Sex Trafficking: A History of Coercion and Exploitation - Research Paper

Introduction

According to Weitzer (2011), sex trafficking can be defined as the recruitment, transportation, harboring, provision as well as obtaining a person for the purpose of commercial sex. Though this Act is immoral, it is not punishable unless the offense involves an underage individual or an adult who was coerced into the activity. Furthermore, this activity has been a presence for a long time but greatly increased after the second half of the 20th century. After the second world war, there was an increased rate of sex trafficking arrests, especially for minors throughout the United States. However, the total number of arrests in 2015 indicates a steady increase in the rate of sex trafficking from 97 in 2010 to 360 with an estimation of an increase in the rate each year. This research demonstrates that the awareness of sex trafficking is spreading into societies that had not recorded any rates previously.

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Deshpande & Nour (2013) noted that there are approximately 800,000 people who are trafficked across international borders into and out of the United States. Out of these people, 80% are girls or young women, while 50% are minors. Since sex trafficking involves some kind of coerced sexual exploitation, it is not limited to prostitution and, therefore, has become an increasingly growing problem in the United States as well as the larger community. The consequences of sex trafficking are severe in communities that are affected. Some of these consequences include the degradation of human rights, poor public health, reduced social development as well as disrupted communities. As a result, the victims of this offense develop severe physical and psychological health issues. Thus, it is clear that sex trafficking is a critical issue that affects many societies and has broader social, as well as economic outcomes that need both medical as well as legal attention.

Conceptualization of Sex Trafficking in the United States

The federal law does not exactly define sex trafficking but uses the term "severe forms of trafficking in persons" that involves some form of force, fraud, or involves a minor as the person who is forced to perform the sex activities. The federal law also defines one of the severe forms of trafficking in persons as the recruitment, obtaining, or provision of a person for labor or services through the use of fraud or force for the purpose of peonage, servitude, slavery, or debt bondage. The federal law also provides the definition of commercial sex in order to differentiate sex trafficking from other forms of sexual offenses such as rape and molestation as any sexual act that is given in exchange with anything of value by the participants. From these definitions, it is clear that the concept of sex trafficking is relatively undefined in the United States as there is no specific definition in regards to sex trafficking.

Weitzer (2011) noted that sex trafficking is also grounded in the belief that it is radical feminist thinking as it focuses on the differences between men and women as a form of sexual inequalities. Sexual trafficking highlights male domination as an intrinsic aspect of sexual commerce. According to the feminists, women would not be coerced to perform sexual activities for men if they had similar socioeconomic opportunities as men. Additionally, the feminists commented that the men have a patriarchal right of access to women's bodies, as demonstrated clearly by the existence of prostitution, which perpetuates women's subordination to men. Furthermore, the notion of sex trafficking differs from the religious right's objections to commercial sex due to the threat it poses on marriage as well as the moral fiber.

The Current Laws and Punishments That Impact Sex Trafficking in the United States

According to Bales & Lize (2005), the United States government passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in October 2000. The Act facilitates the definition of severe forms of trafficking that includes trafficking for forced labor or servitude as well as for sexual exploitation. The provision of this Trafficking Act represents a bold departure from the previous approaches to trafficking as well as coerced labor in the United States. Furthermore, the government created an office that would monitor and combat trafficking in persons in the United States. This department was also tasked with overseeing a wide range of efforts to put an end to human trafficking in the United States as well as in the globally affected communities (Bales & Lize, 2005). These measures were put in place due to the realization that sex trafficking crimes are global problems that cannot be solved by one country only (Bales & Lize, 2005).

The trafficking Act criminalizes any act of subjecting another individual to slavery, forced labor or involuntary servitude. Moreover, the department provides social services as well as legal benefits to all the victims and survivors of these crimes, including the directive to remain in the country. The department also provides funding that facilitates protection programs for the survivors in the United States (Bales & Lize, 2005). All these actions are done in an effort to monitor and eliminate overall human trafficking, including sex trafficking for all the countries in the United States. In addition, the government clearly dictates that those who have been caught up practicing trafficking, as well as forced labor, should be identified as a victim of crime instead of unauthorized migrants who are meant to be returned to their countries of origin. However, there has been an issue with regard to the difference between smuggling and trafficking, as both have similarities. For instance, both smuggling and trafficking involve moving human beings for profit. However, trafficking includes smuggling and some coerced labor or sexual exploitation. Therefore, law enforcement individuals are expected to know the difference between smuggling and trafficking when dealing with these cases (Bales & Lize, 2005).

Factors That Contribute to Sex Trafficking in the United States

Globalization

Globalization is a factor that has greatly contributed to the increase in sex trafficking in the United States as an integrated world economy contributes to the growth of human trafficking. The aspect of globalization has made the business of human trafficking more lucrative as it affects the rate of demand and supply. The more people are trafficked for sexual exploitation, the more profits the offenders make. Furthermore, through globalization, the offenders are able to identify vulnerable individuals who are more likely to become victims from all corners of the world and bring them to the United States and vice versa (Brewer, 2012). Furthermore, the economic inequalities between the developed and the developing worlds that are created by globalization create a steady demand for employment from the developing world and available pool of vulnerable people who can be easily smuggled exploited on the false belief that they are going to get employment and better future in the developed world. Increased demand for cheap labor by multinational companies in developed countries has led to trafficking as well as the exploitation of desperate people (Brewer, 2012).

Poverty

Poverty is one of the key factors that contribute to sex trafficking. Even though the victims come from diverse backgrounds, trafficking is intimately connected with the lack of resources such as employment opportunities and poor living conditions. As a result, the people become desperate to escape from these conditions, and they may consent to enter into fraudulent job schemes or even be conned into prostitution. Furthermore, the traffickers target people who do not have access to economic opportunities, especially those who are struggling to meet basic needs. The traffickers may also target runaways as they are especially vulnerable since they cannot afford the basic needs (Finklea et al., 2015). Moreover, the majority of these runaways include youths who may be underage and do not have any point of contact as they had been chased away from their homes at some point (Finklea et al., 2015).

References

Bales, K., & Lize, S. (2005). Trafficking in persons in the United States, final report - Scholar's choice edition. Scholar's Choice.

Brewer, D. (2012). Globalization and Human Trafficking. Human Rights & Human Welfare. https://www.du.edu/korbel/hrhw/researchdigest/trafficking/Globalization.pdf

Deshpande, N. A., & Nour, N. M. (2013). Sex Trafficking of Women and Girls. Rev Obstet Gynecol, 6(1), e22-e27. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3651545/

Finklea, K., Fernandes-Alcantara, A. L., & Siskin, A. (2015). Sex Trafficking of Children in the United States: Overview and Issues for Congress. Congressional Research Service. https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R41878.pdf

Weitzer, R. (2011). Sex Trafficking and the Sex Industry: The Need for Evidence-Based Theory and Legislation. Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology, 101(4). https://scholarlycommons.law.northwestern.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=7413&context=jclc