January is Human Trafficking Awareness and Prevention Month

Human Trafficking Awareness Month

The month of January marks Nation Human Trafficking Awareness and Prevention Month and here at CCVAP, we always like to remind folks that Human Trafficking doesn’t occur in a vacuum.

Popular media likes to depict human trafficking (HT) as something high-profile, dramatic, and foreign (*cue Liam Neeson meme*). In our experience in victim advocacy, however, we’ve learned that trafficking is usually the end of a pipeline of ongoing victimization. Many trafficking victims were previously victims of domestic violence and sexual assault and didn’t know they were being trafficked in the first place. But before we get into all of that, let’s discuss what human trafficking is, and isn’t. 

Human trafficking involves the use of force, fraud, or coercion to obtain some type of labor or commercial sex act. Every year, millions of men, women, and children are trafficked worldwide – including right here in the United States. It can happen in any community and victims can be any age, race, gender, or nationality. (www.dhs.gov/blue-campaign/what-human-trafficking)

There are three major types of HT: 

Sex Trafficking - Victims of sex trafficking are manipulated or forced to engage in sex acts for someone else’s commercial gain. Anyone under the age of 18 engaging in commercial sex is considered to be a victim of human trafficking.

Forced Labor - Victims of forced labor are compelled to work for little or no pay, often manufacturing or growing products we use and consume every day.

Domestic Servitude - Victims of domestic servitude are forced to work in isolation and are hidden in plain sight as nannies, housekeepers or domestic help. Victims are often from foreign countries with their immigration status used against them.

In victim advocacy we often talk about the “pipeline of vulnerability” and what makes someone vulnerable to victimization. There are the obvious answers such as living remotely, poverty, and lack of knowledge. Then there are the less obvious answers such as presence of historical trauma, generational trauma, previous victimization, lack of access to culture, and so forth. What places Native Americans in this pipeline of vulnerability is the generational and historical trauma that contributes to loss of community, culture, language, and identity. Not to mention the systemically-imposed poverty and racism Native people face even today. All of these factors can greatly influence someone’s vulnerability to being trafficked and also contributes to the current Missing and Murdered Indigenous People (MMIP) Crisis. 

So, this month and every month, we’d like to remind folks that trafficking is a systemic issue that doesn’t usually occur in a vacuum and there are several resources available if you suspect you or someone you know are being trafficked. 

Cahuilla Consortium Victim Advocacy Program – 24hr Helpline 951-392-1919

National Human Trafficking Hotline 888-373-7888