|| LIRS || The Trafficked Children Initiative

Background Information on Child Trafficking

Click on a topic or just scroll down to read.

What is trafficking?
Is trafficking happening in the United States?
Where do trafficked children come from?
How do child victims of trafficking get to the United States?
What are trafficked children forced to do?
What is LIRS doing about trafficking?
What can I do about trafficking?
Where can I get more information?

What is trafficking?
Trafficking is modern-day slavery. The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (TVPA) defines “severe forms of trafficking in persons” as

sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age; or
the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.

Under U.S. law, trafficking is punishable as a serious crime. Federal funding is available to rescue victims and help them rebuild their lives. Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) in 2000 to prosecute traffickers, prevent trafficking, and protect victims. Before the TVPA passed, victims of trafficking were often treated as criminals themselves and deported back to countries where they could be re-victimized. The law created a special visa for victims to stay in the U.S. who would be at risk if returned to their home countries.

The following stories are examples of child trafficking:

A 14-year-old Nigerian girl was brought to a suburban home outside of Washington, D.C. under the impression she could attend school in the United States. Instead of being enrolled in school, the girl was forced to do domestic labor and take care of the six children in the home, and was subject to physical abuse and sexual assault. (Washington Post, October 14 and November 19, 2004)
A woman in South Florida was convicted of illegally harboring a young Haitian orphan in her home as a domestic servant in July 2004. The girl was 12 when she was rescued from the home where she had spent three years as a virtual slave and was repeatedly sexually assaulted by the woman’s adult son. (Miami Herald, March 24, June 9 and July 2, 2004)
Teenage African immigrant girls in Minneapolis are apparently the newest targets of traffickers of juvenile prostitutes in the region. (St. Paul Pioneer Press, July 27, 2003)
Mexican girls and adolescents as young as 12 were kidnapped or coerced into forced prostitution at agricultural camps in San Diego. (El Universal, January 9, 2003)
Two minors from Russia were enticed to go to Alaska to demonstrate folk dances, only to end up being sexually exploited. (CNN, June 14, 2001)
For more than two decades, a real estate and restaurant entrepreneur trafficked young Indian girls into Berkeley, Calif., for sexual exploitation and cheap labor. Only after a pregnant 17-year-old died did the abuse come to the public's attention. (Free Press, August 10, 2000)

By the very nature of the practice of human trafficking, all victims are in horrible, life threatening conditions, but children are arguably the most vulnerable. Children lack the strength and maturity to escape from traffickers or to cope with the harmful effects of trafficking.

Is trafficking happening in the United States?
Yes. Throughout the United States, men, women and children are bought and sold for illegal purposes. The U.S. government estimates that as many as 17,500 persons are trafficked into the country each year. Their bodies and their labor are bought, sold and used for the financial gain and pleasure of others.

Trafficking can occur in any community—urban, rural or suburban. A child could be a forced prostitute in a major urban city, a domestic slave in a suburban community or a forced agricultural worker in a rural farming area. A University of Pennsylvania study on the commercial sexual exploitation of children found high instances of this form of sex trafficking in the following cities: Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, El Paso, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco and Seattle.

Where do trafficked children come from?
Children may be trafficked from any region of the world. Most are from underdeveloped, poor countries. Trafficking especially thrives in poverty-stricken areas where children have limited opportunities for education and future employment. Many trafficked children were marginalized in their country of origin or street children. LIRS has served trafficked children from Latin America, Africa and Asia.

How do child victims of trafficking get to the United States?
Many child trafficking victims are smuggled into the United States or come on valid visas with false promises of being united with family, going to school or getting a legitimate job. Once here, they may be forced into exploitative work or forced to work off a travel “debt.” Children may also be kidnapped or sold. Many trafficking victims are recruited by acquaintances or people of their own ethnic group, while some are trafficked by family members or friends. Some children may come through fraudulent mail-order bride or matchmaking schemes.

What are trafficked children forced to do?
Boys and girls are forced to perform various forms of labor and are especially vulnerable to commercial sex work. Many children are forced to perform domestic work. Children are also trafficked for labor in farms, sweatshops, construction, hotels and other work. Any child induced to perform a commercial sex act such as prostitution is a victim of a severe form of human trafficking because minors cannot consent under U.S. law.

What is LIRS doing about trafficking?
Trafficked children who are under the age of 18 are eligible for a special foster care program, administered by LIRS and the U.S Conference of Catholic Bishops, which provides them with a home along with the services and support they need to rebuild their lives. This program has a special emphasis on preserving the cultural, linguistic and religious identities of all foreign-born children in care. Read more about the Unaccompanied Refugee Minors (URM) program.

What can I do about trafficking?

Learn to recognize victims of trafficking.

Victims of trafficking perform labor against their will by force, fraud or coercion. Any child under the age of 18 who is induced to perform a commercial sex act is a victim of a severe form of trafficking, as a minor cannot consent.
Victims may have experienced violence, sexual abuse and/or psychological threats and may have legitimate fears for themselves and their families.
Victims of trafficking may be from outside the United States and often will not have any immigration documents. Their captors may have confiscated their documents.
Remember that it is very difficult to identify victims of trafficking, especially children. Children will rarely identify themselves as victims. They may instinctively not establish trust easily due to their experiences and may even have been coached by their trafficker to answer questions in a certain way. They are young, vulnerable and frightened of both their traffickers and the police. Most have no documents and are often told they will be deported and their families harmed if they try to escape.
Read the fact sheet "Guidance on Identifying Child Victims of Trafficking" in English or Spanish (PDF documents. Click here if you have trouble opening PDF files on this site.)

Treat trafficking victims with compassion and respect.

Remember: it does not matter how they entered the United States, whether they initially consented to being brought here for a job or school, or whether their current employment activity is illegal (such as prostitution). If at any time the person was deceived or coerced into forced labor or is being held against his or her will in some sort or debt bondage or peonage, she or he is a victim of trafficking.

Make appropriate referrals.

Call the Trafficking in Persons Information and Referral Hotline (funded by the Department of Health and Human Services/Office of Refugee Resettlement)—1-888-373-7888—to help suspected victims access services in your area.
Call the Trafficking in Persons and Worker Exploitation Task Force complaint line (sponsored by the Departments of Justice and Labor)—1-888-428-7581—to begin an investigation of a suspected case by federal law enforcement authorities.
If the victim is a minor, contact local child protection authorities in accordance with your state’s mandatory reporting laws, particularly if the child needs emergency care in a licensed foster home or facility.
Find a reputable attorney to talk to the victim about legal immigration issues and ensure that his or her rights are protected.

Educate Yourself and Others

Learn about this sinister trade in human beings and then spread the word: become an advocate and raise awareness in your community.

Give

Your gifts to LIRS will help us serve and advocate for trafficking victims and other vulnerable people. Donate online now.

Where can I get more information?
For more information about LIRS's children's services contact us at 410/230-2700 or childrenservices@lirs.org.

The following links will take you to other websites. LIRS is not responsible for the content on those sites, but we would appreciate knowing if any links are inaccurate or inactive. Please e-mail any corrections to the webmaster.

Reports about the phenomenon of human trafficking, child labor and exploitation