Join us in the fight against child sex trafficking
Sex trafficking awareness: Could you spot the signs?
Learn the signs of sex trafficking to watch for in your community.
Sex trafficking can happen anywhere.
According to the National Human Trafficking Resource Center, the crime can reach any population in any part of the world. More than seven thousand cases of sex trafficking were reported across the United States in 2021 alone.
Despite its prevalence, sex trafficking may go unnoticed among those who don’t know the signs of the illegal practice.
What is sex trafficking?
Sex trafficking is a type of human trafficking defined by the NHTRC as “a crime involving the exploitation of someone for the purposes of … a commercial sex act through the use of force, fraud, or coercion.”
Polaris further defines sex trafficking using the action-means-purpose model. The organization shares that, under U.S. federal law, cases of sex trafficking are led by a trafficker, also known as a perpetrator. These traffickers take an action and use means of force, fraud or coercion for the purpose of leading individuals to take part in acts of commercial sex.
Minors in the country cannot legally provide consent to participate in sex commercially. This means that any commercial sex act involving a person under 18 years old in the U.S. is a crime.
Who are the victims?
Any person can experience sex trafficking. Yet certain populations are more vulnerable to the crime than others. Polaris identifies these community members as the most vulnerable:
- People of color.
- Members of indigenous communities.
- Those who identify as LGBTQ+.
- People who struggle with poverty, addiction or generational trauma.
- Those who may experience societal inequity or injustice among others.
Cases of sex trafficking extend across more community demographics. While the myths of sex trafficking include that only women and girls serve as victims and survivors, men and boys can also experience the crime. In 2021, more than 1,200 cases of human trafficking reported nationwide involved males.
Sex trafficking too reaches all age groups, with exposure to the crime occurring for many in childhood. The wide reach of sex trafficking can lead all to experience the consequences of the illegal practice — either through direct involvement or the exposure of loved ones.
Where do traffickers lurk?
Traffickers can emerge in all areas of victims’ lives.
As Polaris shares, in “sex trafficking situations, they may be intimate partners or spouses of the victims, family members, friends or benefactors, business acquaintances and bosses.” Given these roles, traffickers are often among those their victims trust and rely on for material or emotional support. Research suggests that cases of perpetrators using kidnapping or violent force to engage victims in sex trafficking are rare.
Traffickers can also lurk in virtual networks. During pandemic lockdowns, online recruitment into trafficking reportedly increased by 22%. Even more hard-hitting: the same 2020 National Human Trafficking Hotline study found a 120% increase in the number of trafficking victims who connected with perpetrators on Instagram and Facebook.
Social media platforms can fuel increased connections among friends and families. Yet they can also give perpetrators a virtual means into the lives of those you love. This makes careful behavior online important protection from traffickers. Children’s developing knowledge of internet safety can make them especially vulnerable to online threats.
What are the warning signs?
There are several indicators of sex trafficking you can watch for in your community. The National Human Trafficking Hotline names the following signs:
- Expressing a desire to stop participating in commercial sex but feeling scared or unable to leave the situation.
- Living where working or being transported by guards between their home and workplace.
- Being children who live with or are dependent on a family member with a substance abuse problem or who is abusive in other ways and others.
A couple of additional signs of sex trafficking offered by Polaris:
- Working in an industry where it may be common to be pressured into performing sex acts for money, such as a strip club, illicit cantina, go-go bar or illicit massage business.
- Having a controlling parent, guardian, romantic partner or “sponsor” who will not allow a person to meet or speak with anyone alone or who monitors their movements, spending or communications.
How can we help keep our communities safe?
We can all play a part in fostering safety from sex trafficking.
The process starts with having awareness that the crime occurs and watching for its signs in your community. Those who observe the signs should report any suspected trafficking situations to the National Human Trafficking Hotline’s toll-free number at 888-373-7888. Text and chat reporting options are also available through the hotline’s site. The reporting resources operate in all parts of the U.S., 24 hours a day, seven days a week. All should dial 911 in an emergency situation.
The U.S. Department of State provides further guidance on how to identify and assist a trafficking victim.
To further your ability to spot the signs of sex trafficking, consider completing free online human trafficking training.
What comes next? According to Polaris, taking action to change the systems that create vulnerabilities to the crime. Their plan for reducing cases of sex trafficking in 25 U.S. cities involves the following efforts:
- Expanding the societal safety net available to vulnerable populations.
- Shifting legal accountability for trafficking to sex buyers and traffickers.
- Changing norms around sex buying to remove victim stigmatization and more.