Sex Trafficking of Minors in the United States
The term slavery usually drives people to think of slavery in the 1600’s to the 1800’s when Africans were brought to many parts of North America, however, slavery has expanded to various part of the world and the concept of slavery has now branched out into numerous forms of slavery, including Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking. Shockingly slavery is stronger now than in any time in history. Sex trafficking of minors in the United States seems to be a topic that is quickly brushed off of many people’s minds. However it is crucial for our society to enforce more social control and to educate the population about what DMST is, the unfortunate statistics, who constitutes the population that it affects, …show more content…
“The US is one of the top 10 destinations for human trafficking—with tens of thousands of people trafficked into the country each year” (Hepburn & Simon, 2010, p. 3). Domestic minor sex trafficking is the act of abusing and forcefully retaining possession of an individual under the age of 18 years. It is very usual for victims to go through quid pro quo harassment- which is when a person of higher power demands sexual favors in exchange for what one with lower power may want. The harsh nature of sex trafficking and the trauma that it leaves minors and people of all ages makes it very difficult for one to really know how many victims are affects each year because many victims do not feel the courage to speak out about their situation. However, there are organizations that estimate this information. “Forms of DMST include prostitution, pornography, stripping, escort services, and other sexual services. In terms of prevalence, most experts suggest there are currently at least 100,000 DMST victims in the United States (Estes & Weiner, 2002; Smith, 2008)” (Kotrla, 2010,p. 182). It is vital for both adults and minors in our society to be aware of this information, as it is heavily predominant in the U.S compared to other …show more content…
This concept of authority vested in males brings about problems, some of which society does not like to acknowledge. “In terms of those trafficked for the purposes of forced commercial sexual exploitation, women and girls make up 98% and men and boys comprise 2%”(Hepburn & Simon, 2010, p. 2). Everyday people of all ages are bombarded with advertisements, billboards, commercials, social media posts and television shows where women are exploited and used to sell items or to hook people to TV shows or pornographic content. It is very unfortunate that these industries benefit and strive off of naive young girls who can not fend for themselves.“Recent research suggests that American youths are the most vulnerable to becoming victims of sex trafficking in this country” (Kotrla, 2010, p. 1). A foster care and human trafficking website claims, “It is easier to manipulate children, and by the time children become adults, they are broken down and dependent on a pimp” (“Foster Care & Human Trafficking”). Not all individuals involved in sex trafficking in the United States are there voluntarily, but they are there because of involuntary membership. Just as one does not get to chose who or where they are born into, some victims of domestic minor sex trafficking are stuck into their unfortunate playing field and by consequence are directed into this horrific industry by external influences. The
The term slavery usually drives people to think of slavery in the 1600’s to the 1800’s when Africans were brought to many parts of North America, however, slavery has expanded to various part of the world and the concept of slavery has now branched out into numerous forms of slavery, including Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking. Shockingly slavery is stronger now than in any time in history. Sex trafficking of minors in the United States seems to be a topic that is quickly brushed off of many people’s minds. However it is crucial for our society to enforce more social control and to educate the population about what DMST is, the unfortunate statistics, who constitutes the population that it affects, …show more content…
“The US is one of the top 10 destinations for human trafficking—with tens of thousands of people trafficked into the country each year” (Hepburn & Simon, 2010, p. 3). Domestic minor sex trafficking is the act of abusing and forcefully retaining possession of an individual under the age of 18 years. It is very usual for victims to go through quid pro quo harassment- which is when a person of higher power demands sexual favors in exchange for what one with lower power may want. The harsh nature of sex trafficking and the trauma that it leaves minors and people of all ages makes it very difficult for one to really know how many victims are affects each year because many victims do not feel the courage to speak out about their situation. However, there are organizations that estimate this information. “Forms of DMST include prostitution, pornography, stripping, escort services, and other sexual services. In terms of prevalence, most experts suggest there are currently at least 100,000 DMST victims in the United States (Estes & Weiner, 2002; Smith, 2008)” (Kotrla, 2010,p. 182). It is vital for both adults and minors in our society to be aware of this information, as it is heavily predominant in the U.S compared to other …show more content…
This concept of authority vested in males brings about problems, some of which society does not like to acknowledge. “In terms of those trafficked for the purposes of forced commercial sexual exploitation, women and girls make up 98% and men and boys comprise 2%”(Hepburn & Simon, 2010, p. 2). Everyday people of all ages are bombarded with advertisements, billboards, commercials, social media posts and television shows where women are exploited and used to sell items or to hook people to TV shows or pornographic content. It is very unfortunate that these industries benefit and strive off of naive young girls who can not fend for themselves.“Recent research suggests that American youths are the most vulnerable to becoming victims of sex trafficking in this country” (Kotrla, 2010, p. 1). A foster care and human trafficking website claims, “It is easier to manipulate children, and by the time children become adults, they are broken down and dependent on a pimp” (“Foster Care & Human Trafficking”). Not all individuals involved in sex trafficking in the United States are there voluntarily, but they are there because of involuntary membership. Just as one does not get to chose who or where they are born into, some victims of domestic minor sex trafficking are stuck into their unfortunate playing field and by consequence are directed into this horrific industry by external influences. The