August, 2023 Monthly Reflection

World Day Against Trafficking In Persons

Michelle Loisel, DC

On July 30th we celebrated World Day against Trafficking in Persons. The event created by the United Nations is to raise awareness and increase prevention.

The theme of World Day Against human trafficking 2023 is “Reach every victim of trafficking, leave no one behind.” Global crises, conflicts, and climate emergencies are escalating trafficking risks. Displacement and socio-economic inequalities are impacting millions of people worldwide, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation by traffickers.

Those who lack legal status, live in poverty, have limited access to education, healthcare, or decent work, face discrimination, violence, or abuse, or come from marginalized communities are often the primary targets of traffickers.

We know that thousands of men, women, and children are tricked and misled to believe that they are being taken to work so their families are better off but instead end up in the hands of traffickers every year. It also occurs through force – by kidnapping, or by extremely poor families selling their children to survive. There are many ways that people get lured into trafficking, but the result is the same, they lose their rights and identity and are used and abused. This is a global problem and an industry not far behind drugs and recently surpassed the illegal arms trade in terms of profit for traffickers.

The campaign for World Day Against Trafficking in Persons 2023 aims to raise awareness of disturbing developments and trends identified by the latest UNODC Global Report on Trafficking in Persons and calls on governments, law enforcement, public services, and civil society to assess and enhance their efforts to strengthen prevention, identify and support victims, and end impunity.

Trafficking is a global problem that needs a global solution, which is why the United Nations organized the World Day against Trafficking in Persons, to raise awareness encourage vigilance and gain support for the prevention of human trafficking. This is why they have produced a protocol to punish human trafficking and are hoping to implement this globally, as well as an act to protect trafficking victims.

The United States is not exempt from human trafficking crimes. The National Human Trafficking Hotline allows us to discover statistics by state in the National Report For 2021.

In the United States, individuals vulnerable to human trafficking include children in the child welfare and juvenile justice systems, including foster care; runaway and homeless youth; unaccompanied foreign national children without lawful immigration status; individuals seeking asylum; American Indians. In addition, other factors that contribute to the supply of trafficking victims include poverty, lack of employment opportunities, organized crime, and discrimination.

We are all invited to strive to put an end to human trafficking. The best way to observe July 30th is to learn about human trafficking problems in the area we live and find ways to prevent it. Some of the best things we can do to prevent it include:

  1. Learn the signs of human trafficking at the Department of State.
  2. Call the National Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-888-373-7888 if you suspect someone is a victim.
  3. Be a conscientious and informed consumer.
  4. Ask your local officials what they are doing to combat human trafficking.
  5. Learn more about human trafficking by watching a documentary on the subject, or watch a movie, “Sound of Freedom,” which is based on a true story about Tim Ballard, which tells of one story on how trafficking can happen. It is a compelling story that demonstrates the connection between pedophilia, pornography, and purchasing sex.

Michelle Loisel, DC

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