Verified Document

Awareness Of Human Trafficking Essay

¶ … data collection instrument to assess the degree to which people were aware of the problem of human trafficking and understood the concept. I began with the hypothesis that people would lack extensive awareness about the issue. I selected an interview-based methodology so I could ask specific, targeted questions regarding the nature of human trafficking. The interview questions I submitted to my interview subjects asked them to define human trafficking, identify when and where it takes place, and to suggest possible solutions. One person I interviewed did not even know what human trafficking was: they thought it was similar to crowding or the condition of too many people being in the same place at once. The other two respondents did know that trafficking was the forcible movement of persons for illegal purposes. They said that they believed that both genders could be and were trafficked. One respondent likened it to kidnapping, for example.

There was a noteworthy amount of vivid language in the responses of the subjects, largely drawn from what they had seen on television. For example, one respondent stated:

…my thoughts from watching movies [have primarily shaped my views of human trafficking]…I imagine that these individuals are kidnap[ped], or these individuals are homeless.

Another participant specifically referenced the crime show SVU as a source of information on human trafficking.

However, there were clear misconceptions about the flow of human trafficking, perhaps because of the lurid emphasis in sensationalist literature and television shows. For example, the respondent continued:

They are transported out of the area (United States) to other countries. The countries vary. I am thinking...

They are clean[ed up] and presented to potential buyers. I am also thinking they are drugged most of the time.
This very vivid and lurid picture, although not explicitly referencing the sex industry, clearly paints a picture of someone primarily trafficked for sexual reasons, not other purposes. This indicated to me the perception that there is a lack of awareness about human trafficking and human slavery in the labor industry (which tends to have more males trafficked than females) (Hepburn & Simon 2010). The respondent indicated that gender did not matter and there was an expression of a desire to educate him or herself as a way of stopping human trafficking, such as reporting a child and a parent that seemed as if they did not 'fit' in her words. Of course, this response would not help adults who are trafficked.

Both participants gave particular stress to people who were naive and young as the most likely victims of human trafficking (once again, youth rather than gender were their primary, defining concern). However, they also agreed that trafficking could happen anywhere, with anyone, and was not exclusive to a particular country. On one hand, this belief in the commonness of trafficking was heartening because it indicated that trafficking was not perceived as something that occurs 'over there' and was not relevant to their concerns. On the other hand, it is not entirely the case that all nationalities and all persons are equally vulnerable: trafficked persons tend to come from impoverished, developing world areas (such as Latin America, Asia, or Eastern Europe and this naturally has had an impact upon how the crime is investigated and monitored. Both participants stressed the need to report suspicious activities…

Sources used in this document:
References

Hepburn, S., & Simon, R.J. (2010). Hidden in plain sight: Human trafficking in the United

States. Gender Issues, 27(1-2), 1-26. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12147-010-9087-7
Cite this Document:
Copy Bibliography Citation

Related Documents

Human Trafficking: Exploiting Vulnerable People for Profit
Words: 1724 Length: 5 Document Type: Essay

Human Trafficking: Exploiting Vulnerable People for Profit in the 21st Century In the 21st century, many Americans likely believe that in the Land of the Free, slavery is no longer an issue. The harsh reality of the situation, though, is that even in the United States, humans, especially young women and girls, are still bought and sold like so much chattel for work as sex slaves or domestic servants. Indeed, human

Human Trafficking the State Department of the
Words: 6416 Length: 20 Document Type: Research Paper

Human Trafficking The State Department of the U.S. Government has for the past ten years issued an annual report on the state of laws governing human trafficking. The latest report shows that most of the world's industrialized countries have enacted laws to protect against human trafficking. This includes recognizing that human trafficking is a problem and having taken steps to address the issue (Wu & Zifcak, 2010). Most countries in the

Human Trafficking in October of
Words: 2990 Length: 10 Document Type: Term Paper

Moon stated that since the Crawfords entered her life, "I have realized that I have value and worth. And now that I know God, I can always pray for his help whenever I have a problem." The Crawfords are among a growing number of Christians worldwide working to live out the love of Jesus by reaching out to sexually exploited people. The Crawfords decided to move to Thailand after

Human Trafficking, Rampant in Almost All Countries
Words: 1191 Length: 3 Document Type: Research Proposal

Human trafficking, rampant in almost all countries in the world, still unexpectedly continues in the United States with the forced exploitation of humans into forced labor or sexual exploitation. The United States' Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 defines human trafficking as: Sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18

Human Trafficking of Women and
Words: 4329 Length: 9 Document Type: Research Paper

143). In this regard, Yen cites the case of one-4-year-old child who was sold to a child sex-trafficking ring operating in the United States. According to Yen, "She was enslaved for twelve years, servicing mostly American men. To keep the children obedient, her traffickers frequently abused them psychologically and physically" (p. 653). Although truly alarming, this case is certainly not unique and Yen stresses that children ranging in age

Human Trafficking the Objective of
Words: 3155 Length: 10 Document Type: Research Proposal

" (Getu, 2006, p. 145) IV. SOLUTIONS for COPING WITH HUMAN TRAFFICKING CRIMES The work of Roger Plant entitled: "Economic and Social Dimension of Human Trafficking: Broadening the Perspective" states that the "narrowest perspective, actually quite widely held is that trafficking concerns essentially the sexual exploitation of women and children. Media attitudes tend to promote these perceptions." (2003, p.2) However, according to Plant "a slightly broader focus extends the scope while still

Sign Up for Unlimited Study Help

Our semester plans gives you unlimited, unrestricted access to our entire library of resources —writing tools, guides, example essays, tutorials, class notes, and more.

Get Started Now