Combatting Human Trafficking

 

Historical Context of Human Trafficking

            In December of 2021, the Joe Biden administration released their updated “National Action Plan To Combat Human Trafficking”; originally published in 2020, a year that “11,193 situations of human trafficking were identified through the United States Human Trafficking Hotline. Globally, an estimated 24.9 million people were subjected to human trafficking” (NAPCHT, December 2021, p.8). That same year, “Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich”, a documentary exposé spreading awareness of multiple elitist who have allegedly participated in exploiting minors, was released and vastly grew in popularity as it ranked number one on Netflix’s Top Ten. However, the desire to combat sex trafficking dates as far back as 1828. In figure 1.1,

shown above, author Donna Hughes provides a timeline of the awareness of human trafficking, the historical context of sex trafficking, and when governmental officials became involved with the social justice movement to combat human trafficking. In the Biden’s administrations’ National Plan to Combat Human Trafficking, it is stated that

Individuals particularly vulnerable to human trafficking in the United States include children in the welfare system or who have encountered the juvenile justice systems; runaway and homeless youth; unaccompanied children; persons who do not have lawful immigration status in the United States; American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, Pacific Islanders, and other indigenous peoples of North America; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Intersex (LGBTQI+) individuals; migrant laborers; persons with disabilities; and individuals with substance use disorder. While girls, women, and LGBTQI+ community members are notably more vulnerable, sex and labor traffickers also regularly target boys and men (NAPCHT, December 2021, p.11).

This declaration to combat human trafficking is a revolutionary movement that not only provides a spectrum of justice to those wrongfully traumatized and victimized due to the actions of predatory individuals; it also gives insight to prevention implementations that will educate an intersectionality of the public (age, gender, sexuality, ethnicity, etc.) about human trafficking in order to raise public awareness of how concerningly prevalent human trafficking is because “communities benefit from knowing the threat they could be facing and what actions they could take to prevent crime from occurring (NAPCHT, December 2021, p.19). Fictional films such as Taken (Director Pierre Morel, 2008) and The Call (Director Brad Anderson, 2013) represent human trafficking in the form of abduction, yet it is important to note that human trafficking can be more subtle, such as grooming; the act of building an emotional bond with a child to later exploit and manipulate them to preform sexual favors. The National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking states, “Human traffickers can be relatives, friends, individuals who are politically connected in their country of origin, individuals operating alone, or those in loosely affiliated groups or as part of gangs or transnational criminal organization” (NAPCHT, December 2021, p.12). Technological advances in social media platforms also increase vulnerability in potentially becoming a victim to human trafficking as predators utilize the internet as tool to hunt prey. The online site, Omegle (created in 2004), is an example of an internet network that is algorithmically structured for randomized video chats with strangers in all areas of the world. This allows flexibility in legal guidelines that online predators take advantage of to seek their victims. As mentioned prior, it is important to be conscious of the variety of ways that human trafficking can occur so that individuals are well prepared to deliberate about these concerns and further spread awareness. Furthermore, as the public gains consciousness of the prevalence in human trafficking, the discussion can then shift to holding social media platforms accountable of their lenient policies and guidelines that assist predators to act on their evil desires.

            In conclusion, human trafficking has lasting effects on victims. The Department of Homeland Security released a victim’s story, under the pseudonym Tonya, where they state, “Telling people publicly about what I’d been through made me feel more ashamed because I’d never told anyone or was open about it” (Department of Homeland Security, 10/05/2021). Nonetheless, suppressing stories or lack of deliberation of said issues only gives predators the power to prosper. It is time to bring them the justice they deserve instead.

References

06, D. H. O. (2014, May 8). Combating sex trafficking: A history. Fair Observer. Retrieved January 16, 2022, from https://www.fairobserver.com/region/north_america/combating-sex-trafficking-history/

Human trafficking victim shares story. ICE. (n.d.). Retrieved January 15, 2022, from https://www.ice.gov/features/human-trafficking-victim-shares-story

The National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking. (n.d.). Retrieved January 15, 2022, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/National-Action-Plan-to-Combat-Human-Trafficking.pdf

Combating Human Trafficking

In “Diversity, Oppression, and Change: Culturally Grounded Social Work”, written by Flavio Francisco Marsigilia, Stephen S. Kulis, and Stephanie Lechuga-Pena, postmodernism is defined as “an alternative and collective interpretation of society that questions traditional forms of knowledge construction and its distribution” (Marsigilia, Kulis, and Lechuga-Pena, p.119). I believe the concept of postmodernism is applicable to the social justice movement of combatting human trafficking because it challenges how the public conceptualizes the term “trafficking” in a way that considers human trafficking in interpersonal relationships, the technological shift that human traffickers utilize as a tool and pulls metanarratives from the personal stories of victims. Through a SWOT analysis, I will further expand on my belief that postmodernism ideology correlates to the social justice movement of combatting human trafficking.

Strengths

            To begin, postmodernism ideology uses ““metanarratives” and “master narratives” to identify a larger story that justifies smaller stories” and provides “viewpoints in order to accept alternative understandings of society and to be alert to the messages presented by metanarratives” (Marsigilia, Kulis, and Lechuga-Pena, p.119). This ideology is beneficial when providing awareness about human trafficking; especially in the Joe Biden administration’s National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking’s Priority Actions principle 2.1: Identify and engage with victims in an equitable victim-centered, trauma-informed, and culturally competent manner. In addition, the National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking declares to elevate public consciousness as stated in Priority Action 2.1.4: Increase access to public awareness materials focused on victim identification, including by displaying those materials in priority locations within 1 year. This challenges the traditional forms of knowledge about human trafficking.

Weaknesses

            In addition, this call to action is a substantial step forward in combatting human trafficking. Ignorance, or lack of information about any social justice movement dilutes the awareness which hinders individuals from collecting credible information to formulate their opinions. In this instance, any individual is susceptible to becoming a victim of human trafficking regardless of their age, gender, sexual orientation, economic status, ethnicity, etc. If an individual is uninformed and unable to detect human trafficking in the subtlest degree, they, in return, are unable to recognize signs of potentially becoming victimized (or reading signs of victimization within loved ones), and are unable to report said victimization to hold predators accountable.

Opportunities

            Furthermore, the process of deliberation has aided many social justice movements. For example, individuals engaging in collective stories generates brainstorming conversations that recognize the invasions of human rights. The movement to combat human trafficking can empower victims to share their stories and shed light on how prevalent human trafficking is in our society. In Jeffrey Epstein: Filthy Rich, victims of the late elitist predator, Jeffrey Epstein, bravely discuss their traumatic stories. In return, the documentary rose up the charts on the streaming platform, Netflix, and other elitist are called into questioning for their involvement with Epstein’s child sex trafficking; for example, Prince Andrew, who was stripped of his titles as reported in The Washington Post (Booth, and Adam, 01/15/2022).

Threats

            That said, victims of human trafficking have the unfortunate scrutiny of potentially facing backlash for reports. As Marsigilia et. al states, “postmodernism provides important insights into different perspectives on diversity in its rebuke of ethnocentrism of any kind”, this is still applicable to any opposers who question the legitimacy of the victims’ stories (Marsigilia, Kulis, and Lechuga-Pena, p.120). The National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking even admits that “one of the biggest challenges facing law enforcement and service provider professionals is the ability to accurately identify human trafficking victims, which is due to several factors, including the level of trust that victims bestow in these professionals” (NAPCHT, December 2021, p.11).

            In conclusion, postmodernism ideology adapts to the changing society. Applying this ideology to conceptualize human trafficking benefits every generation because human trafficking is an unfortunate, contemporary issue that is difficult to detect without the brave individuals who share their stories so that the public can deliberate. The Joe Biden administration declaration to combat human trafficking provides governmental support when providing awareness of human trafficking. In return, the public is forced to sit with the discomfort of having these difficult conversations. In order to generate impactful change, we must discuss what is needed to be changed in the first place. In this instance, the call to change the normalcy of predators exploiting and abusing individuals by a means of taking advantage of their relational status, the technological advances, or by taking advantage of vulnerable individuals.

References

Booth, W., & Adam, K. (2022, January 15). What's next for prince andrew, cast out into the Royal Wilderness? The Washington Post. Retrieved January 16, 2022, from https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/01/15/prince-andrew-titles-lawsuit/

The National Action Plan to Combat Human Trafficking. (n.d.). Retrieved January 16, 2022, from https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/National-Action-Plan-to-Combat-Human-Trafficking.pdf

Marsiglia, F. F., Kulis, S. S., & Lechuga-Peña Stephanie. (2021). Diversity, oppression, and change: Culturally grounded Social Work. Oxford University Press.