Introduction
“Defeating human trafficking is a great moral calling of our time.” A quote by Condoleezza Rice, former U.S. Secretary of State, explains how human trafficking should be eliminated by all means. Human Trafficking is the commercial enslavement and exploitation of humans through the acquisition, movement, and maintenance of human beings for the goal of gain. Human traffickers resort to manipulative and abusive methods to gain power over their victims. Threats and acts of physical violence, such as drugging and kidnapping, are used to draw these victims into a trap (Dearnley). Sex trafficking refers to forcing people against their will to participate in the sex industry. Forced labor is another common human trafficking in which victims are forced to work against their will or repay debt under dangerous circumstances. Several countries have documented human trafficking as forced marriages and unfair child custody agreements. Sweatshops, farms, construction sites, homes, and restaurants are some places where traffickers exploit men, women, and children via labor trafficking. This practice can involve either outright disobedience to labor laws or using legal but questionable practices to gain an unfair advantage in the workplace. Human trafficking has been found to affect people from specific racial and ethnic backgrounds more than others. Additionally, some myths have been used to explain the occurrences of human trafficking, which have made the practice more rampant. Grassroots efforts should be implemented to stop these practices and keep everyone safe. However, those who succumb to human trafficking could be doing so to help salvage some situations they are involved in to improve their lives.
People affected by human trafficking
Human trafficking has been found to affect people from specific racial and ethnic backgrounds more than others. Most victims of human trafficking who end up in the United States are people of color, and they are the ones who end up in situations where they are compelled to engage in prostitution or forced labor. Most non-natives are women, children, and men from Mexico and East Asia, followed by those from South Asia, Central Asia, Africa, and Europe. Human Trafficking is deeply rooted in racism; as a result, all races must be represented in statistics, research, and advocacy related to the topic (Dearnley). Human Trafficking is a modern kind of slavery that can only be stopped if the links between trafficking, migration, poverty, racism, and gender and racial discrimination are publicly acknowledged. To eliminate racial or ethnic trafficking prevalence, those who come forward to report human trafficking should have the support of the government and NGOs in their efforts to see that those responsible are held accountable. To fully grasp the vulnerabilities that exist and how traffickers take advantage of opportunities, it is also important to discover the victims’ and suspects’ place of origin and their race and ethnic background. It will be easier to design strategies for rescuing victims and apprehending traffickers if the characteristics of both trafficked individuals and traffickers are known. It is important not to downplay that people of color make up the majority of victims of human trafficking, despite the reality that anybody, regardless of race or ethnicity, can fall victim to this crime.
Myths on Human Trafficking
Some myths have been used to explain the occurrences of human trafficking, which have made the practice more rampant. The idea that unrelated individuals commit trafficking crimes is a common fallacy. Reports of people being seized by strangers and reports of traffickers targeting ladies using zip-tie mailboxes circulated online (Dearnley). It was rumored that ladies were a particular target for traffickers. Drug dealers might be anyone; they could be your friends, your neighbors, or even your family members; therefore, it’s conceivable that the claims aren’t real. In other cases, the kidnapper is the victim’s family or spouse who has been persuaded to hand up their loved one for the money or other benefits. As a result, they resort to kidnapping members of their own families. Another myth is that human trafficking is done by people affiliated with certain movements. Although this is often the case, human trafficking can happen anywhere, including in one’s community, and the perpetrators may even be someone one knows (Bell). Furthermore, the myth that human trafficking is rampant at stadium-sized sporting events is a myth. In most cases, people who participate in sports do so to increase their financial stability; nonetheless, they may voluntarily provide some services. Many others are compelled to work in countries that host big sporting events, often against their choice. Some of these people may probably die of exhaustion or overwork.
Efforts to stop human trafficking
Grassroots efforts should be implemented to stop these practices and keep everyone safe. The first step in ending human trafficking is realizing how complex the problem is and accepting that solving it won’t be easy. Increasing the education of women in countries of origin can make young women less vulnerable to trafficking, and increasing the pay of law enforcement officers in countries of destination can make them less vulnerable to bribery. Still, anti-trafficking strategies must be incorporated into all facets of public policy (Dearnley). Human Trafficking is a global problem. Therefore people from all walks of life and cultures must understand the issue and do what they can to assist. Many new efforts have been created to raise public consciousness about the problem of human trafficking and rally people to take action to end it. This new initiative, called Start Freedom, aims to educate and empower young people about the dangers of Human Trafficking. The ACT program, or Active Communities against Trafficking, aims to equip community members with the knowledge and skills they need to identify human trafficking incidents and understand these crimes’ impact on their neighborhoods. If the locals are well-informed, they will be better able to shield themselves from the repercussions of human trafficking and stop it before it starts.
Counter argument
Those who succumb to human trafficking could be doing so to help salvage some situations they are involved in and to improve their lives. When people choose to offer their services for a small fee, they do so only to help themselves financially and improve their quality of life. They are paid relatively little for their labor, yet they regularly participate in acts that escalate into forced labor. The victims fell into a trap when they initially assumed they were only attempting to earn a living from their predicament. Human Trafficking is often a process that begins innocuously enough but escalates over time to include sexual or coerced labor. Sometimes it might not even be called human trafficking at first. Some people who work in the sexual services industry have discovered that they can make ends meet by advertising their services online. Still, they often do not realize they risk becoming victims of human trafficking if their situation worsens. They emphasized that providing their services online allowed them to swiftly assess consumers, control the conditions in which they would meet clients, and provide safety information to other persons working in the sex business. Advocates have criticized the regulation for free expression and internet rights. They say it violates users’ right to free expression by doing away with protections for online forums established by the Communications Decency Act of 1996. As time went on, human traffickers began to target these workers, specifically kidnapping, exploiting, and trafficking them in exchange for their labor. Child trafficking is rampant in Côte d’Ivoire; thus, the Chocolate Campaign has set up shop there. As part of the effort to reduce human trafficking, the chocolate industry is being asked to guarantee that none of its products are made with slave labor. The initiative guaranteed that producers used no child labor in the chocolate industry, and chocolate producers helped bring attention to the problem and sought to end it (Bell). Additionally, the campaign urged chocolate companies to do something about the problem. All of these efforts were concentrated at the community level, where they could reach the greatest number of people and where those individuals could help spread the word about how to put an end to human trafficking.
Conclusion
In conclusion, research has shown that members of several racial and ethnic groupings are statistically more likely to fall prey to people traffickers. As a result of factors such as skin color or gender, certain people are more likely to be targeted by the practice than others. The likelihood of being a victim of human trafficking may be higher for those subjected to racial discrimination because of their perceived membership in a racial or ethnic minority (Dearnley). Human trafficking has been perpetuated partly because of myths attempting to explain its existence. This has contributed to the spread of the myths and strengthened their credibility among the general public. Common beliefs about human trafficking hold that the perpetrators are always strangers and that the problem is confined mostly to developing nations. Furthermore, there are claims that criminal groups like gangs and cartels increasingly engage in people trafficking during sporting events. Contrary to these myths, human trafficking can occur all year round, at any time, and by anybody interested in doing so. Because these crimes often begin at the grassroots level, action must be done there to put an end to them and guarantee the protection of everybody. There has to be widespread public education on human trafficking so that locals may report suspected cases to authorities and help stop this heinous practice (Bell). On the other side, some victims of human trafficking may have given in to the temptation because they are desperate to escape their current situation. These people are introduced to human traffickers without their knowledge, and as a result, they are sent to foreign countries and forced to endure conditions they never bargained for. Since human trafficking is a serious problem in many regions, all available efforts should be used to eradicate it because it affects the lives of everyone in these communities.
References
Bell, Jamaal. “Race and Ethnicity Make People Vulnerable to Human Trafficking.” Human trafficking, edited by Dedria Bryfonski, Greenhaven Press, 2013. Current Controversies. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,
Dearnley, Ruth, and Steve Chalke. “Stopping Human Trafficking Requires a Grassroots Effort.” Human trafficking, edited by Dedria Bryfonski, Greenhaven Press, 2013. Current Controversies. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,
“Five myths about human trafficking.” Washingtonpost.com, 26 Feb. 2021, p. NA. Gale In Context: Opposing Viewpoints,
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