Human trafficking

 

Human Trafficking in the United States

In the United States, the most common form of human trafficking involves the commercial sex industry and occurs in online escort services, residential brothels, brothels disguised as massage businesses or spas, and in street prostitution.

There are two primary factors driving the spread of human trafficking: high profits and low risk. Like drug and arms trafficking, human trafficking in the US is a market-driven criminal industry that is based on the principles of supply and demand. Every year, traffickers generate billions of dollars in profits by victimizing millions of people around the world, including here in the United States. Vulnerable and susceptible to manipulation, homeless youth have become the industry's prime targets.

Why Do Human Traffickers Target Homeless Kids?

From our experience helping more than one million kids, we know that there is a direct correlation between being homeless and becoming a victim of human trafficking. Why does the heinous industry of human trafficking target homeless kids? Human traffickers targets homeless kids because they’re low risk and are easier to lure from the streets. Homeless youths are susceptible to human trafficking  because they’re vulnerable and malleable, making them the perfect candidates to manipulate. With no place to call home and no one to care for their well being... No one will know he or she is gone.

We See the Damage of Human Trafficking First Hand

Every day, homeless youths are exploited by the horrid deeds of human trafficking. Here at Covenant House, we are a safe haven for the young human trafficking victims who utilize our shelters across America. Most victims are usually hungry, tired and scared, with no family or loved ones to turn to. Some victims have been forced to deal drugs, beg for money on the streets or work as servants in someone's home. A majority of human trafficking victims in the US have been made to have sex against their will with multiple partners – all so that someone else can profit from their bodies. Human trafficking truly is a monstrous industry and at Covenant House, we’ve witnessed the toll that it takes on its victims.

Human Trafficking Research

Sadly, more research is desperately needed to understand the full scope of human trafficking – but because victims are often reluctant to or prohibited from coming forward, it's difficult to collect accurate data that could help stop the vile industry of human trafficking.  

By providing lifesaving shelter and care to homeless children across the Americas, Covenant House is uniquely positioned to help shed further light on the issue of human trafficking – so practices can improve to protect young victims and stop those responsible more efficiently across the board.

From February 2013 to March 2017, Covenant House invited researchers from both Loyola University (New Orleans) Modern Slavery Research Project (MSRP) and The Field Center for Children’s Policy, Practice & Research at the University of Pennsylvania to 13 cities across the United States and Canada, serving as external experts to study the prevalence and nature of human trafficking among homeless youth. The result has led to one of the largest-ever data sets on human trafficking and exploitation experiences of the homeless young people.

Here are only some of the key findings from the studies…

• From MSRP’s study, of 641 young people interviewed:

  • 19 percent were identified as victims of some form of human trafficking

  • 14 percent were victims of sex trafficking 

  • 8 percent had been trafficked for other forced labor

• From The Field Center’s study, out of 270 young people interviewed:
  • 20 percent had been sex or labor trafficked
  • 17 percent were victims of human trafficking
  • 6 percent were victims of labor trafficking

In 2015-17, Covenant House New Jersey, in partnership with Mount Sinai, conducted a separate longitudinal study of 344 homeless youth seeking services at Covenant House in Atlantic City, Elizabeth and Newark. A main purpose of the study was to explore the factors that differentiate trafficked homeless youth from not-trafficked homeless youth in order to determine risk and protective factors for human trafficking among the NJ homeless youth population. 

The New Jersey study found:

• Homeless youth with a supportive adult in their life had lower odds of being trafficked.
• A history of having an IEP/504 plan was an unexpected factor significantly associated with a trafficking experience. 
• Gender was not associated with a trafficking experience. 

These and others of the New Jersey study’s research and key findings can be found in a peer-reviewed journal article published August 2018 in the Children and Youth Services Review. Chisolm-Straker, Makini, et al. “A Supportive Adult May Be the Difference in Homeless Youth Not Being Trafficked.” Children and Youth Services Review, vol. 91, 2018, pp. 115-120, doi:10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.06.003. 
 
Become an educated advocate to stop human trafficking! read more about these groundbreaking studies:

• Loyola and Penn Study
• Covenant House New Jersey and Mount Sinai Study 

 

What Else Is Known About Human Trafficking Among Children and Teens?

● The human trafficking industry preys on homeless youth and exploits the lack of youth homeless shelter beds, as a way to lure young people in. Human traffickers manipulate the young and homeless by telling them that shelters are full, followed by the  proceeding questions: “Where are you going to go? Why don't you come with me?”

● If we want to fight human trafficking, we cannot afford to cut services for the homeless youth.

● Homeless youth often have to make the desperate choice between sleeping on the street or going with a pimp who is offering food and a place to stay. Faced with dire situations like this, homeless youth are easily manipulated into becoming victims of human trafficking.

● According to federal law, all children engaging in prostitution are human trafficking victims - therefore there is no such thing as a “child prostitute”. Despite this, far too many children are sexually exploited and do not know how to escape the vicious cycle.

● If a pimp forces a person to engage in sex for money against his or her will at any time, whether through threats, coercion or physical violence, he or she is a human trafficking victim, regardless of initial consent.

● Most human trafficking victims are not in chains. Pimps can use psychological and emotional coercion to control their victims. Many victims are traumatically bonded to their pimps, and despite enduring horrific violence, believe they are loved by them. Such cases of stockholm syndrome amongst victims of human trafficking is not uncommon.

● Boys fall victim to human trafficking too. Just like girls, the exact number of trafficked boys is unknown; and boys are often less likely to ask for help.

● LGBTQ youth are at especially high risk for human trafficking victimization. Transgender youth often feel that commercial sex is their only option, because employers often discriminate against them.

● Traffickers deny their victims an education or an ability to gain real employment skills. Ergo, human trafficking victims feel like they have no way out, as commercial sex is now their only resume.

Covenant House is on the front lines against human trafficking

Because so many young victims are homeless before being trafficked, they often have no place to go after escaping the bonds of this modern slavery. That's why Covenant House remains a refuge for these children – offering a 360-degree approach to ensure we can best serve young trafficking victims:

Advocacy

Covenant House is proud to be part of the strongest anti-trafficking coalition in the United States – identifying the specific needs of this incredibly vulnerable population and acting as a powerful voice for funding and services.

Research

Our research findings also allow us to learn more about the type and amount of trafficking our youth have experienced to better inform both our practice and our advocacy.

Impact

Direct care allows us to make the greatest impact in the lives of young trafficking survivors. But providing direct care also fuels groundbreaking research, which makes us better advocates for service, funding and laws that protect children.

 

Return to The Issues