30-day period; more than 740 girls under the age of 18 were marketed for providing commercial sex (McCabe & Manian, p. 73). Following are a few firms, approaches and locations where sex trafficking is present and evident within the United States. Over the years, Massage Parlors, especially Asian Massage Parlors, which appear to be offering legitimate jobs to women, have transformed into brothels, which provide commercial sex to its clients. Most women working in these massage parlors are Asian women, documented or undocumented, and it is estimated that they have provide sex or 6-10 women daily (Shelley, p. 240). Most of these parlors have in-site residential facilities so that women do not leave the location. Most of these parlous use force, coercion and deceit to maintain control over these women. An estimate indicates that there are at least 5000 brothels in the country disguised as massage parlors and in most of these brothels; foreign women are forced to work to pay off their debt or to fulfill their dreams of a better life someday in the United States (Clawson, Dutch, Solomon, & Grace, p. 8). As mentioned earlier, internet had made it easy for pimps and johns to buy and sell women and children. Furthermore, they use the internet to market their brothels and massage parlors. Even worse, they even recruit women and children through the help of internet. Over the years, residential brothels have also increased in number, in the United States. Statistics from the law enforcement agencies and Department of Justice indicate that over 85 percent of women and children “working” in these residential brothels belong from Latin America. They are even hard to identify because they do not advertise their presence on the internet, but their business model operates through word of mouth advertisement. These brothels can be located in condominiums, residential apartments, suburban areas, and others. Most of the women and girls “serving” in these brothels sneak into the country illegally and then they have no option, but to continue, “Serving” (Territo & Kirkham, p. 12). Many of them are also victims of love from of boyfriend who then ends up selling them to these brothels. Nevertheless, the situation in these residential brothels is likely to be worse than massage parlors because women may be forced to provide commercial sex to as many as four men within an hour, which accounts to around 48 men per day in a 12-hour working day (McCabe & Manian, p. 73). There are several areas in the United States where it is common to see young girls and even minor girls standing at a corner of a street, controlled by a pimp observing their activities and dealing with the “clients”. Most people prefer not to look at these girls or even cross these streets, but they fail to realize that many of these young women are not doing standing there by choice, but due to the use of coercion by pimps who force them to earn a quota every night and then confiscate most or all of their earnings. In case of street prostitution, most of the victims of trafficking are minor girls, women and transgender youth from the US, but immigrants can also become the victims of the same. Most of the victims belong from rural areas and lower income class families and their dreams of living a better life or love for an older boyfriend, who then and sells them, brings them into this business. The negative social stigma often associated with prostitution discourages victims from revealing their real identity and intentions to the police and law enforcement agencies. Most of these women face violence and assault from johns and pimps and fear if they attempt to leave the business or run away; the pimps with their controlled network and power would either track them down or hurt their families (Kara, p. 318). Strip clubs and other similar establishments are yet another location where sex traffickers force women and girls to provide themselves for commercial sex, along with dancing and stripping, all under the name of a legitimate business. Most of these women are likely to be immigrants, whether legal or illegal, but the pimps would take away their passports and use violent threats and other extreme measures to provide commercial sex to the clients (Bolkovac & Lynn, p. 480). Stripping and nude dancing fall under the umbrella of sex trafficking when the employer or pimp uses force, coercion of threats for this purpose, however, in case of minors, the same is not required because even in the absence of force, it falls under the sex trafficking. However, the problem or challenge for the law enforcement agencies is that it is almost impossible to get these women talk about their horrors because of the constant threat and violence they face from those pimps (Kara, p. 318). Sex trafficking also occurs through escort services where either the escort has to go to the location of the “johns” or the client comes to the location of the escort. Either way, any use of force, coercion, and threats, which is used in over 64 percent of the cases as revealed by a survey, makes it a sex trafficking (Kara, p. 318). Furthermore, as mentioned earlier, any use of minor girls automatically makes it sex trafficking. Many brothels may convert into escort services when they fear being the target of law enforcement agencies or when the neighboring people have identified their activities (Bolkovac & Lynn, p. 480). Another growing form of sex trafficking in the United States is through truck shops, which may appear, as massage parlors or offering other services, but in disguise, there may be many young women forced to sell sex to customers. Then again, the problem is to identify which women are being forced in these acts and the ones that are actually engaging in these acts with their consent. Furthermore, it is also troublesome to identify which women are minors because the employers or alleged pimps may create false documentation to prove that all the women are of age of majority (Clawson, Dutch, Solomon, & Grace, p. 8). Conclusion There are no doubts in the fact sex trafficking has emerged as a serious issues within the United States and as this industry grows parents would find it difficult to perceive that their daughters are safe when they go out or meet new people. Therefore, in order to create a peaceful, safe, and functioning society, prudent steps should be taken to put an end to all forms of sex and human trafficking (DeStefano, p. 347). Most of the responsibility for the same rests on the shoulders of the federal government, state governments and law enforcement agencies, however, the citizens of the country also have the responsibility to change their opinions and perceptions about the victims of sex trafficking. Research reveals that in most cases, it is often not that troublesome for the victims to escape from the captivity of brothels and pimps, but they refrain from doing the same because of the social stigma concerning prostitution (McCabe & Manian, p. 73). Not only the law enforcement agencies lure them into pleading guilty, but it happens also when they try to live their lives as other normal members of their society, their past haunts them, and people continue to discriminate these people just because they were victims of extreme physical, psychological, emotional, and mental pain through most of their lives. Therefore, there is the need to change the opinions and perceptions of people regarding these victims and acknowledge them as “victims” and not as “offenders” (Bolkovac & Lynn, p. 480). Works Cited Beeks, K., & Amir, D. Trafficking and the global sex industry. Lexington Books, 2006. Bolkovac, K., & Lynn, C. The Whistleblower: Sex Trafficking, Military Contractors, and One Woman's Fight for Justice. Palgrave MacMillan, 2001. Clawson, H. J., Dutch, N., Solomon, A., & Grace, L. G. “Human Trafficking Into and Within the United States: A Review of the Literature.” Study of HHS Programs Serving Human Trafficking Victims, 2009. Retrieved on May 20, 2012: http://aspe.hhs.gov/hsp/07/HumanTrafficking/LitRev/ DeStefano, A. M. The war on human trafficking: U.S. policy assessed. Rutgers University Press, 2007. Kara, S. Sex trafficking: inside the business of modern slavery. Columbia University Press, 2009. Kara, S. Sex Trafficking: Inside the Business of Modern Slavery. Columbia University Press, 2010. Kyle, D., & Koslowski, R. Global Human Smuggling: Comparative Perspectives. JHU Press, 2001. McCabe, K. A., & Manian, S. Sex Trafficking: A Global Perspective. Lexington Books, 2010. Shelley, L. Human Trafficking: A Global Perspective. Cambridge University Press, 2010 Territo, R..., & Kirkham, G. International Sex Trafficking of Women & Children: Understanding the Global Epidemic. Looseleaf Law Publications, 2009. Zhang, S. Smuggling and trafficking in human beings: all roads lead to America. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007. Read More