Human Trafficking 101
ONLY
0%
OF VICTIMS ARE EVER RESCUED
THERE ARE
0M
VICTIMS WORLDWIDE
TRAFFICKING IS THE
0ND
LARGEST WORLDWIDE CRIMINAL ENTERPRISE
EVERY 30 SECONDS A CHILD OR TEEN IS SOLD INTO SLAVERY
FACTS
FAQS
EVERY 30 SECONDS A CHILD OR TEEN IS SOLD INTO SLAVERY
FACTS
FAQS
Grooming is when a trafficker or scout finds and slowly prepares a young person for a particular purpose through trust and relationship building. More than ever, traffickers are finding their victims online. A 2018 survey of sex trafficking victims reports that 55 percent of new recruits after 2015 was first contacted via texting, apps, or websites, whereas surveys conducted prior to 2015 showed 84 percent were first contacted in person. While these technological avenues make up the majority of first encounters, scouts also regularly find young people in shopping malls, through friends, at bus stops, and at school. Alternatively, traffickers may play the role of a target’s boyfriend or girlfriend, slowly conditioning the young person for sex work.
Groomers are networking and listening for kids who:Like any crime, human trafficking can occur in any community where there are teens to manipulate and a marketplace of users with money to service. In 2017, there were over 10,615 cases of human trafficking reported in the United States according to the National Human Trafficking Hotline.
This is only a small percentage of the actual occurrences of trafficking as many cases go unreported. There are so many unreported cases because most victims are too afraid and/or ashamed to ask for help and very few people recognize the trafficking that is happening all around them. Visit National Human Trafficking Hotline website to get statistics specific to human trafficking.
Victims of human trafficking, and those that are targeted by traffickers, can be from any race, age, ethnicity, social or economic group, gender, sexual orientation or level of academic achievement.
TRAFFICKERS TARGET YOUNG PEOPLE WHO:
Those with pre-existing physical, emotional and cognitive disabilities may be at greater risk of falling victim to human trafficking due to their vulnerable state.
Like victims, traffickers come from all parts of society – every race, gender, and socio-economic group.
Boyfriend/Girlfriend: A common type is an attractive polished man (or woman) in their early 20s, who pretends to be a girlfriend or boyfriend to the teen.
Gangs: Criminal gangs also play a significant role in trafficking, sometimes using associates with a less threatening appearance to make the initial approach.
Employers: Fake employers also lure victims in, to both sex and labor trafficking with promises of modeling or other glamorous careers.
Family: Finally, some victims are trafficked by their own family members (or foster parents).