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** My Special Project: Human Trafficking **

When people think of slavery, they often think back to the days of the civil war. The truth is that slavery is still present in the United States today as it is in almost every other country in the world. The slavery we know today is referred to as human trafficking. One form of trafficking is labor trafficking. __Labor trafficking is defined by the Trafficking Victims Protection Act as "the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services through the use of force, fraud or coercion..." (3). Labor trafficking accounted for 12% of reported incidents, while sex trafficking accounted for 83% (4).__ __"Today, you can buy a human being for $200 in any major city in the world" (1).__ The majority of victims are women and children. They are sold for sexual acts, mail-order marriage, and labor against their will. Seeing as how the majority of victims are women and children sold for sexual purposes, it may be surprising to note that most people found guilty as trafficking are females__. In Central Asia and Eastern Europe, women make up more than 60 percent of those convicted of trafficking (6). __ Human trafficking is a great injustice that is constantly going unseen or unacknowledged. __17,500 people every year are brought to the U.S. against their will as victims of human trafficking (2).__ Possibly the greatest reason for this illegal trade is the same reason people deal drugs: money. __Human sex trafficking alone is estimated to likely generate more than $9.5 billion annually (1).__ One example of trafficking is the U.S. v. Kil Soo Lee case. __Korean garment owner Lee was convicted of trafficking and enslaving over 250 Vietnamese and Chinese workers in a sweatshop through methods such as food deprivation, beatings, and physical restraint (5).__ There is some hope for victims of human trafficking. __The Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 serves to punish traffickers, protect victims, and to prevent trafficking (7).__ There are responsibilities for victims to be recognized by some organizations. They must be willing to comply with their requests before they can be certified as a victim and receive assistance. __To become a certified victim of trafficking you are required to assist with the investigation and prosecution of trafficking cases (8).__ Human trafficking is a continuous threat to people of all ages and all gender. It is much more prevalent in countries with more struggle and poverty than the U.S. Places such as Mexico and areas in South America or Asia with high crime rates are very popular hot spots for human trafficking. Many tourists and travelers are people who become victim of trafficking because they become vulnerable in foreign lands and they are not familiar with culture. It is safer to travel with company, especially for young women. Women and children are targeted by these criminal traffickers because they seem easier to catch and not as strong in struggle. Things have been done to combat trafficking, but there is always more that can be done. There should be more done in schools and the community to raise awareness for this injustice. People can engage in community activities and learn how to be safe against the threat of human trafficking.

1. [] 2. [] 3. [] 4. [] 5. [] 6. [] 7. [] 8. http://www.cdss.ca.gov/refugeeprogram/PG1268.htm