Human

Trafficking
Advisory Project
By Cristian Tenas and Grecia
Melgar
For our advisory class
What is Human Trafficking?
➢ Human trafficking is the trade of humans, usually for forced labor, sexual
activity, and even organ harvesting. Human trafficking is the third largest
international crime industry that generates an average of $32 billion
dollars each year.
➢ By dictionary definition, it is considered to be the illegal movement of
people, a violation of human rights.
➢ The UNODC (United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime) defines it as the,
“recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons,
by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of
abduction, of fraud, of deception.
➢ It can be seen as a modern form of slavery.
Elements of Human Trafficking
There are three elements of human trafficking, which are the act, the means,
and the purpose.

The act The means The purpose

This is the recruitment, It is the threat or use of force,
transportation, transfer, abduction, fraud, deception,
harbouring and amount of abuse of power or
persons. vulnerability, or giving
payments or benefits to a
person in control of the victim.
The purpose is the reason why
the act was committed. It can
vary from prostitution, forced
labour, slavery, or even the
removal of organs, to later be
sold for profit.
Thing You Should Know
1. There are about 30 million slaves in the world due to human trafficking,
meaning there are more slaves now than there ever was in history
2. About 80% of these people are female and half are children
3. About 75% of human trafficking is for sex. According to the Department of
State's statistics from 2000, there are approximately 244,000 American
children and youth that are at risk for sex trafficking each year. Of these
children and young adults, 38,600 were originally runaways.
4. Migrant smuggling is not human trafficking. The migrant pays to be
smuggled across borders (usually) voluntarily. Unlike human trafficking,
they have agreed to any hardships and suffering that they may face as
they try to cross a border.
a. However, anything that has not been agreed on, and later being robbed of their money
and being forced to do things is a crime in itself.
Human trafficking in the United States
➢ Human trafficking occurs mainly at places with a large immigrant population,
especially California and Texas.
○ Undocumented immigrants are usually exploited, easily threatened because
they can be reported to border police and sent back to their native countries.
Many are forced to do hard labour on fields at an illegal wage, and others can
end up working for a cartel, forced to smuggle drugs across the american
border.
➢ There is an estimated 14,000 to 17,500 men and women who are trafficked to and
from the United States annually.
○ Only recently has our government started to monitor trafficking. In 1994,
coverage was focused on the young girls and women who were being used for
sexual purposes. Later on, the view broadened, as men too were being forced
to do labour, agricultural work, etc.
 ➢ In every state, including the District

What has the United of Columbia, there are bills that

relate to human trafficking. There

States done to help are over 933 bills, and some will
protect victims of trafficking.

stop Human ➢ In 2015, Louisiana had the least

amount of cases, whereas bigger

Trafficking? places like California had the

highest.
➢ The US has also created
international programs to help other
countries combat human trafficking.
 What can we do to take action?
3. Literally taking action: If you are
1. Get informed: read articles about
what is currently happening in the
underground world of human
trafficking. There are many books and
articles that can explain to you how to
recognize a victim or sex trafficking or
forced labour.
2. Raise awareness: Simply telling
people who are interested in the topic
and starting a small project can help.
Many websites exist that can help you
inform others about human
trafficking.
invested in helping raise awareness, there
are large groups and programs available
to help your community fight against
trafficking. Starting groups in churches is
one way.
4. Fundraise, volunteer, and donate to
organizations that are fighting for the
same cause. For example, you can donate
old phones to charities so they can be
refurbished and given to impoverished
communities, potentially making it easier
for a trafficking victim to find help.
 Resources
http://16days.thepixelproject.net/16-ways-to-take-action-against-human-trafficking/

http://www.todayschristianwoman.com/articles/2013/august/how-you-can-combat-sex-trafficking.html

http://www.humantrafficking.org/combat_trafficking

http://www.innocentsatrisk.org/human-trafficking/what-is-being-done

https://www.themuse.com/advice/whats-being-done-to-stop-human-trafficking

http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oese/oshs/factsheet.html

https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/civilrights/human_trafficking

https://polarisproject.org/resources/sex-trafficking-us-closer-look-us-citizen-victims

http://www.humantrafficking.org/countries/united_states_of_america

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/15/human-trafficking-month_n_4590587.html

https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/what-is-human-trafficking.html