human trafficking exam 2
Evidence-based techniques for PTSD treatment
(1) Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) (2) Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) (3) Motivational enhancements therapy
Criteria for PTSD diagnosis
(1) Intrusion - Involuntary, persistent and distressing re-experiencing of the prior trauma; (2) Avoidance - numbing, forgetting, or blocking out the trauma; (3) Negative alterations in cognition or mood - inability to remember details of the trauma, irritability, emotional outbursts, distorted cognitions of guilt; (4) Heightened arousal - e.g., difficulty falling/staying asleep, impaired concentration, hyper vigilance; and/or startled responses.
Ways sex trafficking can occur
(1) through "force, fraud, or coercion" (remember, the US law's definition); (2) volunteer to participate in sex work but are later placed in situations where they are forced to perform "unanticipated, undesired and non-consensual sex acts under inhumane conditions"; [changes from consensual]. (3) any minor under the age of 18 - is per se sex trafficking. Consent is not possible by a child for sexual exploitation. (recall again, the American TVPA law's definition).
Anti-trafficking Laws in U.S.
- 13th Amendment of US Constitution - Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA)
T Visa - more emphasis on assisting law enforcement than on protecting and helping the HT victims.
- 184 NGO's (non-governmental organizations) reported incidents of law enforcement officers telling HT victims that they risk losing their benefits if they do not cooperate with law enforcement. - Continued presence provision - federal agents may require a HT victim to remain in the US against their wishes if the victim's departure is considered prejudicial to the interests of the US.
Gender aspect of modern migration
- 1960-mid-1980's - 95% of women migrants were with a spouse or following to join a spouse. - Mid-1980's-present - 95% of women migrants are migrating alone
9 years later - 2018 T-visa
- According to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) 2018 data, the average wait time for a T visa is 10-13 months. - The USCIS data from 2018 suggests that even though T visa applications were submitted at a similar pace to those in 2017, the % of approvals of T visas was declining from 33% in 2017 to 16 % in 2018. - A change in the process also occurred re: T-visas during the Trump administration. In the past, the denial of a T-visa application did not result in transfer of the file to ICE to start deportation proceedings. That changed. Thus, attorneys for HT victims seeking a T visa needed to carefully review with their clients what the chances may be for a denial of the T-visa application because the T visa application process could increase their chances of deportation, if denied.
Recent data - Federal HT prosecutions
- According to the Human Trafficking Institute, "In 2018, there were a total of 771 active human trafficking cases in federal courts across the United States. The majority (88.2%) of the active human trafficking cases were criminal prosecutions. The remaining 11.8% of the active cases were civil suits". - In 2018, the government initiated 171 criminal HT cases in federal courts. This number is 29% less than the new HT cases initiated in 2017. --> 95% of these cases were sex trafficking cases and 4.7% - were labor trafficking cases - While typically, the number of newly filed sex trafficking prosecutions has increased each year since 2000 (55), the number of new labor trafficking cases has remained "relatively stagnant" - "Over half (51.6%) of the criminal HT cases active in 2018 were sex trafficking cases involving only child victims. (But also recall that the FBI investigations often focus on child sex trafficking, which may skew the incidence percentages). - Criminal defendants used the internet to solicit buyers of commercial sex in 87.7% of the sex trafficking cases active in 2018. (This is an an overwhelmingly high %). - Only 5.3% of the federal (not state) sex trafficking cases active in 2018 involved street-based commercial sex. - 2018 Labor trafficking cases & top 4 types of work for 2017 & 2018: 1) domestic work - 38.7%; 2) restaurantor food services - 19.4%; 3) agriculture- 12.9%; and 4) construction- 12.9%.
Restrictions on Foreign Aid
- Countries in the 3rd and 4th tier ranking in the TIP Report - are not eligible for non-humanitarian, non-trade related foreign aid. - Child Soldiers Prevention Act - 2008: No US military assistance to countries known to recruit or use children in the military or countries that provide a haven to non-governmental armed forces that recruit/use child soldiers.
PTSD Treatment
- Culture can have a strong impact on how individuals experience trauma and seek assistance. - Treatment should be individualized to address the victim's particular experiences and resulting issues. It should also attempt to create a sense of self-determination for the patient. - Patient consent should be a priority for care providers, especially so for HT victims who did not have control over their lives or any sense of agency. Also, patients should be well-informed about their treatment process. - Therapists should emphasize the safety of the environment and teach victims to: exercise self-determination, practice mindfulness training to prevent hyperarousal, experience feelings in a safe way - In other words, the goal of the therapist is to help the victims regain control over the way they experience their reaction to the abuse, so their reactions are less counterproductive to them. - Pharmaceutical options: selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs)
Human Trafficking: US Law - TVPA. TVPA Reauthorization in 2003 added these safeguards
- Established a FEDERAL CIVIL RIGHT of action for HT victims to sue their traffickers, a federal civil rights lawsuit. - Criminal Prosecution - Added HT to the list of crimes that could be prosecuted as a RICO crime (Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organizations)..
What is Public Health?
- Focuses on the health of populations, rather than that of the individual. - Public health is evidence-based. It relies on scientific data. - Impacted by government policies in addition to the health care profession's response - as seen with COVID. - "The science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, public and private organizations, communities and individuals" - Charles Winslow
The other 3 types of crimes addressed by the FBI Civil Rights Program are:
- Hate crimes - "Under color of law" violations such as excessive use of force by law enforcement agencies - FACE Act violations - crimes against persons who seek to obtain or provide reproductive health services.
Blacklist of foreign goods produced by trafficked persons
- Homeland Security, Labor, and State - required to maintain lists of foreign products that have been produced by "forced labor, child labor, indentured labor, forced or indentured child labor, and convict labor". - Certain specified goods/products are banned from import into the United States IF produced, mined or manufactured with forced, indentured or convict labor. (Some argue that the US uses prison labor). Other specified goods/products are barred from use by US federal contractors because likely were made by forced or indentured child labor - "These restrictions are designed to discourage producers and manufacturers from viewing the US as a destination market for consumer goods that were produced with forced or servile labor". (p. 187 - text) But, what about chocolate, clothes - including "fast fashion", etc?
Ways HT traffickers minimize risk
- Human traffickers generally expose themselves to fewer risks than other major criminals. - Less risk of death or injury from violence (like with drug or gun trafficking): Traffickers often control victims with manipulation and intimidation. Thus, victims often don't even self-identify as such. Also, victims are not usually armed with weapons. - Less risk of detection/arrest by law enforcement: The "product" (ie, the victims) are not often easy to detect by police. It's harder to detect a HT victim by simply looking at him/her. - Less risk of successful prosecution: Except in "stings" (undercover operations) in which a fictitious victim is used to lure sex traffickers or customers, the prosecution of sex trafficking usually requires at least minimal cooperation by the victim(s). "Consent" by adult victims - is often a defense to the charge of HT of adults. Thus, if a victim refuses to testify, or testifies that the trafficker (her "boyfriend" or "Daddy") did not force or coerce her/him to engage in commercial sex, then the government will not be able to meet all the elements of the crime of HT, & thus, not be able to convict the defendant. victims often refuse to cooperate with the prosecution because of fear of retaliation by the trafficker, or the Stockholm Syndrome form of loyalty or a wish for "love" from the trafficker - or a combination of these factors.
vulnerable people
- Key vulnerability for many women/girls is being raised in a dysfunctional family - & female victims often crave attention from a male figure. As you know, HT victims often refer to the trafficker as "Daddy" or "boyfriend", and they are told by the pimp that the victims are making money for the "family"; - As a child/teen, the victim was often sexually abused by a relative or family friend,be it father/stepfather or mother's boyfriend, or other relative), and the victim views his/her self worth as tied primarily to their sexual value. - It is the relative who actually puts the victim directly into a sex-trafficked situation. - Runaways from foster care are at high-risk, and along with those who age out of foster care.
Public Health Effects of Labor & Sex Trafficking
- Labor trafficked people also are often exposed to physical and psychological harm as well. - Neither type of victims may be able to access health care for even routine problems. - Emergency rooms are the most frequent point of access for any medical care for the HT victims. - Working conditions often put the HT victims at higher risk of injury or infection
Need for Law Enforcement to Coordinate with Community Groups
- Law enforcement agencies (federal & state/local) should build relationships with NGOs and community groups - Law enforcement needs to better support victims - especially in terms of needed services like food, clothing, housing, medical, counseling, etc. - even if referrals to NGO's for such services. - Community can be a source of intelligence on human trafficking - if law enforcement is trusted. - Bottom line: HT is a modern-day form of slavery, and requires coordinated approach by law enforcement & community organizations to fight this crime.
Other Communicable Infections
- Like STIs, other communicable diseases are spread from one person to another. However, they can also be spread through indirect contacts. - Trafficking victims often live in cramped and unsanitary conditions. - Overcrowding is a risk factor for disease transmission. - Water can become contaminated (Cholera, Typhoid) or air can spread disease (Influenza, COVID-19) from one victim to another.
Law Enforcement Obstacles
- Limited resources to address the crime of human trafficking. It is a resource-intensive type of crime to investigate/prosecute, especially as to arrest/prosecution of the traffickers themselves, less difficult to catch the customers (johns). - On the surface, difficult to distinguish between prostitution and sex trafficking. It can be hard to detect victims, who often do not self-identity as such. - Unlike most other crime victims, HT victims usually do not report the crime - For the above reasons, victims are often uncooperative with law enforcement and prosecutors due to the victims' fears and vulnerabilities along with their distrust of law enforcement.
Sex Trafficking Victims - Profile
- Many do not speak the host country language - Often from large families - Typically very poor countries, but also from the US and other 1st world countries. - Mortality rate for victims of sex trafficking is 40 times higher than the national average.
Public & Mental Health Overview of HT victims
- Many women who are trafficked experience physical and mental abuse, confinement, and rape. - The trauma experienced by such victims is similar to that of torture victims. - experiences of victims occur on a continuum. Victims suffer in various ways and often, in an overlapping manner. Their experiences include: inhumane conditions & deprivation/isolation; control through physical force/violence; control through psychological coercion (manipulation); control through drugs/alcohol. - Treating victims can present ethical, safety, and medical challenges. - Victims may be at risk of retribution from their traffickers. - Their physical and psychological symptoms are often complex due to their history of chronic abuse and deprivation. - As a result, organizations have proposed "best practices" to improve the care for trafficking victims. (I prefer the terms "good" or "recommended practices", rather than "best", as the practices will likely change, over time, and of course, do vary by individual victim). - In DE, HT training is an optional course for RN continuing education.
"Customer" relations
- Monetary Quota - that the HT victim must meet each day/night. - Thus, robbery of the victim by the customer means the victim will not meet her/his quota. - If victim robbed by the customer, it is the victim who often gets beaten by the trafficker as punishment for bringing home less money. - Many victims are beaten and raped by customers - but such violence does not usually deprive trafficker of profit unless the injuries are life-threatening. - Due to fear, including the risk of deportation, or distrust of the police, including by US citizens, victims rarely report being crime victims - of rape, beatings or robbery.
FBI's Human Trafficking Initiative (2004)
- Multi-agency approach to fight human trafficking - Recommendations: Conduct threat assessments, Establish Task Forces/Working Groups (each FBI field office required to participate in such a HT group.), Develop liaison contacts with NGOs, community organizations, faith-based groups and others (referrals of victims), Investigation of crimes. - Federal HT prosecutions and convictions quadrupled in the five-year period from 2004 - 2009.
Who Addresses These Health Issues?
- NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) - Harm reduction model - Government agencies
Who is responsible for trafficking?
- Not just the "pimp" (trafficker) - the "johns" (customers) are also offenders, but less criminally culpable (responsible) under the law and have not typically been the focus of enforcement in the past. - Family members as well as so-called "boyfriends" often are the ones who get the victims involved - the recruiters - Trafficker may own a business that can be considered a legitimate front (e.g., massage parlors, nail salons)
US State Dept. - Role under the TVPA
- Office to Monitor & Combat Trafficking in Persons (OMCTP) - Lead American agency re: global fight against HT - "provide funding to support physical & psychological rehabilitation of victims" & "remain in the destination country, to provide authorization to engage in employment... ." (p. 179). - Then, read the last paragraph on p. 179 along with first full paragraph on p. 180. What's your reaction in light of what you've learned about the T-Visa? - Let's discuss the irony, especially of the 3rd country repatriation aspect.
Partnerships definition
- Partnerships and collaboration are "best (good) practice" in anti-trafficking work. - Coordination - organizing various actors to accomplish a common goal - Collaboration - working together by sharing knowledge, learning, and building knowledge - Cooperation - working/acting together to achieve the same end
Criteria for tier ranking
- Pass & vigorously enforce anti-HT laws; - Minimum 4-year prison sentence for HT criminal conviction; - Victim services - healthcare, counseling, shelter - Fight labor trafficking practices - including excessive fees by labor recruiters and retention of ID documents.
From trafficker's perspective, HT is a good "business proposition"
- Ready supply of "product", i.e., vulnerable people Low start-up costs (example in book, p. 282 - as little as $100). - Low overhead (drugs & food for victim, cell phone service, possibly cheap hotel room & condoms though reportedly, many johns refuse to use condoms.) - Large customer base - demand - Minimal skill to operate - Less risk of being arrested and convicted than with drug trafficking - High profit - example on p. 283- Trafficker with 3 victims who each work 300 days per year - could generate over $300K a year, tax-free.
Why do the traffickers do it?
- Remember, high profit/low risk crime. - Lucrative opportunity - the victims make them a lot of money. - Considered low risk (not often prosecuted/detected)
Complexity of PTSD
- Responses for longer than one month required for PTSD diagnosis, however victims may not exhibit PTSD symptoms for months or years, only to be triggered later. - Often, patients also meet criteria for other disorders which makes treatment even more challenging. For example: mental health and/or substance abuse disorders may exist. Victims often self-medicate to numb the emotional pain - Some experts suggest that trafficking victims are more prone to self-destructive, risk-taking, and re-victimization behaviors than other types of PTSD patients - Strong family or other social network support may mitigate the risk of PTSD, but this population of victims typically lacks a strong support system.
Sexually Transmitted Infections
- STIs = "infectious diseases spread from person to person through direct body contact or contact with infected body fluids". - Examples: syphilis, human papillomavirus (HPV), chlamydia, herpes, gonorrhea, trichomoniasis, hepatitis B, HIV. - Trafficking victims are not typically able to insist on the use of condoms or to refuse unsafe sex. - Victims are, therefore, more likely to contract STI's, and their lack of access to health care makes them more likely to suffer from its complications. - Because many victims are also less educated, they may not have adequate knowledge of the symptoms and risk factors for STIs.
Public Health Effects of Sex Trafficking
- Sex trafficking contributes to the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STI's)and other infectious diseases. - Sex trafficking victims are also often coerced to abuse drugs and alcohol. - As discussed earlier, isolation, violence, shame/stigma, and emotional abuse often lead to psychological problems as well.
Global Challenges to Eradicating Human Trafficking
- The "economic refugee" is a class that has no legal recognition in the immigration law of most countries. Yet, many migrants are leaving poor countries to find work in richer countries. - Economic disparities between countries in the poorer global south and the richer global north have contributed to this economic refugee situation. (Push-Pull dynamic of Supply & Demand)
Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report - under the TVPA [TIP 2021 Report, issued 7/1/21 - in this week's module]
- The primary diplomatic tool for the State Dept. - foreign aid (non-humanitarian & non-trade related) is tied to countries' TIP tier ranking. - Countries in 3rd & 4th tier ranking - not eligible for foreign aid. Only those in the first two tiers are eligible for US foreign aid.
Video - A Nurse serving HT victims in Eritrea
- This video contains an interview with a nurse (and nun) who works in a clinic in Eritrea which provides medical and psychological care to trafficking victims. During their journey to Europe or Israel, many Eritreans are kidnapped or sold by smugglers to kidnappers and traffickers. - While in captivity, the refugees are tortured, raped and beaten. - Many young Eritreans leave their country in search of decent work and to avoid human rights violations at home. - The victims' families are asked to pay up to $50,000 ransom for their release. Some Eritreans realize these risks exist and still choose to leave their country in search of a better life. - While watching the interview of the nurse, Sister Aziza, pay particular attention to the health and psychological issues she so often sees. - Think about what needs to be done to better address trafficking victims' needs and to reduce the harmful impacts of HT on their health.
Techniques for Retaining Victims
- Threats: if victim leaves, they or their families will be killed. - Isolation: move the victims around frequently so that they don't form any attachments and are also disoriented as to where they are. - Drugs: keeping the victims addicted to drugs makes their compliance easier, makes them more dependent on the trafficker, and less credible to the police. - Self-surveillance: through fear, require the victims to send frequent reports via text messages about every step of the process of a "date". Permits the trafficker to keep track of victim plus make sure s/he is not withholding any money as trafficker keeps track of number of "dates" per day/night. Technology likely assists some pimps with tracking those in
Trauma of Trafficking
- Traffickers do NOT respect victims' boundaries (physical and emotional) - Repetitive boundary violations make victims feel as though they do NOT have any control, i.e., sense of loss of agency, self-regulation, and social support - Victims often engage in submissive behavior, and habituated compliance. Remember - the "Stockholm Syndrome".
why is it is difficult to obtain reliable data regarding the physical and psychological health effects of trafficking?
- Traffickers may prevent victims from accessing health care - victims often mistrust care providers and/or victims may be too embarrassed or afraid to report their experiences. - Studies that do exist tend to only report on sex trafficking of women and girls; not males.
Investigatory Challenges
- Trafficking may occur behind the scenes of a "legitimate" business, which makes the crime hard to detect (ex. Snakehead video re: trafficked kids in restaurants). - Employees, who as part of their jobs, come in contact with victims may not be aware of how to identify victims. For example, health care workers, lawyers & judges, guidance counselors, teachers & school nurses, social workers, hotel/motel employees, and others may not see the "red flags" of HT. - There may be language/cultural barriers Victims often distrust law enforcement for a variety of reasons, including corruption in some of the victims' home countries. - Victims often very fearful of retribution from their traffickers. Victims are concerned about deportation if they report crimes
importance of HT prosecution
- Trafficking of people ranks 2nd only to trafficking of drugs as most profitable criminal enterprise in the US. Human trafficking has now passed gun trafficking, which has moved down to 3rd most profitable. - Successful prosecution can take away, or at least, temporarily reduce the financial benefit of HT crime. - If convicted, the trafficker will receive a significant prison sentence. - Trafficking laws require convicted traffickers to forfeit profits from the crime - Those law also require restitution for the HT victims (which does not always happen).
PTSD
- Trauma = "experience that threatens one's sense of safety and security" - It can be a single event or a chronic experience Please note: Trafficking victims who experience physical and/or sexual assaults are particularly vulnerable to post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); but a trauma victim does not have to experience either type of assault in order to develop PTSD.
Neurology of Trauma
- Trauma leads to changes in the way the brain regulates arousal. - Victims become hyper-aroused, which often leads to them being more emotional, feeling chronically overwhelmed and having more difficulty coping with anger and fear. - Some victims dissociate (experience emotional numbing) - Other trauma victims also experience loss of cognitive abilities - e.g., trouble remembering, organizing, paying attention/concentrating, or thinking clearly. This aspect of PTSD poses a challenge for their witness testimony in HT prosecutions.
Challenges to Implementing Effective Anti-Trafficking Policy
- US Diplomats serving in embassies/consulates abroad are often not knowledgeable about HT or the requirements of the TVPA, according to State Dept. Inspector General report (2012) - Questions about the credibility of the annual assessments of countries, as reflected in the TIP Report tier rankings. (For ex, the Tier 2 "watch list" - a catch-all for countries that should actually have received a Tier 3 classification.) - along with lack of clarity in the tier ranking process, also the narratives are incomplete, and thus, usefulness of the TIP Report is reduced. - 2008 - Congress added a new requirement for the TIP country rankings. After two consecutive years on the Tier 2 Watch List, those countries would be downgraded to Tier 3 category. - T Visa - more emphasis on assisting law enforcement than on protecting and helping the HT victims.
The Operation of a Sex-Trafficking Venue
- Victim Recruitment - Large supply of vulnerable people
Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA)
- first comprehensive federal HT law in the US. Enacted in 2000 & reauthorized in the following years. - The goals of the TVPA are: Prevention, Protection, Prosecution, Partnerships
13th Amendment of US Constitution
- prohibits slavery and involuntary servitude - Provides the federal government with the authority to enforce most anti- trafficking statutes
TVPA: Protection
- provide federal support to help victims rebuild; - Established T-visas to allow victims to remain in U.S. with a pathway to permanent residency. ([However, recall that T-visas are not used by HT victims often - because of the requirement that victims cooperate with the prosecution of trafficker(s) and other challenges.]
FBI - Federal Law Enforcement Investigation of HT
- responsible for investigating the crime of human trafficking - that goes beyond state lines (which it typically does). Thus, interstate or international trafficking. - The FBI's anti-trafficking work is led by its Civil Rights Program and HT constitutes 16% of the Civil Rights Program's resources. - The FBI divides its HT investigations based on the age of the alleged victim - be s/he a child or an adult. Investigations, including interviews with minors, involve special training and expertise. Child Advocacy Centers - trained child investigators conduct interviews with children - observed by others & video-recorded.
T Visa
- temporary visa classification in US immigration system for HT victims. - Benefits - HT victim may stay in US up to 4 years, which can be extended if law enforcement certifies that the HT victim is needed to assist with ongoing investigation/prosecution of HT. - T visa is a pathway to application for permanent resident status - if HT victim is continually present in US for 3 years. - Downside of T Visa - HT victim MUST cooperate with law enforcement in the investigation/prosecution of the victim's trafficker. Most HT victims are too afraid to do so out of fear of retaliation by the trafficker. - In 2009, the US Gov't issued only 4% of the 5,000 T-Visas permitted by Congress per year.(Text - p. 335). That's a mere 200 or so people who benefitted from the T-visa in 2009.
Trafficking victims who are foreign nationals
-Trafficking victims who lack visa documents and are working as prostituted persons in the US are unlikely to report abuse because they're afraid of being deported. Both US citizens and foreign nationals also often decline to report to police when they are crime victims. -May also be perceived by the public as "unworthy of legal assistance" or other types of help due to the pervasive STIGMA.
sex trafficking
-payments/benefits go to the trafficker who is exploiting the sex worker, rather than to the sex workers themselves. -The trafficker also decides whether/when/where the sex work occurs. The trafficker has control. -CSE involving kids is always trafficking. -Trafficker often has total control, including psychological control, over the victim. Typically, this type of control is more powerful than physical control. -Victims are abused by traffickers as well as often by the clients (aka johns) too.
Three examples of US inter-agency cooperation to fight HT
1) Blacklist of foreign goods produced by trafficked persons 2). Restrictions on Foreign Aid - 3). Preferential trade status - Incentive to developing countries to comply with efforts to fight HT
HT Recruitment Mechanisms
1. "Wealthy", online traffickers 2.Romeo/finesse traffickers - "romantic" relationship -"boyfriend/fiancee" 3.Gorilla pimps - use violence, often beating one victim in front of the others, both for punishment of the one and as a deterrent for the others 4.Drug-Supplier trafficker - supply victims with drugs/alcohol to numb the victims and keep them compliant. Drugs are an essential tool of the trade by the pimp. Drug addicts are often a target of recruitment by traffickers. (Lately, women prisoners are a target of traffickers, sometimes assisted by other women prisoners to identify vulnerable targets). 5.Creditor trafficker -technique often used with international victims. Smuggling debt can only be paid off by submitting to paid sex acts - and the debts are never paid off
Marketing the HT Victims
1. Internet advertising - anonymity permitted by the internet: Traffickers often use pre-paid debit cards to pay internet provider. Also, some use prepaid cellular phones for the phone number attached to the ad - to avoid detection. 2. Direct solicitation of customers - often to target immigrants, especially non-citizens, who may not have access to internet: Drive the victims around to locations where undocumented immigrants are known to congregate. Even going door to door with the victims in neighborhoods, primarily of immigrants, to sell the victims' sexual services
Partnership (The fourth "P" of the TVPA)- of Law Enforcement & Community Organizations - Needed for effective Anti-Trafficking Work
1. Prevent HT (including public awareness) 2. Protect HT victims - & help them rebuild their lives 3. Prosecute Human Traffickers 4. Partner with law enforcement, government agencies, businesses, community-based organizations, and HT survivors (ex. - annual Wilmington University HT Symposium - keynote speakers are HT survivors). Example of effective partnership - Federal funds (DHSS) are used to fund the Polaris Project national hotline for reporting HT. Polaris is a non-governmental organization that fights HT, and especially people who are undocumented are more apt to call a non-governmental hotline to report trafficking.
Domestic Servitude FBI cases
15% of FBI's HT cases - often victims are in private homes and are subjected to physical, mental and even sexual abuse
Average age of Sex Trafficking Victims
20 years old in the United States 12 years old outside the United States
Forced labor FBI cases
35% of FBI's HT cases - migrant agricultural workers, construction, landscaping, factory, food processing. Often forced to work in inhumane conditions, and for excessively long hours
Profit made for the Trafficker
A single trafficked child can net $30,000 in profit for the trafficker
HT Victim Indicators
Absence of contact with friends/family Psychological manipulation; Work environment controlled No access to identification/bank accounts, or immigration documents Inhumane living/working conditions Provided with drugs - to increase dependence Signs of physical restraint, sexual abuse, confinement, malnutrition, torture Not allowed to speak for themselves. If they do, provide inconsistent accounts of where they have been Lack of awareness of current or past addresses Moves often to different locations Works long hours, unable to take breaks Owes a lot of money Unexplained injuries
HT Business Indicators
Business typically caters to males Unusual hours of operation - late at night or even 24 hours per day. No advertisement - or only in personals section/social media No signage outside Business that cannot be viewed from the outside (eg, windows covered)
Cons of Grass-Roots Efforts
Cons: Inadequate resources - primarily funding Coordination issues can be a challenge Competition for limited grant funding can make collaboration more difficult "Turf" & credit issues
Basic questions to ask when addressing a public health problem - be it HIV/AIDS, COVID-19 or Sexually Transmitted Diseases, etc:
Effective treatments (including medical supplies needed) What conditions allow it to spread? How is it transmitted? What is its life cycle? How to reduce spread, that is, to contain it?
Who are the HT Partners?
Government (local, state, federal) Unions and workers' rights groups HT Survivors Employment agencies/ organizations Educational institutions Religious leaders/communities Homeless/women's shelters Human rights groups Immigration advocates Criminal Justice system, including law enforcement officials Medical professionals and therapists Social workers Women's rights groups Youth groups
Community-based Responses and Coordination - Anti-Trafficking Efforts
Grass roots movements can often be more effective than "top down" approaches because they're better able to identify victims and the root causes of community problems.
NGOs (nongovernmental organizations) — offer wide ranging services:
Housing - emergency, transitional, residential treatment (big shortage of all categories) Medical care including mental health services Food/clothing Trauma counseling Legal services Job training & placement
Sex Trafficking Risk Factors
Poverty Dysfunctional families Childhood neglect & abuse (often childhood sexual abuse) LGBTQIA+ youth/young adults Drug addiction Foster care youth, especially those aging out of the system Social media Immigration issues Military presence Mail order brides
Investigative Techniques
Proactive - before incidents are reported: - gather & share intelligence - monitoring & surveillance techniques - identify possible witnesses - foster relationships with confidential informants ("CI") - undercover operation- targeting the trafficker and/or the customer ("john").
Pros of Grass-Roots Efforts
Pros: More flexibility - can adapt more quickly More aware of current community problems & needs More attuned to language and cultural issues/needs of their particular community Some experience (depending on NGO) in providing human services (be it housing, food, etc) -aka victims' services.
Public Health Model
Public health improves health and quality of life through: • Prevention • Treatment • Surveillance • Promotion of better health - Examples: (1) COVID-19 measures recommended by Public Health experts include: getting vaccinated, wearing face masks, "social" distance (really physical distance), testing and contact tracing; and (2) for sexually transmitted diseases - condoms.
U.S. Foreign Policy Responses to the Crime of Human Trafficking
TVPA established 2 US agencies to coordinate anti-HT policy: 1) Cabinet level - President's Interagency Task Force to Monitor and Combat Trafficking (PITF) - 14 departments & agencies across the federal government; and 2) Senior Policy Operating Group (SPOG) Long acronyms - but not clear what the lines of demarcation are.
Value & Challenges of HT Prosecution
Value: - Accountability for serious crime - Compensate the victims for some of the pain caused by this crime - Forfeit profits made by the trafficker Challenges: - major one: victim cooperation - The prosecution of traffickers almost always starts with victims willing to report their exploitation, which usually occurs (if ever) only after the trafficker no longer controls the victim.
Sex Trafficking Victims' Demographics
Victims: 70% female 50% are under 18 (So, half of sex trafficking victims are KIDS)
Sex trafficking FBI cases
about 50% of FBI's HT cases - international victims are often lured to the U.S. by false promises. And, the means of coercion frequently involves "debt bondage." ("debt bondage" occurs when the victim is tricked into taking out a loan whereby the amount of time/work necessary to repay it always remains unclear, and typically, can never be repaid in full.)
why don't victims report their issues to police
due to their own vulnerability, including 1) immigration status (international); or 2) criminal histories (domestic); 3) fear of retaliation by the victims from the traffickers; and 4) language as a barrier (for internationally trafficked).
TVPA: Prosecution
makes trafficking a federal crime and provides extensive penalties to deter crime and to provide restitution to victims.
Substandard Living Conditions of victims
physical/emotional abuse, health risks, sexual coercion, lack of access to adequate medical attention, inadequate food & poor housing conditions (often shuttling among cheap hotels/motels).
TVPA: prevention
provide education and raise public awareness
Government agencies
provide funding and perform research on public health issues. Examples include: International - World Health Organization (WHO) US Federal - Dept. of Health & Human Services (HHS) US Federal - Center for Disease Control (CDC) US Federal - Department of Homeland Security, including FEMA State public health agencies, which receive federal funds along with their own state funding.
"Top down" approaches
system of management where actions are initiated from high levels but implemented by those below.
TVPA: Partnerships
the 4th "P" has been added more recently & was described by former AG Eric Holder as the most important prong of the 4 P's.
Harm reduction model
try to lessen the consequences of high-risk behavior rather than trying to obtain complete abstinence.
"Bottom up" approaches
where actions are initiated by those on the ground (i.e., not by those at the top of an organization or system). -better bc they're able to identify victims and the root causes of community problems.
