The Horror of Human Trafficking 1

Ohio’s Weak Laws Allow Thousands of Children to be Victims of Human Trafficking

Submitted by:  Cat Kirk a 1Nation Leader

Human beings are being bought and sold as commodities for the purpose of profiting from their labor and sexual exploitation. Men, women, and children of all ages are vulnerable. Human trafficking is a violation of human rights and a form of modern-day slavery. This detestable practice is happening in our cities, our towns and our communities (largely unnoticed) all over America. Including the state of Ohio.

In 2009, more than 1,000 minor children (younger than 18) became exploited and abused sex-trafficking victims in Ohio alone,  according to the first statewide report on the subject by the Ohio Trafficking  in Persons Study Commission.  This is a shocking reality. Enough men in Ohio, willing to pay money to rape a child,  made trafficking (in the state of Ohio) a profitable business. The most modest estimations of frequency, place the number of annual violations at over 150,000.

Human trafficking is the second largest illegal enterprise in the world followed by illegal drug sales (Polaris Project). The United States has played a significant role as a consumer of sex trafficking, and is currently the world’s second largest destination country (following Germany) for women and children being trafficked into the sex industry. (Mizus, Moody, Privado, and Douglas, 2003).

In 2000, the Trafficking Victims Protection Act (TVPA) was passed by congress. The purpose of this new law was to enhance the government’s capacity to provide protection, prevention, and prosecution involving the crime of human trafficking. Forty Two U.S. states have passed their own legislation against human trafficking. The Forty Two states that do have the new state laws have the potential for more serious charges against traffickers. In America, state laws vary radically in the penalties given for traffickers. In some states, a trafficker may face up to 100 years in prison, while in other’s traffickers will only face a maximum of 8 to 10.

The traffickers naturally gravitate towards states that have the least amount of penalty for them.  State laws do play a role in the decision making of human trafficking organizations that are sophisticated and networked. The more sophisticated trafficking rings are aware of the laws and their potential risk  of doing business in a particular state.  According to a Raymond and Hughe’s (2001) report, it is apparent that traffickers look for states with more lenient laws.

Ohio’s weak laws, demand for cheap labor, and proximity to the Canadian border make Ohio attractive to human traffickers.  Ohio has not passed a stand-alone law for human trafficking.  It merely adds human trafficking to other charges. Because of demographic features, Ohio is a supply, transit, and destination state for human trafficking victims.

In Cincinnati, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center led a year-long study on human trafficking. This study produced the first Greater Cincinnati Human Trafficking Report. The report states 3 areas of concern for Cincinnati’s readiness to deal with this issue.

1) Lack of awareness, including the general public, and police officers, judges, first responders, etc.

2) Inadequate legislation

3) Lack of training to help law enforcement identify victims.

In Cincinnati, law enforcement has a difficult task when it comes to combating human trafficking,  due to the city’s geographical location.  Cincinnati abuts Indiana and Kentucky, allowing traffickers to easily move across state borders where laws on human trafficking differ.

What can we do to stop this modern-day slavery of our children as well as adults?

First of all, we can become educated. We can learn how to recognize human trafficking victims. We can report suspicious activities in our own neighborhoods.

The National Hotline number is 1-888-373-7888

Secondly, we can tell our Senators to support critical funding to combat sex trafficking.  Thirdly, we can support tougher legislation to punish the traffickers and the consumers, and work to enact the proper legislation to protect and rehabilitate the victims.

We can do this at: http//www.polarisproject.org/take-action/features-actions

Also, we can support organizations that help these victims. We can support them with our time, with our services, and with our contributions.

http://1nationundergodforever.com/2010/03/19/end-trafficking-help-victims/