Human Trafficking--Be alert!

Have you seen the Lincoln movie?  It shows how Lincoln was able to use his political power to end slavery while connected to ending the war.  We think of slavery as some archaic practice long long ago. 

However, the trafficking of humans/slavery exists TODAY and is not just happening in "third world countries".  There are good resources at stopenslavement.org: http://www.stopenslavement.org/archive.htm

In the January fact-filled newsletter (http://www.stopenslavement.org/stoptraff1101.pdf) there is an article sharing the key findings of a UN Report:

• Women account for 55-60% of all trafficking victims detected globally; women and girls together account for about 75%
• 27% of all victims detected globally are children.  Of every three child victims, two are girls and one is a boy.
• In general, traffickers tend to be males and nationals of the country in which they operate, but more women and foreign nationals are involved in trafficking in persons than in most other crimes.
• Women traffickers are often involved in the trafficking of girls and tend to be used for low-ranking activities that have a highter risk of detection.
• Trafficking for sexual exploitation is more common in Europe, Central Asia and the Americas.  Trafficking for forced labor is more frequently detected in Africa and the Middle East, as well as in south and East Asia and the Pacific.  (See the January newsletter to get more details about trafficking in the U.S.)
• Trafficking for the purpose of sexual exploitation accounts for 58% of all trafficking cases detected globally, while trafficking for forced labor accounts for 36%.  the share of detected cases of trafficking for forced labor has doubled over the past four years.

The newsletter, among other things, tells of changes states are making in dealing with child prostitution.  They are providing safe havens for them instead of prosecuting the children for prostitution.

BE AWARE of what is going on in your community!  There have been cases in the U.S. where it turns out a domestic worker has been enslaved at the house.  I read about a case a year or two ago where a child was in this position.  She was freed but shunned by her family who had sold her into the position.

Keep your eyes open and have the courage to take action when something doesn't seem right--you could save a life!