Educating to Prevent: A Switch Blog Series.
With the names of Epstein and R.Kelly becoming infamous in the United States, sex trafficking has become a tentpole topic in the media, and public understanding of what sex trafficking is and how common it occurs is critical (Strohacker, Gibbs and Woolford, 2021). Child sex trafficking is prevalent in American homes, neighborhoods, and workplaces. Our collective failure as a society to understand and combat child sex trafficking is partly due to two factors: limited, up-to-date data and a general lack of understanding of the modern and globalized risks that target our communities on a daily basis. I will spend this blog detailing the most common risk factors for our communities in the Upstate of South Carolina. A comprehensive list of risks can be found in our ‘What is Sex Trafficking?‘ post, but I’d like to focus on a few here that are specifically related to minors. It is vitally important to remember that the absence of these risk factors does not necessarily mean any adult or child is not being trafficked.
Internet:
First, I’ll lay out something that has had a huge impact on our lives: the Internet. In recent years, there has been an increased focus on online-facilitated human trafficking, with studies showing that sex trafficking is migrating to escort websites and mobile applications, which are streamlined with electronic payment options (Gezinski and Gonzalez-Pons, 2022). This is due to the internet’s easier access to a large number of potential victims, with no geographical or physical limitations. In 2020, over 80% of the US Department of Justice’s sex trafficking prosecutions involved online advertising (UNODC, 2021). In one Thorn study, trafficked minors stated that they had met their trafficker in person, but they also stated that they communicated with their trafficker via text/chat/phone calls (Gezinski and Gonzalez-Pons, 2022). This level of constant and immediate contact greatly increases the trafficker’s control over a victim. Among other research studies, Facebook was the most popular platform for recruitment (Gezinski and Gonzalez-Pons, 2022).
OnlyFans, on the other hand, has seen a significant increase in subscriptions throughout the pandemic. Since there is no skin-on-skin exploitation, it provides the illusion of safety and deniability for both producer and consumer. The company said its revenue rose by 553% by the end of 2020 (Nilsson, 2021). However, evidence of child sexual abuse material and sex trafficking has been discovered, indicating that the platform has progressed into a new internet haven for exploitation. According to The Avery Center’s research, 6% of respondents said their traffickers assisted them in creating and managing their OnlyFans accounts (NCOSE, 2021). So, if we apply this statistic hypothetically to the global number of OnlyFans creators, which is over 1.5 million as of April 2022 (Jorgensen, 2022), there could be as many as 90,000 victims of online sex trafficking.
Traffickers will also keep compromising photos or videos of their victims to further their control. These can then be sold to customers all over the world via various online platforms, such as OnlyFans, resulting in even more profit at no cost. Despite the increasing use of the internet by traffickers, we can educate ourselves to recognize the warning signs which will be detailed later. Switch also offers a free Youth in Trafficking and a Parent/Caregiver Talk which details how to be proactive in keeping our minors safe online.
Socioeconomic:
Poverty and the resulting vulnerability caused by a lack of economic opportunities and inefficient resource use have been linked to the root causes of trafficking, making it a major risk factor. Every individual, regardless of socioeconomic status, has the right to a life free of exploitation and abuse. Poverty makes people vulnerable to sexual exploitation in a variety of communities (Barner, Okech and Camp, 2014). According to practitioners, traffickers frequently target individuals who have previously experienced psychological trauma, a history of family violence, drug addiction, homelessness, or social isolation (Bocinski, 2017). Traffickers take advantage of these socioeconomic vulnerabilities by using force, fraud, and coercion to entice victims with the promise of work, shelter, and food (Bocinski, 2017). Such desperate people are more likely to take greater risks to improve their lives. This is especially true for minors from low-income families whose needs are not being fully met (Amato-Bailey and Daniele, 2022). The statistics are clear. Regional studies have found that up to 40% of homeless youth report trafficking experiences (Landubaev et al., 2018). Individuals who are homeless are deprived of the means to meet their most basic needs, making them far more vulnerable to sexual exploitation and sex trafficking. The path toward ending sex trafficking has a lot of hurdles. One of these hurdles is addressing these socioeconomic factors like low wages, pay inequality and the lack of affordable housing (Amato-Bailey and Daniele, 2022).
Geographic Areas For Recruitment:
Now that we understand the dangers of the internet and the socioeconomic risks along with it, it is important to emphasize that there are a large number of victims who are trafficked domestically in the United States (Barner, Okech and Camp, 2014). In confirmed sex trafficking incidents, 83 percent of victims were identified as US citizens (The Refuge for DMST, 2021). The risk factors culminate in where a victim is typically recruited, either from the internet, as previously discussed, or from a physical location. Sex trafficking can occur in any location, from cities to rural areas. Common sites for sex trafficking in rural areas are truck stops. Multiple studies have included bus stops, homeless shelters, outside juvenile detention centers, schools, malls, and even within their own homes as potential recruitment locations in urban areas (Baird and Connolly, 2021). These locations are important because they are where youth spend the majority of their unsupervised time. Victims of sexual exploitation and trafficking in the Upstate could also be anywhere. Hotels, nightclubs, massage parlors, and online platforms are all common examples. Addressing neighborhood-level risk factors, such as those listed above, may reduce vulnerabilities to sex trafficking. Switch has a volunteer awareness program that focuses on preventing sex trafficking by raising community awareness.
Age/Gender:
Women and girls make up the vast majority of those identified as being trafficked for both labor and commercial sex (APA, 2017). According to a two-year review of all suspected human trafficking incidents in the United States, 94% of sex trafficking victims were female (Rights4girls, 2018). Experts also believe that men and boys, particularly those who identify as LGBTQIA+, are particularly vulnerable to victimization (Strohacker, Gibbs and Woolford, 2021). According to the McCain Institute (2021), the vulnerabilities of sex-trafficked minors include their age range when first sex-trafficked being between the ages of 4 and 17, with an average age of 15 years old. Traffickers have reported that minors were easier to manipulate and control and earned more money in the sex industry than adults (McCain Institute, 2021). Identification of victims aged 18 or younger, regardless of whether force, fraud, or coercion were used in recruitment, is a positive step toward combating perceptions of minors as willing participants in their exploitation (Hardy, Compton and McPhatter, 2013). Switch has been connected to a wide range of victims, our youngest victim being a 4-year-old male, whose mother was selling him for money. Switch has seen males come forward who have been straight and part of the LGBTQIA+ community. Unfortunately, we do not know the breakdown of sexual orientation in the Upstate due to underreporting of this crime. Nationally, A Department of Justice-commissioned study, “Youth Involvement in the Sex Trade,” published in 2016, discovered that boys account for approximately 36% of child trafficking victims caught up in the U.S. sex industry.
General Warning Signs:
The above risk factors, such as poverty and homelessness, tend to cloud potential victims’ judgment, and red flags or warning signs go unnoticed. Recruitment and grooming can be hidden in everyday interactions and conversations. The following are some general warning signs of sex trafficking and sexual exploitation that everyone should be aware of:
- Large age gap
- Pressure to engage in risky behavior
- Hunger/malnourishment
- Inappropriate dress
- Hyperactivity (fidgeting)
- No longer interested in age-appropriate activities
- Constantly tired
- Bruises/Signs of physical trauma
- Depressive/Anxious behavior
- An attempt to conceal scars/tattoos
- Regressive/clingy behavior
- An inability to bond with others
- Unexplained absences from home/class
Just like the risk factors mentioned above, these signs individually do not equal evidence of human trafficking, but when combined, they indicate a risk for it. Switch believes that it is important to watch for and recognize risk factors and red flags that a relationship is becoming unhealthy, to the point where it could prevent abuse and potentially save someone’s life. Keep an eye out for our next blog post, which will discuss the four stages of sex trafficking and how it actually occurs.
Reference List
Amato-Bailey, G. and Daniele (2022) Addressing poverty is human trafficking prevention – signs of hope, Sohlv.org. Available at: https://sohlv.org/addressing-poverty-is-human-trafficking-prevention/.
APA (2017) Facts About Trafficking of Women and Girls, Apa.org. Available at: https://www.apa.org/advocacy/interpersonal-violence/trafficking-women-girls
Baird, K. and Connolly, J. (2021) “Recruitment and entrapment pathways of minors into sex trafficking in Canada and the United States: A systematic review,” Trauma, violence & abuse, doi: 10.1177/15248380211025241.
Barner, J., Okech, D. and Camp, M. (2014) “Socio-economic inequality, human trafficking, and the global slave trade,” Societies (Basel, Switzerland), 4(2), pp. 148–160. doi: 10.3390/soc4020148.
Bocinski, S. G. (2017) The economic drivers and consequences of sex trafficking in the United States, IWPR. Available at: https://iwpr.org/iwpr-publications/briefing-paper/the-economic-drivers-and-consequences-of-sex-trafficking-in-the-united-states/.
Gezinski, L. B. and Gonzalez-Pons, K. M. (2022) “Sex trafficking and technology: A systematic review of recruitment and exploitation,” Journal of Human Trafficking, pp. 1–15. doi: 10.1080/23322705.2022.2034378.
Hardy, V. L., Compton, K. D. and McPhatter, V. S. (2013) “Domestic minor sex trafficking: Practice implications for mental health professionals,” Affilia, 28(1), pp. 8–18. doi: 10.1177/0886109912475172.
Jorgensen, B. (2022) Top 10 OnlyFans earners chart – highest paid accounts statistics, Bedbible.com. Available at: https://bedbible.com/onlyfans-statistics/.
Landubaev, O. et al. (2018) Responding to youth homelessness: A key strategy for preventing human trafficking, Nn4youth.org. Available at: https://nn4youth.org/wp-content/uploads/NN4Y-2018-white-paper-human-trafficking-WEB-1.pdf.
McCain Institute (2021) A Six-year Analysis of Sex Traffickers of Minors, McCain Institute. Available at: https://www.mccaininstitute.org/resources/reports/a-six-year-analysis-of-sex-traffickers-of-minors/.
NCMEC (2022) Child sex trafficking, Missingkids.org. Available at: https://www.missingkids.org/theissues/trafficking.
NCOSE (2021) Sex Trafficking and Abusive Pimps, Endsexualexploitation.org. Available at: https://endsexualexploitation.org/wp-content/uploads/Sex-Trafficking-Abusive-Pimps_OnlyFans_DDL-Proof-2022.pdf.
Nilsson, P. (2021) “OnlyFans feels the lockdown love as transactions hit £1.7bn,” Financial Times, 26 April. Available at: https://www.ft.com/content/6d4562f8-166f-4a89-a3cb-db97123a6cf0.
Rights4girls (2018) Racial & Gender Disparities in the Sex Trade, Rights4girls.org. Available at: https://rights4girls.org/wp-content/uploads/r4g/2018/09/Racial-Justice-fact-sheet-Sept-2018-Final.pdf.
Strohacker, E., Gibbs, J. C. and Woolford, S. (2021) “Pennsylvanians’ perceptions of the nature and extent of human trafficking,” Journal of human trafficking, pp. 1–17. doi: 10.1080/23322705.2021.1898249.
The Refuge for DMST (2021) Sex trafficking statistics, The Refuge for DMST. Available at: https://therefugedmst.org/dmst-statistics.
UNODC (2021) The role of technology in human trafficking, United Nations : Office on Drugs and Crime. Available at: https://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/Webstories2021/the-role-of-technology-in-human-trafficking.html.
