On Ending Sex Slavery

There are those who believe slavery in the United States ended when the Civil War was brought to its end April 9, 1865.

Sadly, those individuals would be wrong. Slavery still exists within these United States, only it’s not nearly as public, and in many ways, it’s more widespread.

The slavery of which we speak is that of human trafficking. According to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center (NHTRC), there are some 27 million people enslaved worldwide, many of them in our vicinity. Slave labor ranging from agricultural work to the sex trade, smuggled immigrants and U.S. citizens alike, are held captive and exploited on a daily basis.

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, between 14,500 and 17,500 people are trafficked into the United States every year, and half of these are children. Of the 2,515 suspected human trafficking incidents reported but eh USDOJ between January 2008 and June 2010, nearly 500 suspects were confirmed and nearly 150 arrests made. Eighty percent of the suspected cases were classified as sex trafficking.

The NHTRC has even more glaring statistics; Between December 2007 and December 2012, more than 72,500 human trafficking incidents were reported, with 41 percent sec trafficking and 20 percent labor trafficking. Women were identified as victims in 85 percent of these cases. And according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, one in every seven endangered runaways were child sex trafficking victims.

This year in Florida, through the end of September the NHTRC received more than 1,100 calls regarding more than 300 human trafficking cases - and this is definitely not every single case out there. Given the exponential growth of massage parlors advertised on Craigslist and Backpage in Palm Beach County, it is safe to say that for every filed report or law enforcement bust of an illegal establishment, multiple operations have opened shop behind closed doors.

In fact, according to the USDOJ, South Florida is the nation’s third-busiest region for sex trafficking, not to mention third in calls to the national hotline (which can be reached at 888-373-7888, by texting “info” or “help” to 233733, and at https://traffickingresourcecenter.org). And Palm Beach County is third in Florida in terms of calls to the NHTRC regarding suspected cases of human trafficking.

The U.S. Department of State offers 20 ways individuals can help fight human trafficking (http://www.state.gov/j/tip/id/help/); these include incorporating human trafficking information in to professional association conferences and trainings, distributing awareness materials, donating food or other needed items to anti-trafficking organizations, students taking action on campuses, and contacting the NHTRC.

Earlier this year, the state passed legislation aimed at trying to bring the runaway train to some sort of stop, with mandated posting of “human trafficking awareness signs” (which include the aforementioned NHTRC hotline and text numbers) be posted in public and private locations statewide. The law, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2016, requires signs be posted across Florida, from Interstate welcome centers and Florida’s Turnpike rest stops to airports and Tri-Rail train stations, from public libraries and public schools to adult entertainment locations. This includes strip clubs and any business offering massage or bodywork services not owned by a regulated health care profession.

I recognize the new law is not enough. But it’s a start, because information - real, hard, public information - is crucial when dealing with a below-the-radar crime such as human trafficking. Public transportation signage tells people from all walks of life: Here’s someone you can call, anonymously, without fear of reprisal.

I encourage you, as the new year begins, to make a resolution: to help end slavery of all types in the United States.