Kolab: A Sex Trafficking Survivor from Cambodia

Web. 14 Jan. 2014.

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.

The average age range for a child entering sex laboring is 12-14 (WEDU). One of the biggest reasons for trafficking is that it is hard to identify and traffickers can make a good amount of money per victim. According to the Polaris Project $13,000 is the average amount of money made by each laborer (victim) annually. Although, $13,000 is the average, each laborer can make around $60,000 annually (Polaris Project). Sadly, victims who are recruited into trafficking often don’t live much more than seven years due to the inhumane ways they are treated (WEDU).

It is the fastest growing crime in the world (Widbin, 2014). Though, slavery has been banned everywhere in the world millions of people are still slaves. Pimps will go after people that vulnerabilities such as immigration status and economic hardships. In 2007 human trafficking made thirty-two billion dollars, that was more than Google, Nike and Starbucks combined (Widbin, 2014). In the 2008 Trafficking in Persons Report, human trafficking is a multi-dimensional threat; it deprives people of their human rights and freedoms, it increases global health risks, and it fuels the growth of organized crime.

Human trafficking, a terrible crime known as a modern day form of slavery, “Human trafficking endangers the lives of millions of people around the world, and it is a crime that knows no borders” (Obama). Not many people realize the significant number of people human trafficked within the U.S. People forced into human trafficking are victims of modern day slavery because they are forced into trafficking by physical and emotional abuse, they are tricked by false opportunities, and they are often unprotected by the law. Human trafficking is a problem found all around the world, even in the United States, and has had been around and discouraged as early as the 19th century. Throughout history in the United States, there has been a continuously tough struggle to abolish slavery. “There are more slaves in the world today than ever before in world history” (Vance 941).

Human trafficking is wrong because, its an illegal worldwide problem, violation of human rights, its one of the fastest growing crimes, and its modern-day slavery. Human trafficking is an illegal worldwide problem, author Hornby explains; “CdeBaca estimated between 12.5 and 27 million people are trapped in slavery around the world ranging from children forced to coerced into prostitution” (Hornby, 2011, para.8) According to the International Labor Organization, they “estimate that 20.9 million people are victims of forced labor globally” (Lederer, 2012, para.8) Human trafficking happens all over the world in the nation survey, it “estimated that there are 29.8 million modern-day slaves and bondage in some forms exists in most countries, including, United States, Canada,... ... middle of paper ... ...ks.sirs.com Jarroud, M. (2013, Feb 27). Human trafficking: New forms of slavery appear in chile. Global Information Network. Retrieved fromhttp://sks.sirs.com Lederer, E. M. (2013, February 13).

Human trafficking is a 21st century form of slavery that has grown on a global scale from 700,000 estimated people involved in 2001 to 27 million people involved in 2013 according to the U.S. Department of State. This industry generates from $32 billion to $91 billion annually, making it the second most profitable business in the world. The demand for sex slaves is on the rise as more people are sold, kidnapped or tricked into human trafficking. Once in captivity, it is virtually impossible to regain freedom and is why so many women and children are lured into the industry through the usage of intimidation tactics and are exposed to violence and diseases which is why victims require help when they are free. Human trafficking is the “recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, debt bondage or slavery” as defined by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency known as ICE.

When most of us think about the sex industry, we think of prostitution or pornography. Usually people in that line of work chose to be in it, but that is not always the case. Human sex trafficking has become the fasted growing business among organized crime, and the third largest enterprise in the world, generating more than $31 billion dollars in profit a year, according to the FBI. Sex trafficking is the most common form of modern day slavery; in the U.S. it consists of mostly women and children between the ages of 12-18. They are sold and sometimes transported to other countries.

What are the causes of human trafficking? The main thing that causes people to be sex trafficked is money. Men who do the trafficking profit from it highly. Sex traffickers make over 32billion a year trafficking women and children. This is the 3rd highest paid industry in the world and the worst industry in the world.

Sex trafficking is the tragic and horrendous reality that is modern day slavery. It is forced prostitution and it is illegal, but the punishments are not properly enforced. It is a worldwide issue, existing virtually everywhere. Sex trafficking needs to be put to a halt! About 600,000 to 800,000 children, men, and women are trafficked across the world per year, of which 80 percent are female.